Glossary
The terms in this glossary are defined in accordance with their meaning in
COBOL. These terms might or might not have the same meaning in other languages.
This glossary includes terms and definitions from the following publications:
- ANSI INCITS 23-1985, Programming Languages - COBOL as amended
by:
- ANSI INCITS 23a-1989, Programming Languages - Intrinsic Function Module for COBOL,
- ANSI INCITS 23b-1993, Programming Language - Correction Amendment for COBOL
- ANSI INCITS 172-2002 American National Standard Dictionary of Information Technology.
American National Standard definitions are preceded by an asterisk (*).
A
- * abbreviated combined relation condition
- The combined condition that results from the explicit omission of a common
subject or a common subject and common relational operator in a consecutive
sequence of relation conditions.
- abend
- Abnormal termination of program.
- * access mode
- The manner in which records are to be operated upon within a file.
- * actual decimal point
- The physical representation, using the decimal point characters period (.)
or comma (,), of the decimal point position in a data item.
- * alphabet-name
- A user-defined word, defined in the SPECIAL-NAMES paragraph of the
environment division, that names a specific character set or collating
sequence, or both.
- * alphabetic character
- A letter or a space character.
- alphabetic data item
- A data item described with a PICTURE character-string that contains
only the symbol A. An alphabetic data item has usage DISPLAY.
- alphanumeric character
- Any character in the computer's single-byte character set.
- alphanumeric character position
- See character position.
- alphanumeric data item
- A general reference to a data item described implicitly or
explicitly with usage DISPLAY and category alphanumeric,
alphanumeric-edited, or numeric-edited, possibly limited to specific data
categories or specific data descriptions by detailed specifications.
- alphanumeric-edited data item
- A data item described by a PICTURE character-string that contains at
least one symbol A or X and at least one of the simple insertion symbols B,
0, or /. An alphanumeric-edited data item has usage DISPLAY.
- * alphanumeric function
- A function that returns a value that is composed of a string of one or
more characters from the computer's alphanumeric character set.
- alphanumeric group item
- A group item that is defined without a GROUP-USAGE NATIONAL
clause. For operations such as INSPECT, STRING, and UNSTRING, an
alphanumeric group item is processed as though all its content were
described with usage DISPLAY, regardless of the actual content of the group.
For operations that require processing of the elementary items within a
group, such as MOVE CORRESPONDING, ADD CORRESPONDING, and INITIALIZE identifier,
an alphanumeric group item is processed using group semantics.
- alphanumeric literal
- A literal that has an opening delimiter from the following set:
The literal content can include any character in the character set of the
computer.
- * alternate record key
- A key, other than the prime record key, whose contents identify a record
within an indexed file.
- ANSI (American National Standards Institute)
- An organization consisting of producers, consumers, and general interest
groups, that establishes the procedures by which accredited organizations
create and maintain voluntary industry standards in the United States.
- argument
- (1) An identifier, a literal, an arithmetic expression, or a
function-identifier that specifies a value to be used in the evaluation of a
function. (2) An operand of the USING phrase of a CALL or INVOKE statement,
used for passing values to a called program or an invoked method.
- * arithmetic expression
- An identifier of a numeric elementary item, a numeric literal, such
identifiers and literals separated by arithmetic operators, two arithmetic
expressions separated by an arithmetic operator, or an arithmetic expression
enclosed in parentheses.
- * arithmetic operation
- The process caused by the execution of an arithmetic statement, or the
evaluation of an arithmetic expression, that results in a mathematically
correct solution to the arguments presented.
- * arithmetic operator
- A single character, or a fixed two-character combination that belongs to
the following set:
| Character |
Meaning |
| + |
Addition |
| - |
Subtraction |
| * |
Multiplication |
| / |
Division |
| ** |
Exponentiation |
- * arithmetic statement
- A statement that causes an arithmetic operation to be executed. The
arithmetic statements are the ADD, COMPUTE, DIVIDE, MULTIPLY, and SUBTRACT
statements.
- * ascending key
- A key, upon the values of which data is ordered starting with the lowest
value of the key up to the highest value of the key, in accordance with the
rules for comparing data items.
- ASCII
- American National Standard Code for Information Interchange. A standard
code, using a coded character set consisting of 7-bit coded characters (8
bits including parity check), used for information interchange between data
processing systems, data communication systems, and associated equipment.
The ASCII set consists of control characters and graphic characters.
IBM has defined an extension to ASCII (characters 128-255).
- ASCII DBCS
- See double-byte ASCII.
- assignment-name
- A name that identifies the organization of a COBOL file and the name by
which it is known to the system.
- * assumed decimal point
- A decimal point position that does not involve the existence of an actual
character in a data item. The assumed decimal point has logical meaning with
no physical representation.
- * AT END condition
- A condition that exists in the following circumstances:
- During the execution of a READ statement for a sequentially accessed
file, when no next logical record exists in the file, or when the number
of significant digits in the relative record number is larger than the
size of the relative key data item, or when an optional input file is
not present.
- During the execution of a RETURN statement, when no next logical
record exists for the associated sort or merge file.
- During the execution of a SEARCH statement, when the search operation
terminates without satisfying the condition specified in any of the
associated WHEN phrases.
B
- basic character set
- The basic set of characters used in writing words, character-strings, and
separators of the language. The basic character set is implemented in
single-byte characters.
The extended character set includes DBCS characters, which can be used in comments,
literals, and user-defined words.
Synonymous with COBOL character set in Standard COBOL 85.
- big-endian
- The default format used by the mainframe to store binary data. In this format, the least
significant digit is on the highest address. See also little-endian.
- binary item
- A numeric data item represented in binary notation (on the base 2
numbering system). Binary items have a decimal equivalent consisting of the
decimal digits 0 through 9, plus an operational sign. The leftmost bit of
the item is the operational sign.
- binary search
- A dichotomizing search in which, at each step of the search, the set of
data elements is divided by two; some appropriate action is taken in the
case of an odd number.
- * block
- A physical unit of data that is normally composed of one or more logical
records. For mass storage files, a block can contain a portion of a logical
record. The size of a block has no direct relationship to the size of the
file within which the block is contained or to the size of the logical
records that are either contained within the block or that overlap the
block. The term is synonymous with physical record.
- breakpoint
- A place in an object program, usually specified by an
instruction, where external intervention or a monitor program can interrupt
the object program as it runs.
- Btrieve
- A key-indexed record management system that allows
applications to manage records by key value, sequential access method, or
random access method. COBOL for Windows supports sequential and indexed file I-O
language through Btrieve.
- buffer
- A portion of storage used to hold input or output data temporarily.
- byte
- A string consisting of a certain number of bits, usually eight, treated as
a unit.
- byte order mark (BOM)
- A Unicode character that can be used at the start of UTF-16 or UTF-32 text
to indicate the byte order of subsequent text; the byte order can be either
big endian or little endian.
C
- CCSID
- See coded character set identifier.
- century window
- A 100-year interval within which any two-digit year is unique. There are
several types of century window available to COBOL programmers:
- For windowed date fields, it is specified by the YEARWINDOW compiler
option.
- For windowing intrinsic functions DATE-TO-YYYYMMDD, DAY-TO-YYYYDDD,
and YEAR-TO-YYYY, it is specified by argument-2.
- * character
- The basic indivisible unit of the language.
- character encoding unit
- A unit of data that corresponds to one code point in a coded character
set. One or more character encoding units are used to represent a character
in a coded character set. Also known as encoding unit.
For usage NATIONAL, a character encoding unit corresponds to one 2-byte
code point of UTF-16.
For usage DISPLAY, a character encoding unit corresponds to a byte.
For usage DISPLAY-1, a character encoding unit corresponds to a 2-byte
code point in the DBCS character set.
- character position
- The amount of physical storage or presentation space required for holding
or presenting one character. The term applies to any class of character. For
specific classes of characters, the following terms apply:
- Alphanumeric character position, for characters represented
in usage DISPLAY
- DBCS character position, for DBCS characters represented in
usage DISPLAY-1
- National character position, for characters represented in
usage NATIONAL; synonymous with character encoding unit for UTF-16
- character set
- See basic character set and coded character set.
- * character-string
- A sequence of contiguous characters that forms a COBOL word, a literal, a
PICTURE character-string, or a comment-entry. Must be delimited by
separators.
- checkpoint
- A point at which information about the status of a job and the system can
be recorded so that the job step can be restarted later.
- class (object-oriented)
- The entity that defines common behavior and implementation for zero, one,
or more objects. The objects that share the same implementation are
considered to be objects of the same class.
