Version 8.2.1
 —  Common Model Specifications and Development Tasks  —

Common Fields on the Standard Parameters Panel

The Standard Parameters panel is similar for all program models; it is the first and sometimes the only specification panel. The following example shows the Standard Parameters panel for the Object-Maint-Dialog model:

 CUOMMA                   Object-Maint-Dialog Program                   CU--MA0 
 Sep 16                       Standard Parameters                        1 of 4 
                                                                                
  Module ............. ________                                                 
  System ............. CST82S__________________________                         
  Global data area ... CDGDA___ *                                               
  With block ......... ________________________________                         
                                                                                
  Title .............. Object Dialog..._________                                
  Description ........ This program is used to maintain the...________________  
                       _______________________________________________________  
                       _______________________________________________________  
                       _______________________________________________________  
                                                                                
  First header ....... ________________________________________________         
  Second header ...... ______________________________________________________   
                                                                                
  Command ............ _                                                        
  Message numbers .... _                                                        
  Password ........... _                                                        
                                                                                
 Enter-PF1---PF2---PF3---PF4---PF5---PF6---PF7---PF8---PF9---PF10--PF11--PF12---
 right help  retrn quit                                            right main   

Note:
The Standard Parameters panel for other models may not contain all the fields shown.

The fields on the Standard Parameters panel include:

Field Description
Module Name of the module (by default, the name specified in the Module name field on the Generation main menu). This is a required field.

The module name must be alphanumeric, a maximum of eight characters in length, and cannot contain blanks.

System Name of the system (by default, the name of the current library). This is a required field.

The system name must be alphanumeric, not exceed 32 characters in length, and does not have to be associated with a Natural library ID. (The combination of the module name and system name is used as a key to access help information for the generated module.)

Global data area Name of the global data area (GDA) used by the generated module. By default, CDGDA is displayed. This is a required field.

To allow inter-program communication, generated modules require a small number of global variables. The CDGDA global data area contains the global variables required to test a generated module.

Before creating a new application, copy this GDA from the SYSTEM library and rename it to match your naming conventions. Then add any additional global variables your application may require.

With block Name of the GDA block used by the generated module. This is an optional field.

To use a GDA block, you need only specify the lowest level block name; the corresponding path name is determined automatically. For more information about GDA blocks, see the Natural documentation.

Title Title for the generated module. The title is used internally to identify modules for the List Generated Modules function on the Generation main menu. This is a required field.
Description Brief description of what the generated module does. This is an optional field and is used internally for documentation purposes.
First header First header (heading) for the generated module. This header is centered at the top of the generated panel and intensified. This is a required field.
Second header Second header (heading) for the generated module. This header is centered under the first header and intensified. This is an optional field.
Command If this field is marked, the generated module supports direct command processing. If this field is blank, the generated module does not support direct commands.
Message numbers If this field is marked, the generated module uses message numbers rather than message text for all REINPUT and INPUT messages.

Note:
Use the same technique consistently throughout your application, since passing messages between modules using different techniques will not always produce the desired results.

Password If this field is marked, the generated module performs password checking. If this field is blank, the generated module does not perform password checking.

To include password checking, you must set up a password file. For information, see Set Up a Password File.

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