Re: Storing Numeric Values in the Database

[Barbara Morris <bmorris@xxxxxxxxxx>]

On 2011/9/2 9:24 PM, Morgan, Paul wrote:
> ... I wish to code in RPG V using external database tables (not
> files).  No table formats embedded in the compiled code.  Data
> definition reinterpreted at run time.  If you can do it with embedded
> SQL why not also with the base RPG IV language?  Maybe some set based
> RPG external table opcodes.  Maybe a simple change to a file spec
> from external file to external table might be all the code change
> required.  Just one last recompile to RPG Nirvana.
>
> Hmmm, does the new SPECIAL file spec do that?

Yes, I think you could do something like that with an Open Access file. 
The RPG program would still be hard-wired to a particular layout of the 
record format, but the OA handler could map that to the fields in the 
actual record format, and it could give an error if a field required by 
the program no longer exists, or if it changed in a way that the handler 
couldn't handle.