- * class condition
- The proposition (for which a truth value can be determined) that the
content of an item is wholly alphabetic, is wholly numeric, is wholly DBCS,
is wholly Kanji, or consists exclusively of the characters that are listed
in the definition of a class-name.
- class definition
- The COBOL source unit that defines a class.
- class-name (object-oriented)
- The name of an object-oriented class definition. Class-name can
refer to a COBOL class-name or a Java class-name.
- * class-name (of data)
- A user-defined word, defined in the SPECIAL-NAMES paragraph, that refers
to the proposition for which a truth value can be defined, that the content
of a data item consists exclusively of those characters listed in the
definition of the class-name.
- * clause
- An ordered set of consecutive COBOL character-strings whose purpose is to
specify an attribute of an entry.
- COBOL character set
- See basic character set.
- * COBOL word
- See word.
- code page
- An assignment of graphic characters and control character meanings to the
code points in a coded character set; for example, assignment of characters
and meanings to the 256 code points in single-byte EBCDIC or ASCII. The
terms coded character set and code page can be used
interchangeably.
- code point
- A unique bit pattern defined in a code page. Graphic symbols and control
characters are assigned to code points.
- coded character set
- A set of graphic characters and control characters along with their
unambiguous assignment to specific code points (their encodings). EBCDIC is
an example of a coded character set. A specific instance of encodings is
called a code page. A code page specified by IBM is identified by a CCSID.
- coded character set identifier (CCSID)
- An IBM-defined number in the range 1 to 65,535 that identifies a specific
code page.
- * collating sequence
- The sequence in which the characters that are acceptable to a computer are
ordered for purposes of sorting, merging, comparing, and for processing
indexed files sequentially.
- column
- A byte position within a print line or within a reference format line. The
columns are numbered from 1, by 1, starting at the leftmost position of the
line and extending to the rightmost position of the line. A column holds one
single-byte character.
- * combined condition
- A condition that is the result of connecting two or more conditions with
the AND or the OR logical operator.
- * comment-entry
- An entry in the identification division that is used for documentation and
has no effect on execution.
- * comment line
- A source text line represented by an asterisk (*) in the indicator area of
the line and any characters from the computer's character set in area A and
area B of that line. The comment line serves only for documentation. A
special form of comment line represented by a forward slash (/) in the
indicator area of the line and any characters from the computer's character
set in area A and area B of that line causes page ejection prior to printing
the comment.
- * common program
- A program that, despite being directly contained within another program,
is permitted to be called from any program directly or indirectly contained
in that other program.
- compatible date field
- The meaning of the term compatible, when applied to date fields,
depends on the COBOL division in which the usage occurs:
- data division
Two date fields are compatible if they have identical USAGE and meet
at least one of the following conditions:
- They have the same date format.
- Both are windowed date fields, where one consists only of a
windowed year, DATE FORMAT YY.
- Both are expanded date fields, where one consists only of an
expanded year, DATE FORMAT YYYY.
- One has DATE FORMAT YYXXXX, the other, YYXX.
- One has DATE FORMAT YYYYXXXX, the other, YYYYXX.
A windowed date field can be subordinate to an expanded date group
data item. The two date fields are compatible if the subordinate date
field has USAGE DISPLAY, starts two bytes after the start of the group
expanded date field, and the two fields meet at least one of the
following conditions:
- The subordinate date field has a DATE FORMAT pattern with the same
number of Xs as the DATE FORMAT pattern of the group date field.
- The subordinate date field has DATE FORMAT YY.
- The group date field has DATE FORMAT YYYYXXXX and the subordinate
date field has DATE FORMAT YYXX.
- procedure division
Two date fields are compatible if they have the same date format
except for the year part, which can be windowed or expanded. For
example, a windowed date field with DATE FORMAT YYXXX is compatible
with:
- Another windowed date field with DATE FORMAT YYXXX
- An expanded date field with DATE FORMAT YYYYXXX
- compilation unit
- See source unit.
- * compile time
- The time at which COBOL source code is translated by a COBOL compiler to a
COBOL object program.
- compiler-directing statement
- A statement that causes the compiler to take a specific action during
compilation. The standard compiler-directing statements are COPY, REPLACE,
and USE.
- compiler-directive
- A directive that causes the compiler to take a specific
action during compilation. COBOL for Windows has one compiler directive,
CALLINTERFACE. You can code multiple CALLINTERFACE directives within a
program to use specific interface conventions for specific CALL statements.
- * complex condition
- A condition in which one or more logical operators act upon one or more
conditions. See also negated simple condition, combined
condition, and negated combined condition.
- complex ODO
- Certain forms of the OCCURS DEPENDING ON clause:
- A variably located item or group: A data item described with an OCCURS
clause with the DEPENDING ON phrase, followed by a nonsubordinate data
item or group.
The group can be an alphanumeric group or a
national group.
- A variably located table: A data item described with an OCCURS clause
with the DEPENDING ON phrase, followed by a nonsubordinate data item
described with an OCCURS clause.
- A table with variable-length elements: A data item described with an
OCCURS clause, where a subordinate data item is described with an OCCURS
clause with the DEPENDING ON phrase.
- An index name for a table with variable-length elements.
- An element of a table with variable-length elements.
- * condition (expression)
- A status of data at run time for which a truth value can be determined.
Where the term 'condition' (condition-1, condition-2,...)
appears in these language specifications in or in reference to 'condition' (condition-1,
condition-2,...) of a general format, it is a conditional
expression consisting of either a simple condition optionally parenthesized,
or a combined condition consisting of the syntactically correct combination
of simple conditions, logical operators, and parentheses, for which a truth
value can be determined.
- * conditional expression
- A simple condition or a complex condition specified in an EVALUATE, IF,
PERFORM, or SEARCH statement. See also simple condition and complex
condition.
- * conditional phrase
- A conditional phrase specifies the action to be taken upon determination
of the truth value of a condition resulting from the execution of a
conditional statement.
- * conditional statement
- A statement specifying that the truth value of a condition is to be
determined and that the subsequent action of the object program is dependent
on this truth value.
- * conditional variable
- A data item one or more values of which has a condition-name assigned to
it.
- * condition-name
- A user-defined word that assigns a name to a subset of values that a
conditional variable is permitted to assume; or a user-defined word assigned
to a status of an implementor defined switch or device.
- * condition-name condition
- The proposition, for which a truth value can be determined, that the value
of a conditional variable is a member of the set of values attributed to a
condition-name associated with the conditional variable.
- * configuration section
- A section of the environment division that describes overall
specifications of source and object programs, method definitions, and class
definitions.
- CONSOLE
- A COBOL environment-name associated with the operator console.
- * contiguous items
- Items that are described by consecutive entries in the data division, and
that bear a definite hierarchic relationship to each other.
- contained program
- A COBOL program that is nested within another COBOL program.
- * counter
- A data item used for storing numbers or number representations in a manner
that permits these numbers to be increased or decreased by the value of
another number, or to be changed or reset to zero or to an arbitrary
positive or negative value.
- cs
- See currency symbol.
- currency sign value
- A character-string that identifies the monetary units stored in a
numeric-edited item. Some examples are '$', 'USD', 'JPY', and 'EUR'. A
currency sign value can be defined by either the CURRENCY compiler option or
the CURRENCY SIGN clause in the SPECIAL-NAMES paragraph of the environment
division. If the CURRENCY SIGN clause is not specified and the NOCURRENCY
compiler option is in effect, the dollar sign ($) is used as the default
currency sign value. See also currency symbol.
- currency symbol
- A character used in a PICTURE clause to indicate the position of a currency
sign value in a numeric-edited item. A currency symbol can be defined
by either the CURRENCY compiler option or by the CURRENCY SIGN clause in the
SPECIAL-NAMES paragraph of the environment division. If the CURRENCY SIGN
clause is not specified and the NOCURRENCY compiler option is in effect, the
dollar sign ($) is used as the default currency sign value and currency
symbol. Multiple currency symbols and currency sign values can be defined.
See also currency sign value.
- * current record
- In file processing, the record that is available in the record area
associated with a file.
- * current volume pointer
- A conceptual entity that points to the current volume of a sequential
file.
D
- * data description entry
- An entry in the data division composed of a level-number followed by a
data-name, if required, and then followed by a set of clauses that describe
the attributes of a data item or record.
- * data division
- A COBOL division that describes data and files to be processed at run
time.
- * data item
- A unit of data (excluding literals) defined by a COBOL program or by the
rules for function evaluation.
- * data-name
- A user-defined word that names a data item described in a data description
entry. The maximum length of a data-name is 30 bytes. When used in the
general formats, 'data-name' represents a word that must not be
reference-modified, subscripted or qualified unless specifically permitted
by the rules for the format.
- date field
- Any of the following:
- A data item whose data description entry includes a DATE FORMAT
clause.
