Re: Checking for the number of records in a file

[CRPence <CRPbottle@xxxxxxxxx>]

  The S/38E Programming guide suggests OUTPUT(*NONE) was used on 
the S/38.  Alludes also to both *MBR and *MBRLIST output to a 
database file with the respective model file formats [QWHFDMBR of 
QAFDMBR and QWHFDML of QAFDMBRL], so their MBNRCD & MLNRCD fields 
probably also existed by the last release of CPF.  Although DCLF & 
RCVF would have been available also, most developers would likely 
have used RPG to do the reads; probably first per familiarity and 
second due to the limitation of one file per CLP.  Presumably 
familiarity won over, since if a spool could be read by the RPG 
[after CPYSPLF], it could be read by a CLP just as well.

Regards, Chuck

Evan Harris wrote:
> My recollection is that on the system/38 the number of records
> was available in DSPFD but that was about it. We wrote an RPG
> that we got out of News 34/38 (as it was called at the time) to
> get the number of records in a nicer format but I don't remember
> why we did it or how (I think the INFDS or equivalent).
>
> I can't specifically remember if you could do a DSPFD to an
> outfile but somehow I think not; you had to do a print screen I
> think, hence the requirement for an RPG program.
>
> Man, I loved that box, it had tons of personality - made you do
> real computer thing and had flashing lights to boot.