Download COBOL

This form controls the downloading of COBOL record definitions and their conversion to Jazz. It appears when you’ve clicked [New] and selected Data/Import from COBOL.

It looks like this: -

When opened with Test Environment = IDE (Jazz Configuration, Lang tab) the options to download from z/OS and to delete the downloaded COBOL after conversion are not offered, as the COBOL is already available within your IDE or local environment.

Form Operation and Controls

Source

Here you choose whether to process COBOL from your z/OS system or a COBOL record definition that is already in your Windows folders. This checkbox does not appear if your test environment = IDE (Jazz Configuration, Language tab).

· If you check zOS COBOL then Library will be set to your z/OS copy library. See the library “Copy” on the z/OS tab of Configuration.

· If you check DCLGEN then Library will be set to that defined as DCLGEN on the z/OS tab of Configuration

· Else Local will convert COBOL that is already in a folder on your PC.

You can edit the library textbox to choose another folder/PDS.

When this form is opened a complete list of members is displayed: -

· Either zOS COBOL or DCLGEN checked: all the members of the relevant z/OS library

· Local checked: all the members of the local COBOL library that have extension .CBL, .CPY, or .TXT

You can use a filter to show a partial list. Filters function as in Windows Explorer, so you can use “*” as a wildcard.

Selecting COBOL for conversion

Click on the member that you want to convert. If Download from zOS is checked it will be copied to your local COBOL library. The [Convert] button becomes active. Click [Convert] and the COBOL will be converted to Jazz unless there is already an item in your Jazz Copy Library with this name. For example, if since there is an item CBANKDAT.jzc in my Jazz Copy Library, on attempting to convert it again I get this msgbox: -

[Yes]: conversion proceeds and the Jazz workbench will open on the newly-converted CBANKDAT.jzc. The previous copy is now overwritten.

[No]: An InputBox appears asking you for a new name: -

This name will be checked, if it exists in your Jazz Copy Book folder, then you will again be asked whether to overwrite it.

[Cancel]: the Cobol Conversion will close having done nothing, leaving a blank workbench.

Conversion Options

If you don’t want the defaults, select the conversion options: -

Comment Level

· All Comments (Default). Any comments in the original COBOL are retained, plus Jazz includes the original COBOL as comments

· COBOL. Comments from the original COBOL are dropped, but Jazz includes the original COBOL statements as comments.

· No comments. Neither of these: the only comment generated by Jazz is the identifying timestamp at the top.

Conversion

· Auto (default). Jazz looks for comments showing that this record layout has been generated by the Web Services Assistant program DFHWS2LS, or a SQL DCLGEN. If it finds this, the conversion type becomes DFHWS2LS or DCLGEN. If not, the type becomes Varchar.

· Basic. Jazz doesn’t look for Varchar structures, nor for DFHWS2LS nil indicators.

· VarChar. Jazz looks for structures consisting of a SMALLINT followed by a CHAR, followed by the end of the group. When this is found, instead of generating the group, two fields, and the end of the group, Jazz generates a VARCHAR field.

· DHFWS2LS. With this option, Jazz applies VarChar rules, and in addition any CHAR(1) field whose name starts with “attr-nil-” becomes an OPTIONAL property added to the preceding field (or group). These fields are handled implicitly in Jazz, and you shouldn’t need to explicitly refer to them.

· DCLGEN. A DCLGEN creates a layout starting with EXEC SQL DECLARE xxx TABLE … END-EXEC., and then a COBOL record layout. Only the EXEC SQL statement is processed, the COBOL in the DCLGEN is ignored. See DCLGEN to Jazz Conversion for more information.

Delete Downloaded COBOL

By default: checked when Download from zOS is checked, unchecked when it’s not.

If checked, the downloaded COBOL object will be deleted from the local COBOL library after its conversion to Jazz.

Action Buttons

Click [Convert] to convert the COBOL definition to Jazz.

Click [Exit] to exit from the New dialog

Click [Cancel] to close the Download COBOL form, and choose another New option.

DCLGEN to Jazz Conversion

A DCLGEN creates a layout starting with EXEC SQL DECLARE xxx TABLE … END-EXEC., and then a COBOL record layout. When DCLGEN rules are applied then Jazz uses only the DECLARE Table, creating a Jazz definition that includes this as a comment and then a Jazz-format definition based on it.

A Jazz DEFINE statement has a similar format to a SQL table definition, and Jazz does not have to recognize groups as VARCHAR fields because VARCHAR is a supported format in both SQL and Jazz. The COBOL definition is ignored, and Jazz will use the column names as field names. These may be COBOL reserved words, as in any Jazz definition.

COBOL to Jazz Conversion

This section does not apply to DCLGEN conversion.

Jazz will attempt to convert your COBOL to Jazz. It will apply these rules: -

· Only data definition lines – starting with a level number and ending with a period – are processed. Comments are passed through to the generated Jazz if Comment Level = All. Other COBOL lines (from Environment, Procedure divisions etc) become temporary comments: they are displayed as comments in the converted Jazz, but will not be saved.

· If the first record layout does not start with level 01 then Jazz assumes a level 01 using the member name.

· 01 to 49 are handled as field or group definitions. A definition lacking a picture clause, like
05 Name.
becomes a group name, and must be followed by at least one field with a higher level number. END GROUP is recognized when the next element with the same or lower level number is encountered.

· In COBOL field names often include a prefix so that programmers do not have to write qualified references like “ACCOUNT OF MFILE”, instead referring to “MFL-ACCOUNT”. However Jazz always used qualified names and so the prefixes would be superfluous and counter-productive, so if the record name has been defined with a prefix (e.g. “01 MFL-Record.”) then this prefix is recognized and removed from all contained fields and groups, unless so doing would make the field name invalid because it would start with a number.

· Level 88 definitions become CONDITION or CODES clauses added to the preceding field definition.

· Pseudo text. When a line containing pseudo text delimited with colons is encountered, e.g.

000500 01 :ABCF:-RECORD.

Jazz asks you to give a value for this: -

The value you enter is then substituted on all following lines: -

000600 03 :ABCF:-FILE PIC X(02).

000700 88 :ABCF:-FILE-IS-HEADER VALUE LOW-VALUES.

000800 88 :ABCF:-FILE-IS-TRAILER VALUE HIGH-VALUES.

etc

Ironically this COBOL feature is usually used as a name prefix, which the COBOL to Jazz conversion will then remove.

Editing a Converted Layout

Once you have converted a record layout to Jazz you should edit it. COBOL definitions lack a lot of information: you should add TYPE and DSNAME clauses for PSAM and VSAM records (not for SQL). For all types, add field or group properties KEY, UKEY, and DKEY to denote key fields, and add field properties like display formats, headings, validation criteria (RANGE, CHECKR, EXISTS, etc), CODES tables, and so on.

All these changes make the data definition more powerful, reducing the amount of procedural code that you’ll have to write later and enforcing consistency, while forming excellent documentation, all for zero cost because these only influence the code that MANASYS Jazz generates when they are relevant. For example, validation properties are only used when data is validated by an ACCEPT statement, they do no have any effect on normal reading, writing, and printing.

Troubleshooting

IBMUSER.MANAJAZZ.CPYLIB(IN1A) was currently open in a TSO (ISPF) edit session. This problem was fixed by closing the TSO edit session.