- A value returned by one of the following intrinsic functions:
- DATE-OF-INTEGER
- DATE-TO-YYYYMMDD
- DATEVAL
- DAY-OF-INTEGER
- DAY-TO-YYYYDDD
- YEAR-TO-YYYY
- YEARWINDOW
- The conceptual data items DATE, DATE YYYYMMDD, DAY, and DAY YYYYDDD of
the ACCEPT statement.
- The result of certain arithmetic operations (for details, see Arithmetic with date fields).
The term date field refers to both expanded date field and windowed
date field. See also nondate.
- date format
- The date pattern of a date field, specified either:
- Explicitly, by the DATE FORMAT clause or DATEVAL intrinsic function
argument-2
- Implicitly, by statements and intrinsic functions that return date
fields (for details, see Date field).
- DBCS
- See Double-Byte Character Set (DBCS).
- DBCS character
- Any character defined in an IBM double-byte character set.
- DBCS character position
- See character position.
- DBCS data item
- A data item described by a PICTURE character-string that contains at
least one symbol G or, when the NSYMBOL(DBCS) compiler option is in effect,
at least one symbol N. A DBCS data item has usage DISPLAY-1.
- * debugging line
- A debugging line is any line with a 'D' in the indicator area of the line.
- * debugging section
- A section that contains a USE FOR DEBUGGING statement.
- * declaratives
- A set of one or more special purpose sections, written at the beginning of
the procedure division, the first of which is preceded by the keyword
DECLARATIVES and the last of which is followed by the keyword END
DECLARATIVES. A declarative is composed of a section header, followed by a
USE compiler-directing sentence, followed by a set of zero, one, or more
associated paragraphs.
- * de-edit
- The logical removal of all editing characters from a numeric-edited data
item in order to determine that item's unedited numeric value.
- * delimited scope statement
- Any statement that includes its explicit scope terminator.
- * delimiter
- A character or a sequence of contiguous characters that identify the end
of a string of characters and separate that string of characters from the
following string of characters. A delimiter is not part of the string of
characters that it delimits.
- * descending key
- A key upon the values of which data is ordered starting with the highest
value of key down to the lowest value of key, in accordance with the rules
for comparing data items.
- digit
- Any of the numerals from 0 through 9. In COBOL, the term is not used in
reference to any other symbol.
- * digit position
- The amount of physical storage required to store a single digit. This
amount can vary depending on the usage specified in the data description
entry that defines the data item.
- * direct access
- The facility to obtain data from storage devices or to enter data into a
storage device in such a way that the process depends only on the location
of that data and not on a reference to data previously accessed.
- display floating-point data item
- A data item described with usage DISPLAY and a picture
character-string that describes an external floating-point data item. See floating-point.
- * division
- There are four divisions in a COBOL program: identification, environment,
data, and procedure.
- * division header
- A combination of words followed by a separator period that indicates the
beginning of a division. The division headers are:
- IDENTIFICATION DIVISION.
- ENVIRONMENT DIVISION.
- DATA DIVISION.
- PROCEDURE DIVISION.
- do-until
- In structured programming, a do-until loop will be executed at least once,
and until a given condition is true. In COBOL, a TEST AFTER phrase used with
the PERFORM statement functions in the same way.
- do-while
- In structured programming, a do-while loop will be executed if, and while,
a given condition is true. In COBOL, a TEST BEFORE phrase used with the
PERFORM statement functions in the same way.
- double-byte ASCII
- An IBM character set that includes DBCS and single-byte ASCII characters.
(Also known as ASCII DBCS.)
- double-byte EBCDIC
- An IBM character set that includes DBCS and single-byte EBCDIC characters.
(Also known as EBCDIC DBCS.)
- Double-Byte Character Set (DBCS)
- An IBM coded character set in which each character is represented by two
bytes. Languages such as Japanese, Chinese, and Korean, which contain more
symbols than can be represented by 256 code points, require double-byte
character sets. Because each character requires two bytes, entering,
displaying, and printing DBCS characters requires hardware and supporting
software that are DBCS-capable.
- * dynamic access
- An access mode in which specific logical records can be obtained from or
placed into a mass storage file in a nonsequential manner and obtained from
a file in a sequential manner during the scope of the same OPEN statement.
E
- EBCDIC (Extended Binary-Coded Decimal Interchange Code)
- A coded character set consisting of 8-bit coded characters.
- EBCDIC character
- Any one of the graphic characters or control characters encoded in EBCDIC.
- EBCDIC DBCS
- See double-byte EBCDIC.
- encoding unit
- See character encoding unit.
- edited data item
- A data item that has been modified by suppressing zeroes or inserting
editing characters.
- * editing character
- A single character or a fixed two-character combination belonging to the
following set:
| Character |
Meaning |
| |
Space |
| 0 |
Zero |
| + |
Plus |
| - |
Minus |
| CR |
Credit |
| DB |
Debit |
| Z |
Zero suppress |
| * |
Check protect |
| $ |
Currency sign |
| , |
Comma (decimal point) |
| . |
Period (decimal point) |
| / |
Forward slash |
- * elementary item
- A data item that is described as not being further logically subdivided.
- encoding unit
- See character encoding unit.
- * end class marker
- A combination of words, followed by a separator period, that indicates the
end of a COBOL class definition. The end class marker is:
END CLASS class-name.
- * end method marker
- A combination of words, followed by a separator period, that indicates the
end of a COBOL method definition. The end method marker is:
END METHOD method-name.
- * end of procedure division
- The physical position of a COBOL procedure division after which no further
procedures appear.
- * end program marker
- A combination of words, followed by a separator period, that indicates the
end of a COBOL source program. The end program marker is:
END PROGRAM program-name.
- * entry
- Any descriptive set of consecutive clauses written in the identification
division, environment division, or data division of a COBOL program.
- * environment division
- A division of a COBOL source unit that describes the computers upon which
the source code is compiled and those on which the object code is run. It
provides a linkage between the logical concept of files and their records
and the physical aspects of the devices on which files are stored.
- environment-name
- A name, specified by IBM, that identifies system logical units, printer
and card punch control characters, report codes, or program switches. When
an environment-name is associated with a mnemonic-name in the environment
division, the mnemonic-name can then be substituted in any format in which
such substitution is valid.
- environment variable
- Any of a number of variables that define some aspect of the computing
environment, and are accessible to programs that operate in that
environment. Environment variables can affect the behavior of programs that
are sensitive to the environment in which they operate.
- execution time
- See run time.
- execution-time environment
- See runtime environment.
- expanded date field
- A date field containing an expanded (four-digit) year. See also date
field and expanded year.
- expanded year
- A date field that consists only of a four-digit year. Its value includes
the century: for example, 1998. Compare with windowed year.
- * explicit scope terminator
- A reserved word that terminates the scope of a particular procedure
division statement. For example, END-READ.
- exponent
- A number, indicating the power to which another number (the base) is to be
raised. Positive exponents denote multiplication, negative exponents denote
division, fractional exponents denote a root of a quantity. In COBOL, an
exponential expression is indicated with the symbol '**' followed by the
exponent.
- * expression
- An arithmetic or conditional expression.
- * extend mode
- The state of a file after execution of an OPEN statement, with the EXTEND
phrase specified for that file, and before the execution of a CLOSE
statement, without the REEL or UNIT phrase for that file.
- Extensible Markup Language
- See XML.
- * external data
- The data described in a program as external data items and external file
connectors.
- * external data item
- A data item that is described as part of an external record in one or more
programs of a run unit and that itself is permitted to be referenced from
any program in which it is described.
- * external data record
- A logical record which is described in one or more programs of a run unit
and whose constituent data items are permitted to be referenced from any
program in which they are described.
- external decimal data item
- A zoned decimal data item or a national decimal data item. A zoned
decimal data item has usage DISPLAY. A national decimal data item has usage
NATIONAL. See zoned decimal data item and national decimal data
item.
- * external file connector
- A file connector which is accessible to one or more object programs in the
run unit.
- external floating-point data item
- A display floating-point data item or a national floating-point data
item. A display floating-point data item has usage DISPLAY. A national
floating-point data item has usage NATIONAL. See display floating-point
data item and national floating-point data item.
- * external switch
- A hardware or software device, defined and named by the implementor, which
is used to indicate that one of two alternate states exists.
F
- factory data
- Data of a factory object. Factory data is allocated once for a class and
shared by all instances of the class. Factory data is declared in the
working-storage section in the factory paragraph of a class definition.
Factory data is equivalent to private static data in Java.
- factory method
- A method that is supported by a class independently of any object
instance. Factory methods are defined in the factory paragraph of the class
definition, and are equivalent to public static methods in Java. They are
typically used to customize the creation of objects.
