WRITE TRAILER

WRITE [(rep)] TRAILER [LEFT [JUSTIFIED]]   [UNDERLINED]
  [(statement-parameters )]
nX        
nT        
x/y  

'text' [(attributes)]

T*field-name   'c' (n)   [(attributes)]
P*field-name   ['='] operand1 [(parameters )]
/        
  [SKIP operand2 [LINES]]    

This document covers the following topics:

For an explanation of the symbols used in the syntax diagram, see Syntax Symbols.

Related Statements: AT END OF PAGE | AT TOP OF PAGE | CLOSE PRINTER | DEFINE PRINTER | DISPLAY | EJECT | FORMAT | NEWPAGE | PRINT | SKIP | SUSPEND IDENTICAL SUPPRESS | WRITE | WRITE TITLE

Belongs to Function Group: Creation of Output Reports

Function

The WRITE TRAILER statement is used to output text or the contents of variables at the bottom of a page.

See also the following sections (in the Programming Guide):

Processing

This statement is non-procedural, that is, its execution depends on an event, not on where in a program it is located.

This statement is executed when an end-of-page or end-of-data condition is detected, or when a SKIP or NEWPAGE statement causes a page advance. It is not executed as a result of an EJECT statement.

The end-of-page condition is checked only after the processing of an entire DISPLAY/WRITE statement. If a DISPLAY/WRITE statement produces multiple lines of output, overflow of the physical page may occur before the end-of-page condition is reached.

If a report is produced by statements in different objects, the WRITE TRAILER statement is only executed if it is contained in the same object as the statement that causes the end-of-page condition.

Logical Page Size

The logical page size (specified with the session parameter PS) should be less than the physical page size to ensure that the trailer information appears at the bottom of the same page.

Restrictions

  • WRITE TRAILER may be specified only once per report.

  • WRITE TRAILER cannot be specified within a special condition statement block.

  • WRITE TRAILER cannot be specified within a subroutine.

Syntax Description

Operand Definition Table:

Operand Possible Structure Possible Formats Referencing Permitted Dynamic Definition
operand1   S A G N A U N P I F B D T L   G O yes no
operand2 C S           N P I   B             yes no

Syntax Element Description:

Syntax Element Description
(rep)
Report Specification:

If multiple reports are to be produced, the notation (rep) may be used to specify the identification of the report for which the WRITE TRAILER statement is applicable.

As report identification, a value in the range 0 - 31 or a logical name which has been assigned using the DEFINE PRINTER statement may be specified.

If (rep) is not specified, the WRITE TRAILER statement applies to the first report (Report 0).

For information on how to control the format of an output report created with Natural, see Report Format and Control (in the Programming Guide).

LEFT JUSTIFIED
UNDERLINED

Title Justification and/or Underlining:

By default, the trailer lines are centered and not underlined.

LEFT JUSTIFIED and UNDERLINED may be specified to override these defaults.

If UNDERLINED is specified, the underlining character (either default or specified with the session parameter UC) is printed underneath the trailer and runs the width of the line size (session parameter LS).

Natural first applies all spacing or tab specifications and creates the line before centering the whole line. For example, a notation of 10T as the first element would cause the centered header to be positioned five positions to the right.

statement-parameters
Parameter Definition at Statement Level:

One or more parameters, enclosed within parentheses, may be specified at statement level, that is, immediately after the WRITE TRAILER statement. Each parameter specified in this manner will override the corresponding parameter previously specified in a GLOBALS command, SET GLOBALS (in Reporting Mode only) or FORMAT statement.

If more than one parameter is specified, one or more blanks must be present between each entry. An entry may not be split between two statement lines.

Note:
The parameter settings applied here will only be regarded for variable fields, but they have no effect on text-constants. If you would like to set field attributes for a text-constant, they have to be set explicitly for this element, see Parameter Definition at Element (Field) Level.

For information on which parameters may be used, see List of Parameters (in the WRITE statement documentation).

nX
nT
x/y
T*field-name
P*field-name
/

Format Notation and Spacing Elements:

See Format Notation and Spacing Elements (below).

'text'
'c'(n)
attributes

Text/Attribute Assignments:

See Text/Attribute Assignments (below).

operand1
Trailer Information:

operand1 represents the field/fields to be output as trailer information.

parameters
Parameter Definition at Element (Field) Level:

One or more parameters, enclosed within parentheses, may be specified at element (field) level, that is, immediately after operand1. Each parameter specified in this manner will override the corresponding parameter previously specified at statement level or in a GLOBALS command, SET GLOBALS (in Reporting Mode only) or FORMAT statement.

If more than one parameter is specified, one or more blanks must be present between each entry. An entry may not be split between two statement lines.

For information on which parameters may be used, see List of Parameters in the WRITE statement documentation.

SKIP operand2 LINES
Lines to Be Skipped:

SKIP may be used to cause lines to be skipped immediately after the trailer line. The number of lines to be skipped (operand2) may be specified as a numeric constant or as the content of a numeric variable.

