Re: Why you shouldn't be afraid to use VARCHAR in RPGLE

[Stephen Coyle <stephenfcoyle@xxxxxxxxx>]

 **************************************************************************
 *
 *  Procedure Name:  FsiUtils_IIF
 *       Exported?:  Yes
 *        Function:  Immediate IF Function
 *         Returns:  Value Supplied for True or False Condition
 *
 *         Ex:    NewOnly = FSIUTILS_IIF(@Status = stsNEW :*On :*Off);

 **************************************************************************

P FsiUtils_IIF    B                   EXPORT

D FsiUtils_IIF    Pi           256a   varying
D  Condition                      n           value
D  TrueValue                   256a   varying value
D  FalseValue                  256a   varying value

   If Condition;
      Return TrueValue;
   Else;
      Return FalseValue;
   Endif;

P FsiUtils_IIF    E



On Thu, Dec 11, 2025 at 10:59 AM Javier Sanchez <
javiersanchezbarquero@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:

> Paul,
>
> "C" has it as a native language for over decades.  Can't see why that would
> be complex for them to follow and make it available for devs.
> Of course, and WADR, you need to "know what you are doing" with your return
> value.  That is kind of your intellectual work.
> Efficiency and cleanliness of code is vital for modern languages. Elegant
> code is, and simplicity is a major goal in our era.
>
> JS
>
> El jue, 11 dic 2025 a las 9:50, Paul Therrien via RPG400-L (<
> rpg400-l@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>) escribió:
>
> > Not knowing 'C' I asked Google.
> >
> > Google AI says this:
> >
> > The statement boolVal = (a = b ? 0: 1) in C is a syntactically valid but
> > potentially confusing use of the ternary operator and assignment operator
> > within a single expression [1].
> >
> > What it does
> > Essentially, the line of code is a verbose way of setting boolVal based
> on
> > whether b is zero or not, while simultaneously changing the value of a:
> > If b is 0: a becomes 1, and boolVal becomes 1.
> > If b is non-zero: a becomes 0, and boolVal becomes 0.
> >
> > I think I can see why IBM might not be in a hurry to handle this request.