- * figurative constant
- A compiler-generated value referenced through the use of certain reserved
words.
- * file
- A collection of logical records.
- * file attribute conflict condition
- An unsuccessful attempt has been made to execute an input-output operation
on a file and the file attributes, as specified for that file in the
program, do not match the fixed attributes for that file.
- * file connector
- A storage area which contains information about a file and is used as the
linkage between a file-name and a physical file and between a file-name and
its associated record area.
- * file control entry
- A SELECT clause and all its subordinate clauses which declare the relevant
physical attributes of a file.
- file-control paragraph
- A paragraph in the environment division in which the data files for a
given source unit are declared.
- * file description entry
- An entry in the file section of the data division that is composed of the
level indicator FD, followed by a file-name, and then followed by a set of
clauses that include the attributes of the file.
- * file-name
- A user-defined word that names a file connector described in a file
description entry or a sort-merge file description entry within the file
section of the data division.
- * file organization
- The permanent logical file structure established at the time that a file
is created.
- *file position indicator
- A conceptual entity that contains the value of the current key within the
key of reference for an indexed file, or the record number of the current
record for a sequential file, or the relative record number of the current
record for a relative file, or indicates that no next logical record exists,
or that an optional input file is not present, or that the at end condition
already exists, or that no valid next record has been established.
- * file section
- The section of the data division that contains file description entries
and sort-merge file description entries together with their associated
record descriptions.
- file system
- The collection of files and file management structures on a physical or
logical mass storage device, such as a diskette or minidisk.
- * fixed file attributes
- Information about a file which is established when a file is created and
cannot subsequently be changed during the existence of the file. These
attributes include the organization of the file (sequential, relative, or
indexed), the prime record key, the alternate record keys, the code set, the
minimum and maximum record size, the record type (fixed or variable), the
collating sequence of the keys for indexed files, the blocking factor, the
padding character, and the record delimiter.
- * fixed-length record
- A record associated with a file whose file description or sort-merge
description entry requires that all records contain the same number of
bytes.
- fixed-point item
- A numeric data item defined with a PICTURE clause that specifies the
location of an optional sign, the number of digits it contains, and the
location of an optional decimal point. The format can be either binary,
packed decimal, or external decimal.
- floating-point
- A format for representing numbers in which a real number is
represented by a pair of distinct numerals. In floating-point
representation, the real number is the product of the fixed-point part (the
first numeral), and a value obtained by raising the implicit floating-point
base to a power denoted by the exponent (the second numeral).
For example, a floating-point representation of the number
0.0001234 is: 0.1234 -3, where 0.1234 is the mantissa and -3 is the
exponent.
- floating-point item
- A numeric data item containing a fraction and an exponent. Its value is
obtained by multiplying the fraction by the base of the numeric data item
raised to the power specified by the exponent.
- * format
- A specific arrangement of a set of data.
- * function
- A temporary data item whose value is determined at the time the function
is referenced during the execution of a statement.
- * function-identifier
- A syntactically correct combination of character-strings and separators
that references a function. The data item represented by a function is
uniquely identified by a function-name with its arguments, if any. A
function-identifier can include a reference-modifier. A function-identifier
that references an alphanumeric function can be specified anywhere in the
general formats that an identifier can be specified, subject to certain
restrictions. A function-identifier that references an integer or numeric
function can be referenced anywhere in the general formats that an
arithmetic expression can be specified.
- function-name
- A word that names the mechanism whose invocation, along with required
arguments, determines the value of a function.
- function-pointer
- A data item that can contain the address of a procedure or function,
described with a usage of FUNCTION-POINTER.
G
- garbage collection
- The automatic freeing by the Java runtime system of the memory for objects
that are no longer referenced.
- * global name
- A name that is declared in only one program but which can be referenced
from that program and from any program contained within that program.
Condition-names, data-names, file-names, record-names, report-names, and
some special registers can be global names.
- group item
- (1) A data item that is composed of subordinate data items. A group
item that is described with an explicit or implicit GROUP-USAGE NATIONAL
clause is a national group item. A group that is described without a
GROUP-USAGE NATIONAL clause is an alphanumeric group item. See alphanumeric
group item and national group item. (2) When not qualified
explicitly or by context as a national group or an alphanumeric group, the
term refers to groups in general.
- grouping separator
- A character used to separate units of digits in numbers for ease of
reading. The default is the character comma.
H
- header label
- (1) A file label or data set label that precedes the data records on a
unit of recording media. (2) Synonym for beginning-of-file label.
- hide (a method)
- To redefine (in a subclass) a factory or static method defined with the
same method-name in a parent class. Thus, the method in the subclass hides
the method in the parent class.
- * high order end
- The leftmost character of a string of characters.
I
- IBM extensions
- COBOL syntax and semantics specified by IBM, rather than by Standard COBOL 85.
- ICU
- See International Components for Unicode (ICU).
- identification division
- One of the four main component parts of a COBOL program, class definition,
or method definition. The identification division identifies the program,
class, or method. The identification division can include the following
documentation: author name, installation, or date.
- * identifier
- Syntax that references a resource, such as a data item. An identifier that
refers to data item includes the data-name and optionally includes
qualifiers, subscripting, and reference modification.
- * imperative statement
- A statement that specifies an unconditional action to be taken or a
conditional statement that is delimited by its explicit scope terminator (a
delimited scope statement). An imperative statement can consist of a
sequence of imperative statements.
- * implicit scope terminator
- A separator period that terminates the scope of any preceding unterminated
statement, or a phrase of a statement that by its occurrence indicates the
end of the scope of any statement contained within the preceding phrase.
- * index
- A computer storage area or register, the content of which represents the
identification of a particular element in a table.
- * index data item
- A data item in which the values associated with an index-name can be
stored in a form specified by the implementor.
- indexed data-name
- An identifier that is composed of a data-name, followed by one or more
index-names enclosed in parentheses.
- * indexed file
- A file with indexed organization.
- * indexed organization
- The permanent logical file structure in which each record is identified by
the value of one or more keys within that record.
- indexing
- Subscripting using index-names.
- * index-name
- A user-defined word that names an index associated with a specific table.
- * inheritance
- A mechanism for using the implementation of a class (the superclass)
as the basis for a new class (a subclass). Each subclass
inherits from exactly one class. The inherited class can itself be a
subclass that inherits from another class.
COBOL for Windows does not support multiple inheritance. It supports the Java
object model, which provides single inheritance.
- * initial program
- A program that is placed into an initial state every time the program is
called in a run unit.
- * initial state
- The state of a program when it is first called in a run unit.
- inline
- In a program, instructions that are executed sequentially, without
branching to routines, subroutines, or other programs.
- * input file
- A file that is opened in the INPUT mode.
- * input mode
- The state of a file after execution of an OPEN statement, with the INPUT
phrase specified, for that file and before the execution of a CLOSE
statement, without the REEL or UNIT phrase for that file.
- * input-output file
- A file that is opened in the I-O mode.
- * input-output section
- The section of the environment division that names the files and the
external media required by a program or method and that provides information
required for transmission and handling of data at run time.
- * input-output statement
- A statement that causes files to be processed by performing operations
upon individual records or upon the file as a unit. The input-output
statements are: ACCEPT (with the identifier phrase), CLOSE, DELETE, DISPLAY,
OPEN, READ, REWRITE, SET (with the TO ON or TO OFF phrase), START, and
WRITE.
- * input procedure
- A set of statements, to which control is given during the execution of a
SORT statement, for the purpose of controlling the release of specified
records to be sorted.
- instance data
- Data defining the state of an object instance. Instance data is declared
in the working-storage section of the object paragraph of a class
definition. Also called object instance data. Each object instance
has its own copy of instance data. Instance data is equivalent to private
nonstatic member data in a Java class.
- instance method
- A method defined in the object paragraph of a class definition. Instance
methods are equivalent to public nonstatic methods in Java.
- * integer
- (1) A numeric literal that does not include any digit positions to the
right of the decimal point. (2) A numeric data item defined in the data
division that does not include any digit positions to the right of the
decimal point. (3) A numeric function whose definition provides that all
digits to the right of the decimal point are zero in the returned value for
any possible evaluation of the function.
- * integer function
- A function whose category is numeric and whose definition does not include
any digit positions to the right of the decimal point.
- interlanguage communication (ILC)
- The ability of routines written in different programming languages to
communicate. ILC support allows the application writer to readily build
applications from component routines written in a variety of languages.
- intermediate result
- An intermediate field containing the results of a succession of arithmetic
operations.
- * internal data
- The data described in a program excluding all external data items and
external file connectors. Items described in the linkage section of a
program are treated as internal data.