Note:
SKIP after WRITE TRAILER is always interpreted as the SKIP clause of the WRITE TRAILER statement, and not as an independent statement. If you wish an independent SKIP statement after a WRITE TRAILER statement, use a semicolon (;) to separate the two statements from one another.

Format Notation and Spacing Elements

Syntax Element Description
nX
Column Spacing:

This notation inserts n spaces between columns.

nT
Tab Setting:

The nT notation causes positioning (tabulation) to print position n. Backward positioning is not permitted.

x/y
x/y Positioning:

Causes the next element to be placed x lines below the output of the last statement, beginning in column y. y must not be zero. Backward positioning in the same line is not permitted.

T*field-name
Field-Related Positioning:

The T* notation causes positioning to a specific print position of a field used in a previous DISPLAY statement. Backward positioning is not permitted.

P*field-name
Field- and Line-Related Positioning:

The P* notation causes positioning to a specific print position and line of a field used in a previous DISPLAY statement. It is most often used in conjunction with vertical printing mode. Backward positioning is not permitted.

/
Line Advance - Slash Notation:

When placed between fields or text elements, a slash (/) causes positioning to the beginning of the next print line.

Text/Attribute Assignments

Syntax Element Description
'text' 
Text Assignment:

The character string enclosed by single quotes is displayed.

'c'(n)
Character Repetition:

The character enclosed by single quotes is displayed n times immediately before the field value.

attributes
Field Representation and Color Attributes:

It is possible to assign various attributes for text/field display. These attributes and the syntax that may be used are described in the section Output Attributes below.

Examples:

WRITE TRAILER 'TEXT' (BGR)
WRITE TRAILER 'TEXT' (B)
WRITE TRAILER 'TEXT' (BBLC)

Output Attributes

attributes indicates the output attributes to be used for text display. Attributes can be:

AD=ad-value
CD=cd-value
PM=pm-value

ad-value
cd-value

Where:

ad-value, cd-value and pm-value denote the possible values of the corresponding session parameters AD, CD and PM described in the relevant sections of the Parameter Reference documentation.

The compiler actually accepts more than one attribute value for an output field. For example, you can specify: AD=BDI. In such a case, however, only the last value applies. In the given example, only the value I becomes effective and the output field is displayed intensified.

For an alphanumeric/Unicode constant (Natural data format A or U), you can specify ad-value and/or cd-value without preceding CD= or AD=, respectively. The single value entered is then checked against all possible CD values first. For example: a value of IRE will be interpreted as intensified/red but not as intensified/right-justified/mandatory. You cannot combine a single cd-value or ad-value with a value preceded by CD= or AD=.

Example 

** Example 'WTLEX1': WRITE (with TRAILER option)                        
************************************************************************
DEFINE DATA LOCAL                                                       
1 EMPL-VIEW VIEW OF EMPLOYEES                                           
  2 NAME                                                                
  2 FIRST-NAME                                                          
  2 CITY                                                                
  2 JOB-TITLE                                                           
END-DEFINE                                                              
*                                                                       
FORMAT PS=15                                                            
WRITE TITLE LEFT JUSTIFIED UNDERLINED                                   
      *TIME 3X 'PEOPLE LIVING IN BARCELONA'                             
      14X 'PAGE:' *PAGE-NUMBER                                          
SKIP 1                                                                  
*                                                                       
WRITE TRAILER LEFT JUSTIFIED UNDERLINED                                 
      / 'CITY OF BARCELONA REGISTER'                                  
*                                                                       
LIMIT 10                              
FIND EMPL-VIEW WITH CITY = 'BARCELONA'
  DISPLAY NAME FIRST-NAME 3X JOB-TITLE
END-FIND                              
END

Output of Program WTLEX1 - Page 1:

09:36:09.5   PEOPLE LIVING IN BARCELONA              PAGE:      1              
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                               
        NAME              FIRST-NAME                 CURRENT                   
                                                    POSITION                   
-------------------- --------------------   -------------------------          
                                                                               
DEL CASTILLO         ANGEL                  EJECUTIVO DE VENTAS                
GARCIA               M. DE LAS MERCEDES     SECRETARIA                         
GARCIA               ENDIKA                 DIRECTOR TECNICO                   
MARTIN               ASUNCION               SECRETARIA                         
MARTINEZ             TERESA                 SECRETARIA                         
YNCLAN               FELIPE                 ADMINISTRADOR                      
FERNANDEZ            ELOY                   OFICINISTA                         
TORRES               ANTONI                 OBRERA                             
                                                                               
CITY OF BARCELONA REGISTER                                                     
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Output of Program WTLEX1 - Page 2:

09:37:26.0   PEOPLE LIVING IN BARCELONA              PAGE:      2              
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                               
        NAME              FIRST-NAME                 CURRENT                   
                                                    POSITION                   
-------------------- --------------------   -------------------------          
                                                                               
RODRIGUEZ            VICTORIA               SECRETARIA                         
GARCIA               GERARDO                INGENIERO DE PRODUCCION            
                                                                               
CITY OF BARCELONA REGISTER                                                     
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------