- * internal data item
- A data item which is described in one program in a run unit. An internal
data item can have a global name.
- internal decimal data item
- A data item that is described with usage PACKED-DECIMAL or COMP-3
and a PICTURE character-string that defines the item as numeric (a valid
combination of symbols 9, S, P, or V). Synonymous with packed decimal
item.
- * internal file connector
- A file connector that is accessible to only one object program in the run
unit.
- International Components for Unicode (ICU)
- An open source development project sponsored, supported,
and used by IBM. ICU libraries provide robust and full-featured Unicode
services on a wide variety of platforms, including Windows.
- internal floating-point data item
- A data item that is described with usage COMP-1 or COMP-2. COMP-1
defines a single-precision floating-point data item. COMP-2 defines a
double-precision floating-point data item. There is no PICTURE clause
associated with an internal floating-point data item.
- intrinsic function
- A function defined as part of the COBOL language. In some programming
languages, this is called a built-in function.
- * invalid key condition
- A condition, at run time, caused when a specific value of the key
associated with an indexed or relative file is determined to be invalid.
- * I-O mode
- The state of a file after execution of an OPEN statement, with the I-O
phrase specified, for that file and before the execution of a CLOSE
statement without the REEL or UNIT phase for that file.
- * I-O status
- A conceptual entity which contains the two-character value indicating the
resulting status of an input-output operation. This value is made available
to the program through the use of the FILE STATUS clause in the file control
entry for the file.
J
-
Java
Native Interface (JNI)
- A programming interface that allows Java code running inside a Java
virtual machine (JVM) to interoperate with applications and libraries
written in other programming languages.
K
- K
- When referring to storage capacity, two to the tenth power; 1024 in
decimal notation.
- * key
- A data item that identifies the location of a record, or a set of data
items which serve to identify the ordering of data.
- * key of reference
- The key, either prime or alternate, currently being used to access records
within an indexed file.
- * keyword
- A reserved word or function-name whose presence is required when the
format in which the word appears is used in a source unit.
- kilobyte (KB)
- One kilobyte equals 1024 bytes.
L
- * language-name
- A system-name that specifies a particular programming language.
- last-used state
- The state of storage in which internal values remain the same as when the
program was exited (are not reset to their
initial values on reentry).
- * letter
- A character belonging to one of the following two sets:
- Uppercase letters: A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K, L, M, N, O, P, Q,
R, S, T, U, V, W, X, Y, Z
- Lowercase letters: a, b, c, d, e, f, g, h, i, j, k, l, m, n, o, p, q,
r, s, t, u, v, w, x, y, z
- * level indicator
- Two alphabetic characters that identify a specific type of file or a
position in a hierarchy. The level indicators in the data division are: CD,
FD, and SD.
- * level-number
- A user-defined word, expressed as a two-digit number, which indicates the
hierarchical position of a data item or the special properties of a data
description entry. Level-numbers in the range from 1 through 49 indicate the
position of a data item in the hierarchical structure of a logical record.
Level-numbers in the range 1 through 9 can be written either as a single
digit or as a zero followed by a significant digit. Level-numbers 66, 77 and
88 identify special properties of a data description entry.
- * library-name
- A user-defined word that names a COBOL library that is to be used by the
compiler for a given compilation.
- * library text
- A sequence of text words, comment lines, the separator space, or the
separator pseudo-text delimiter in a COBOL library.
- Lilian date
- The number of days since the beginning of the Gregorian calendar. Day one
is Friday, October 15, 1582. The Lilian date format is named in honor of
Luigi Lilio, the creator of the Gregorian calendar.
- * LINAGE-COUNTER
- A special register whose value points to the current position within the
page body.
- linkage section
- The section in the data division of an activated unit (a called program or
an invoked method) that describes data items available from the activating
unit (a program or a method). These data items can be referred to by both
the activated unit and the activating unit.
- literal
- A character-string whose value is specified either by the ordered set of
characters comprising the string, or by the use of a figurative constant.
- little-endian
- The default format that
Intel®
processors use to store binary
data. In this format, the most significant digit is at the highest address.
See also big-endian.
- locale
- A set of attributes for a program execution environment
that indicates culturally sensitive considerations, such as: character code
page, collating sequence, date/time format, monetary value representation,
numeric value representation, or language.
- local-storage section
- The section of the data division that defines storage that is allocated
and freed on a per-invocation basis, depending on the value assigned in
their VALUE clauses.
- * logical operator
- One of the reserved words AND, OR, or NOT. In the formation of a
condition, either AND or OR, or both, can be used as logical connectives.
NOT can be used for logical negation.
- * logical record
- The most inclusive data item. The level-number for a record is 01. A
record can be either an elementary item or a group of items. The term is
synonymous with record.
- * low order end
- The rightmost character of a string of characters.
M
- main program
- In a hierarchy of programs and subroutines, the first program to receive
control when the programs are run.
- * mass storage
- A storage medium in which data can be organized and maintained in both a
sequential and nonsequential manner.
- * mass storage device
- A device having a large storage capacity; for example, magnetic disk,
magnetic drum.
- * mass storage file
- A collection of records that is assigned to a mass storage medium.
- MBCS
- See multibyte character set (MBCS).
- * megabyte (M)
- One megabyte equals 1,048,576 bytes.
- * merge file
- A collection of records to be merged by a MERGE statement. The merge file
is created and can be used only by the merge function.
- method
- Procedural code that defines one of the operations supported by an object.
Method procedural code is executed by a COBOL INVOKE statement on a specific
object instance. A method can be invoked by a Java invocation expression. A
method can be a factory method or an instance method.
- * method identification entry
- An entry in the METHOD-ID paragraph of the identification division that
contains clauses that specify the method-name and assign selected attributes
to the method definition.
- method invocation
- (1) The act of invoking a method. (2) The programming language syntax used
to invoke a method (the INVOKE statement in COBOL, a method invocation
expression in Java).
- * method-name
- A name that identifies a method, specified as the content of an
alphanumeric or national literal in the METHOD-ID paragraph, and as the
content of an alphanumeric literal, national literal, alphanumeric data
item, or
data item of category national in the INVOKE statement.
- method hiding
- See hide.
- method overloading
- See overload.
- method overriding
- See override.
- * mnemonic-name
- A user-defined word that is associated in the environment division with a
specified implementor-name.
- multibyte character
- Any character that is represented in 2 or more bytes in a
multibyte character set. For example, a DBCS character or any UTF-8
character that is represented in two or more bytes. UTF-16 characters are
not multibyte characters because UTF-16 is not a multibyte character set.
- multibyte character set (MBCS)
- A coded character set that is composed of characters
represented in a varying number of bytes. Examples are: Extended
UNIX®
Code, UTF-8, and character sets composed of a mixture of single-byte and
double-byte EBCDIC or ASCII characters.
N
- national character
- Any character represented in UTF-16.
- national character data
- A general reference to data represented in UTF-16.
- national character position
- See character position.
- national data
- See national character data.
- national data item
- A data item of class national. Class national includes categories
national, national-edited, and numeric-edited with USAGE NATIONAL.
- national decimal data item
- A data item described by a PICTURE character-string that contains valid
combinations of picture symbols 9, S, P, and V. A national decimal data item
is an external decimal data item that has usage NATIONAL.
- national-edited data item
- A data item described by a PICTURE character-string that contains
the symbol N and at least one of the simple insertion symbols B, 0, and /. A
national-edited data item has usage NATIONAL.
- national floating-point data item
- A data item described with usage NATIONAL and a picture
character-string that describes a floating-point data item. See floating-point.
- national group item
- A group item that is explicitly or implicitly described with a
GROUP-USAGE clause with the NATIONAL phrase. A national group is processed
as though it were defined as an elementary data item of category national
for operations such as INSPECT, STRING, and UNSTRING. This ensures correct
padding and truncation of national characters, as opposed to defining data
items described with USAGE NATIONAL within an alphanumeric group item. For
operations that require processing of the elementary items within a group,
such as MOVE CORRESPONDING, ADD CORRESPONDING, and INITIALIZE identifier,
a national group is processed using group semantics.
- * native character set
- The implementor-defined character set associated with the computer
specified in the OBJECT-COMPUTER paragraph.
- * native collating sequence
- The implementor-defined collating sequence associated with the computer
specified in the OBJECT-COMPUTER paragraph.
- * negated combined condition
- The 'NOT' logical operator immediately followed by a parenthesized
combined condition.
- * negated simple condition
- The 'NOT' logical operator immediately followed by a simple condition.
- nested program
- A program that is directly contained within another program.
- * next executable sentence
- The next sentence to which control will be transferred after execution of
the current statement is complete.
- * next executable statement
- The next statement to which control will be transferred after execution of
the current statement is complete.
- * next record
- The record that logically follows the current record of a file.
- * noncontiguous items
- Elementary data items in the working-storage and linkage sections that
bear no hierarchic relationship to other data items.
- nondate
- Any of the following:
- A data item whose date description entry does not include the DATE
FORMAT clause
- A literal
- A date field that has been converted using the UNDATE function
- A reference-modified date field
- The result of certain arithmetic operations that can include date
field operands; for example, the difference between two compatible date
fields
- null
- Figurative constant used to assign the value of an invalid address to
pointer data items. NULLS can be used wherever NULL can be used.
- * numeric character
- A character that belongs to the following set of digits: 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5,
6, 7, 8, 9.
- numeric data item
- (1) A data item whose description restricts its content to a value
represented by characters chosen from the digits from '0' through '9'; if
signed, the item can also contain a '+', '-', or other representation of an
operational sign.
(2) A data item of class numeric and category
numeric, internal floating-point, or external floating-point, possibly
limited to specific data categories or specific data descriptions by
detailed specifications. A numeric data item can have usage DISPLAY,
NATIONAL, PACKED-DECIMAL, BINARY, COMP, COMP-1, COMP-2, COMP-3, COMP-4, or
COMP-5.
- numeric-edited data item
- A data item that contains numeric data in a form suitable for use in
printed output. It can consist of external decimal digits from 0 through 9,
the decimal separator, commas, the currency sign, sign control characters,
and other editing characters.
A numeric-edited data item can be
represented in usage DISPLAY or usage NATIONAL.
- * numeric function
- A function whose class and category are numeric but which for some
possible evaluation does not satisfy the requirements of integer functions.
- * numeric literal
- A literal composed of one or more numeric characters. It can contain
either a decimal point, or an algebraic sign, or both. The decimal point
must not be the rightmost character. The algebraic sign, if present, must be
the leftmost character.
O
- object
- An entity that has state (its data values) and operations (its methods).
An object is a way to encapsulate state and behavior.
- object code
- Output from a compiler or assembler that is itself executable machine code
or is suitable for processing to produce executable machine code.
- * object-computer
- The name of an environment division paragraph in which the computer
environment, within which the program is executed, is described.
- object deck
- A portion of an object program suitable as input to a linkage editor. The
term is synonymous with object module and text deck.
- object instance
- A single object, of possibly many, instantiated from the specifications in
the object paragraph of a COBOL class definition. An object instance has a
copy of all the data described in its class definition and all inherited
data. The methods associated with an object instance includes the methods
defined in its class definition and all inherited methods.
An object instance can be an instance of a Java class.
- object module
- Synonym for object deck or text deck.
- * object of entry
- A set of operands and reserved words, within a data division entry of a
COBOL program, that immediately follows the subject of the entry.
- object program
- A set or group of executable machine language instructions and other
material designed to interact with data to provide problem solutions. In
this context, an object program is generally the machine language result of
the operation of a COBOL compiler on a source program or on the methods of
an object-oriented class definition. Where there is no danger of ambiguity,
the word 'program' alone can be used in place of the phrase 'object
program'.
- object reference
- A data item that can contain the information needed to invoke or refer to
an object. An object reference is defined in COBOL with the OBJECT REFERENCE
phrase in the USAGE clause of a data description entry. See also typed
object reference and universal object reference.
- * object time
- The time at which an object program is executed. The term is synonymous
with the terms execution time and run time.
- * obsolete element
- A COBOL language element in Standard COBOL 85 that was deleted from Standard COBOL 2002.
- ODO object
- In the example below,
WORKING-STORAGE SECTION
01 TABLE-1.
05 X PICS9.
05 Y OCCURS 3 TIMES
DEPENDING ON X PIC X.
X is the object of the OCCURS DEPENDING ON clause (ODO object).
The value of the ODO object determines how many of the ODO subject appear in
the table.
- ODO subject
- In the example above, Y is the subject of the OCCURS DEPENDING ON
clause (ODO subject). The number of Y ODO subjects that appear in
the table depends on the value of X.
- * open mode
- The state of a file after execution of an OPEN statement for that file and
before the execution of a CLOSE statement without the REEL or UNIT phrase
for that file. The particular open mode is specified in the OPEN statement
as either INPUT, OUTPUT, I-O, or EXTEND.
- operand
- Data that is operated upon. In this document, any lowercase word (or
words) that appears in a statement or entry format is an operand in that it
is a reference to the data identified by that word (or words).
- * operational sign
- An algebraic sign, associated with a numeric data item or a numeric
literal, to indicate whether its value is positive or negative.
- * optional file
- A file that is declared as being not necessarily present each time the
object program is executed. The object program causes an interrogation for
the presence or absence of the file.
- * optional word
- A reserved word that is included in a specific format only to improve the
readability of the language and whose presence is optional to the user when
the format in which the word appears is used in a source unit.
- * output file
- A file that is opened in either the OUTPUT mode or EXTEND mode.
- * output mode
- The state of a file after execution of an OPEN statement, with the OUTPUT
or EXTEND phrase specified, for that file and before the execution of a
CLOSE statement without the REEL or UNIT phrase for that file.
- * output procedure
- A set of statements to which control is given during execution of a SORT
statement after the sort function is completed, or during execution of a
MERGE statement after the merge function reaches a point at which it can
select the next record in merged order when requested.
- overflow condition
- A condition that occurs when a portion of the result of an operation
exceeds the capacity of the intended unit of storage.
- overload
- To define a method with the same name as another method available in the
same class, but with a different signature. See also signature.
- override
- To redefine (in a subclass) an instance method inherited from a parent
class.
P
- package
- In Java, a group of related classes that can be imported individually or
as a whole.
- packed decimal item
- See internal decimal item.
- padding character
- An alphanumeric or national character or literal used to fill the unused
character positions in a physical record.
- page
- A vertical division of output data representing a physical separation of
such data, the separation being based on internal logical requirements or
external characteristics of the output medium.
- * page body
- That part of the logical page in which lines can be written or spaced.
- * paragraph
- In the procedure division, a paragraph-name followed by a separator period
and by zero, one, or more sentences. In the identification and environment
divisions, a paragraph header followed by zero, one, or more entries.
- * paragraph header
- A reserved word, followed by the separator period, that indicates the
beginning of a paragraph.
- * paragraph-name
- A user-defined word that identifies and begins a paragraph in the
procedure division.
- password
- A unique string of characters that a program, computer operator, or user
must supply to meet security requirements before gaining access to data.
- * phrase
- An ordered set of one or more consecutive COBOL character-strings that
form a portion of a COBOL procedural statement or of a COBOL clause.
- * physical record
- See block.
- pointer data item
- A data item in which address values can be stored. Data items are
explicitly defined as pointers with the USAGE IS POINTER clause. ADDRESS OF
special registers are implicitly defined as pointer data items. Pointer data
items can be compared for equality or moved to other pointer data items.
- portability
- The ability to transfer an application from one application platform to
another with relatively few changes to the source code.
- * prime record key
- A key whose contents uniquely identify a record within an indexed file.
- * priority-number
- A user-defined word that classifies sections in the procedure division for
purposes of segmentation. Priority-numbers can contain only the characters
'0','1', . . ., '9'.
- private
- In object orientation, data that is accessible only by methods of the
class that defines the data. Instance data is accessible only by instance
methods; factory data is accessible only by factory methods. Thus, instance
data is private to instance methods defined in the same class definition;
factory data is private to factory methods defined in the same class
definition.
- * procedure
- A paragraph or group of logically successive paragraphs, or a section or
group of logically successive sections, within the procedure division.
- * procedure branching statement
- A statement that causes the explicit transfer of control to a statement
other than the next executable statement in the sequence in which the
statements are written in the source unit. The procedure branching
statements are: ALTER, CALL, EXIT, EXIT PROGRAM, GO TO, MERGE (with the
OUTPUT PROCEDURE phrase), PERFORM, SORT (with the INPUT PROCEDURE or OUTPUT
PROCEDURE phrase), and XML PARSE.
- procedure division
- The division of a program or method that contains procedural statements
for performing operations at run time.
- * procedure-name
- A user-defined word that is used to name a paragraph or section in the
procedure division. It consists of a paragraph-name (which can be qualified)
or a section-name.
- procedure pointer
- A data item in which a pointer to an entry point can be stored. A data
item defined with the USAGE IS PROCEDURE-POINTER clause contains the address
of a procedure entry point.
- * program-name
- In the identification division and the end program marker, a user-defined
or a literal that identifies a COBOL source program.
- * pseudo-text
- A sequence of text words, comment lines, or the separator space in a
source unit or COBOL library bounded by, but not including, pseudo-text
delimiters.
- * pseudo-text delimiter
- Two contiguous equal sign characters (==) used to delimit pseudo-text.
- * punctuation character
- A character that belongs to the following set:
| Character |
Meaning |
| , |
Comma |
| ; |
Semicolon |
| : |
Colon |
| . |
Period (full stop) |
| ” |
Quotation mark |
| ( |
Left parenthesis |
| ) |
Right parenthesis |
| |
Space |
| = |
Equal sign |
Q
- * qualified data-name
- An identifier that is composed of a data-name followed by one or more sets
of either of the connectives OF and IN followed by a data-name qualifier.
- * qualifier
- (1) A data-name or a name associated with a level indicator which is used
in a reference either together with another data-name which is the name of
an item that is subordinate to the qualifier or together with a
condition-name. (2) A section-name that is used in a reference together with
a paragraph-name specified in that section. (3) A library-name that is used
in a reference together with a text-name associated with that library.
R
- * random access
- An access mode in which the program-specified value of a key data item
identifies the logical record that is obtained from, deleted from, or placed
into a relative or indexed file.
- * record
- See logical record.
- * record area
- A storage area allocated for the purpose of processing the record
described in a record description entry in the file section of the data
division. In the file section, the current number of character positions in
the record area is determined by the explicit or implicit RECORD clause.
- * record description
- See record description entry.
- * record description entry
- The total set of data description entries associated with a particular
record. The term is synonymous with record description.
- record key
- A key whose contents identify a record within an indexed file.
- * record-name
- A user-defined word that names a record described in a record description
entry in the data division of a COBOL program.
- * record number
- The ordinal number of a record in the file whose organization is
sequential.
- recording mode
- The format of the logical records in a file. Recording mode can be F
(fixed-length), V (variable-length), S (spanned), or U (undefined).
- recursion
- A program calling itself or being directly or indirectly called by a one
of its called programs.
- recursively capable
- A program is recursively capable (can be called recursively) if the
RECURSIVE clause is on the PROGRAM-ID statement.
- reel
- A discrete portion of a storage medium that contains part of a file, all
of a file, or any number of files. The term is synonymous with unit and
volume.
- reentrant
- The attribute of a program or routine that allows more than one user to
share a single copy of a load module.
- * reference format
- A format that provides a standard method for writing COBOL source code.
- reference modification
- A method of defining a new data item by specifying the leftmost character
position and length relative to the leftmost character position of another
data item.
- * reference-modifier
- A syntactically correct combination of character-strings and separators
that defines a unique data item. It includes a delimiting left parenthesis
separator, the leftmost character position, a colon separator, optionally a
length, and a delimiting right parenthesis separator.
- * relation
- See relational operator or relation condition.
- * relation character
- A character that belongs to the following set:
| Character |
Meaning |
| > |
Greater than |
| < |
Less than |
| = |
Equal to |
- * relation condition
- The proposition, for which a truth value can be determined, that the value
of an arithmetic expression, data item, alphanumeric literal, or index-name
has a specific relationship to the value of another arithmetic expression,
data item, alphanumeric literal, or index name. See also relational
operator.
- * relational operator
- A reserved word, a relation character, a group of consecutive reserved
words, or a group of consecutive reserved words and relation characters used
in the construction of a relation condition. The permissible operators and
their meanings are:
| Character |
Meaning |
| IS GREATER THAN |
Greater than |
| IS > |
Greater than |
| IS NOT GREATER THAN |
Not greater than |
| IS NOT > |
Not greater than |
| |
| IS LESS THAN |
Less than |
| IS < |
Less than |
| IS NOT LESS THAN |
Not less than |
| IS NOT < |
Not less than |
| |
| IS EQUAL TO |
Equal to |
| IS = |
Equal to |
| IS NOT EQUAL TO |
Not equal to |
| IS NOT = |
Not equal to |
| |
| IS GREATER THAN OR EQUAL TO |
Greater than or equal to |
| IS >= |
Greater than or equal to |
| |
| IS LESS THAN OR EQUAL TO |
Less than or equal to |
| IS <= |
Less than or equal to |
- * relative file
- A file with relative organization.
- * relative key
- A key whose contents identify a logical record in a relative file.
- * relative organization
- The permanent logical file structure in which each record is uniquely
identified by an integer value greater than zero, which specifies the
record's logical ordinal position in the file.
- * relative record number
- The ordinal number of a record in a file whose organization is relative.
This number is treated as a numeric literal that is an integer.
- * reserved word
- A COBOL word specified in the list of words that can be used in a COBOL
source unit, but that must not appear in the program as user-defined words
or system-names.
- * resource
- A facility or service, controlled by the operating system, that can be
used by an executing program.
- * resultant identifier
- A user-defined data item that is to contain the result of an arithmetic
operation.
- routine
- A set of statements in a COBOL program that causes the computer to perform
an operation or series of related operations.
- * routine-name
- A user-defined word that identifies a procedure written in a language
other than COBOL.
- RSD file system
- The record sequential delimited file system is a
workstation file system that supports sequential files, including the full
Standard COBOL 85 sequential I/O language and all of the extensions described in the
COBOL for Windows Language Reference,
unless exceptions are explicitly noted. Records in an RSD file are
fixed-length and delimited by a new line character. An RSD file supports all
COBOL data types in records, can be edited by most file editors, and can be
read by programs written in other languages.
- * run time
- The time at which an object program is executed. The term is synonymous
with object time.
- runtime environment
- The environment in which a COBOL program executes.
- * run unit
- A stand-alone object program, or several object programs, that interact
via COBOL CALL or INVOKE statements and function at run time as an entity.
S
- SBCS (Single Byte Character Set)
- See Single Byte Character Set (SBCS).
- scope terminator
- A COBOL reserved word that marks the end of certain procedure division
statements. It can be either explicit (END-ADD, for example) or implicit (a
separator period, for example).
- * section
- A set of zero, one or more paragraphs or entities, called a section body,
the first of which is preceded by a section header. Each section consists of
the section header and the related section body.
- * section header
- A combination of words followed by a separator period that indicates the
beginning of a section. For example, WORKING-STORAGE SECTION.
- * section-name
- A user-defined word that names a section in the procedure division.
- segmentation
- A feature of COBOL for Windows that is based on the Standard COBOL 85 segmentation module.
The segmentation feature uses priority-numbers in section headers to assign
sections to fixed segments or independent segments. Segment classification
affects whether procedures contained in a segment receive control in initial
state or last-used state.
- * sentence
- A sequence of one or more statements, the last of which is terminated by a
separator period.
- * separately compiled program
- A program which, together with its contained programs, is compiled
separately from all other programs.
- * separator
- A character or two contiguous characters used
to delimit character-strings.
- * separator comma
- A comma (,) followed by a space used to delimit character-strings.
- * separator period
- A period (.) followed by a space used to delimit character-strings.
- * separator semicolon
- A semicolon (;) followed by a space used to delimit character-strings.
- * sequential access
- An access mode in which logical records are obtained from or placed into a
file in a consecutive predecessor-to-successor logical record sequence
determined by the order of records in the file.
- * sequential file
- A file with sequential organization.
- * sequential organization
- The permanent logical file structure in which a record is identified by a
predecessor-successor relationship established when the record is placed
into the file.
- serial search
- A search in which the members of a set are consecutively examined,
beginning with the first member and ending with the last.
- * 77-level-description-entry
- A data description entry that describes a noncontiguous data item with the
level-number 77.
- * sign condition
- The proposition, for which a truth value can be determined, that the
algebraic value of a data item or an arithmetic expression is either less
than, greater than, or equal to zero.
- signature
- The name of a method and the number and types of its formal parameters.
- * simple condition
- Any single condition chosen from the set:
- Relation condition
- Class condition
- Condition-name condition
- Switch-status condition
- Sign condition
- Single Byte Character Set (SBCS)
- A set of characters in which each character is represented by a single
byte. See also EBCDIC (Extended Binary-Coded Decimal Interchange Code).
- slack bytes (within records)
- Bytes inserted by the compiler between data items to ensure correct
alignment of some elementary data items. Slack bytes contain no meaningful
data. The SYNCHRONIZED clause instructs the compiler to insert slack bytes
when they are needed for proper alignment.
- slack bytes (between records)
- Bytes inserted by the programmer between blocked logical records of a
file, to ensure correct alignment of some elementary data items. In some
cases, slack bytes between records improve performance for records processed
in a buffer.
- * sort file
- A collection of records to be sorted by a SORT statement. The sort file is
created and can be used by the sort function only.
- * sort-merge file description entry
- An entry in the file section of the data division that is composed of the
level indicator SD, followed by a file-name, and then followed clauses that
describe the attributes of the sort-merge file.
- source unit
- A unit of COBOL source code that can be separately compiled: a program or
a class definition. Also known as compilation unit.
- * special character
- A character that belongs to the following set:
| Character |
Meaning |
| + |
Plus sign |
| - |
Minus sign (hyphen) |
| * |
Asterisk |
| / |
Forward slash |
| = |
Equal sign |
| $ |
Currency sign |
| , |
Comma (decimal point) |
| ; |
Semicolon |
| . |
Period (decimal point, full stop) |
| “ |
Quotation mark |
| ( |
Left parenthesis |
| ) |
Right parenthesis |
| > |
Greater than symbol |
| < |
Less than symbol |
| : |
Colon |
- SPECIAL-NAMES
- The name of an environment division paragraph in which environment-names
are related to user-specified mnemonic-names.
- * special registers
- Certain compiler-generated storage areas whose primary use is to store
information produced in conjunction with the use of a specific COBOL
feature.
- Standard COBOL 85
- The COBOL language defined by the ANSI and ISO standards identified in Appendix H. Industry specifications.
- Standard COBOL 2002
- The COBOL language defined by the following standards:
- INCITS/ISO/IEC 1989-2002, Information Technology - Programming
Languages - COBOL
- ISO/IEC 1989:2002, Information technology — Programming languages —
COBOL
- * statement
- A COBOL language construct that specifies one or more actions to be
performed. Statements can be procedural statements or compiler-directing
statements. An example of a procedural statement is the ADD statement; an
example of a compiler-directing statement is the USE statement.
- STL File System
- Standard Language File System: native workstation and PC
file system for COBOL and PL/I. Supports sequential, relative, and indexed
files, including the full Standard COBOL 85 I/O language and all of the extensions
described in the
COBOL for Windows Language Reference, unless exceptions are explicitly noted.
- structured programming
- A technique for organizing and coding a computer program in which the
program comprises a hierarchy of segments, each segment having a single
entry point and a single exit point. Control is passed downward through the
structure without unconditional branches to higher levels of the hierarchy.
- subclass
- A class that inherits from another class. When two classes in an
inheritance relationship are considered together, the subclass is the
inheriting class; the superclass is the inherited class.
A subclass is also referred to as a child class or derived class.
- * subject of entry
- An operand or reserved word that appears immediately following the level
indicator or the level-number in a data division entry.
- * subprogram
- Any called program.
- * subscript
- An occurrence number represented by either an integer, a data-name
optionally followed by an integer with the operator + or -, or an index-name
optionally followed by an integer with the operator + or -, that identifies
a particular element in a table. A subscript can be the word ALL when the
subscripted identifier is used as a function argument for a function
allowing a variable number of arguments.
- * subscripted data-name
- An identifier that is composed of a data-name followed by one or more
subscripts enclosed in parentheses.
- superclass
- A class that is inherited by another class. When two classes in an
inheritance relationship are considered together, the subclass is the
inheriting class; the superclass is the inherited class.
The superclass is also referred to as the parent class.
- surrogate pair
- In the UTF-16 format of Unicode, a pair of encoding units that together
represents a single Unicode graphic character. The first unit of the pair is
called a high surrogate and the second a low surrogate.
The code value of a high surrogate is in the range X'D800' through X'DBFF'.
The code value of a low surrogate is in the range X'DC00' through X'DFFF'.
Surrogate pairs provide for more characters than the 65,536 characters that
fit in the Unicode 16-bit coded character set.
- switch-status condition
- The proposition, for which a truth value can be determined, that an UPSI
switch, capable of being set to an 'on' or 'off' status, has been set to a
specific status.
- * symbolic-character
- A user-defined word that specifies a user-defined figurative constant.
- syntax
- (1) The relationship among characters or groups of characters, independent
of their meanings or the manner of their interpretation and use. (2) The
structure of expressions in a language. (3) The rules governing the
structure of a language. (4) The relationship among symbols. (5) The rules
for the construction of a statement.
- * system-name
- A COBOL word that is used to communicate with the operating environment.
T
- * table
- A set of logically consecutive items of data that are defined in the data
division by means of the OCCURS clause.
- * table element
- A data item that belongs to the set of repeated items comprising a table.
- text deck
- Synonym for object deck or object module.
- * text-name
- A user-defined word that identifies library text.
- * text word
- A character or a sequence of contiguous characters between margin A and
margin R in COBOL source code. A text word can be:
- A separator, except for: space; a pseudo-text delimiter; and the
opening and closing delimiters for alphanumeric literals. The right
parenthesis and left parenthesis characters, regardless of context
within the library, source unit, or pseudo-text, are always considered
text words.
- A literal including, in the case of alphanumeric literals, the opening
quotation mark and the closing quotation mark that bound the literal.
- Any other sequence of contiguous COBOL characters except comment lines
and the word 'COPY' bounded by separators that are neither a separator
nor a literal.
- trailer-label
- (1) A file or data set label that follows the data records on a unit of
recording medium. (2) Synonym for end-of-file label.
- * truth value
- The representation of the result of the evaluation of a condition in terms
of one of two values: true or false.
- typed object reference
- An object reference data item that can reference only an object of a
specified class or one of its subclasses.
U
- * unary operator
- A plus (+) or a minus (-) sign that precedes a variable or a left
parenthesis in an arithmetic expression and that has the effect of
multiplying the expression by +1 or -1, respectively.
- Unicode
- A coded character set that encodes all the characters required for the
written expression of any of the languages of the modern world. There are
multiple formats for representing Unicode, including UTF-8, UTF-16, and
UTF-32. COBOL for Windows supports Unicode using UTF-16 little-endian
format as the representation
for the national data type.
- unit
- A module of direct access, the dimensions of which are determined by IBM.
- universal object reference
- An object reference data item that can contain a reference to an object of
any class.
- * unsuccessful execution
- The attempted execution of a statement that does not result in the
execution of all the operations specified by that statement.
- UPSI switch
- A program switch that performs the functions of a hardware switch. Eight
are provided: UPSI-0 through UPSI-7.
- * user-defined word
- A COBOL word that must be supplied by the user to satisfy the format of a
clause or statement. The maximum length of a user-defined word is 30 bytes.
V
- * variable
- A data item whose value can be changed by the application at run time.
- * variable-length record
- A record associated with a file whose file description or sort-merge
description entry permits records to contain a varying number of character
positions.
- * variable-occurrence data item
- A variable-occurrence data item is a table element which is repeated a
variable number of times. Such an item must contain an OCCURS DEPENDING ON
clause in its data description entry, or be subordinate to such an item.
- variably located group
- A group item following, and not subordinate to, a variable-length table in
the same level-01 record.
A variably located group can be an
alphanumeric group or a national group.
- variably located item
- A data item following, and not subordinate to, a variable-length table in
the same level-01 record.
- volume
- A module of external storage. For tape devices it is a reel; for
direct-access devices it is a unit.
- volume switch procedures
- System procedures executed automatically when the end of a unit or reel
has been reached before end-of-file has been reached.
W
- white space characters
- Characters that introduce space into a document. They are:
- Space
- Horizontal tabulation
- Carriage return
- Line feed
- Next line
as named in the Unicode Standard.
- windowed date field
- A date field containing a windowed (two-digit) year. See also date
field and windowed year.
- windowed year
- A date field that consists only of a two-digit year. This two-digit year
can be interpreted using a century window. For example, 05 could be
interpreted as 2005. See also century window. Compare with expanded
year.
- * word
- A character-string that forms a user-defined word, a system-name, a
reserved word, or a function-name.
- * working-storage section
- The section of the data division that describes working-storage data
items, composed either of noncontiguous items or working-storage records, or
both.
X
-
XML
- Extensible Markup Language. A metalanguage for defining markup languages
that was derived from and is a subset of SGML. XML omits the more complex
and less-used parts of SGML and makes it much easier to:
- Write applications to handle document types
- Author and manage structured information
- Transmit and share structured information across diverse computing
systems
XML is being developed under the auspices of the World Wide Web
Consortium (W3C).
- XML data
- Data that is organized into a hierarchical structure with XML elements.
The data definitions are defined in XML element type declarations.
- XML declaration
- XML text that specifies characteristics of the XML document such as the
version of XML being used and the encoding of the document.
- XML document
- A data object that is well formed as defined by the W3C XML specification.
Z
- zoned decimal data item
- A data item described by a PICTURE character-string that contains
valid combinations of picture symbols 9, S, P, and V. A zoned decimal data
item is an external decimal data item that has usage DISPLAY. See external
decimal data item and national decimal data item.
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