PH and text files

[Robert Edis]

OpenVMS has the tools required to convert files.  And
they are much easier to use than awk in my experience.

BUT, PH still cannot parse a delimited text file (or
XML file) unless it's metadata is first defined in a
dictionary or you write the code using INDEX()
functions on the program.

The "power" in PowerHouse comes from the data
dictionary/catalog concept not the syntax in my
opinion.  Otherwise you may as well use BASIC, C or
Cobol.

Blue


--- Vaughn Seward <vaughn@sewardconsulting.com> wrote:
> You may wish to consider using Python for OpenVMS.
> It is open source and 
> you can get it here:
> http://vmspython.dyndns.org/
> 
> I believe Python can easily do the stuff you
> mentioned "awk" can do but 
> I think the Python language is much easier to work
> with. We have used 
> Python on HP/Unix for various tasks that would be
> unthinkable to do 
> otherwise (e.g. repeatable source code porting from
> HP/3000 P/House to 
> HP/UX). We have also created Python utilities that
> can read and write 
> P/House portable subfiles without involving P/House
> (other than to read 
> the PH dictionary file) and to import/export the
> result in an XML format.
> 
> ~Vaughn Seward
> Seward Consulting Ltd.
> 
> Guy Werry wrote:
> 
> >Is this one of those things where it would be
> easier to re-format the data
> >using a utility program and THEN feeding the Quiz?
> >
> >For instance, on Unix the utility program "awk" is
> ideally suited to reading
> >a variable-length comma delimited file and it could
> write out a fixed length
> >output file.  This would probably be much simpler
> than goofing around with
> >Quiz in order to read the variable length file.
> >
> >Unfortunately, I don't know anything about OpenVMS,
> so this sort of utility
> >may not exist.
> >
> >Good Luck,
> >Guy L. Werry
> >Senior Systems Analyst
> >Hudson Bay Mining & Smelting Co., Limited. 
> >
> >-----Original Message-----
> >From: Robert Edis
> [mailto:robeconsult@sbcglobal.net]
> >Sent: Wednesday, April 13, 2005 11:49 AM
> >To: PowerHouse List
> >Subject: Re: PH and text files
> >
> >
> >G'day Aci
> >
> >Reading a variable length file with Quiz is not
> >normally any problam at all on OpenVMS.  However
> Quiz
> >does not know how to parse the fields using
> delimiters
> >unless you define the record in a dictionary.
> >
> >If you don't want to modify your existing PHD or
> >create a new, perhaps temporary one, by creating a
> >specific file/record entry with field details you
> can
> >create/use a simple file/record entry in the PHD
> that
> >shows the records as having only one field.  You
> then
> >need to write field parsing logic in the Quiz code
> >itself.
> >
> >Blue 
> >
> >
> >--- Aci Polajnar <Aci.Polajnar@rcc-irc.si> wrote:
> >  
> >
> >>Hi there
> >>
> >>Anybody, is there a way to read variable length
> text
> >>file, comma delimited usinq QUIZ. My platform is
> >>ALPHA/VMS and PH-710G
> >>
> >>Thanks and best regards!
> >>-- 
> >>
> >>    
> >>
>
>________________________________________________________________
> >  
> >
> >>Aci Polajnar                  Tel   : +386(0)3
> >>4274174
> >>IS Consultant                 Fax   : +386(0)3
> >>4274198
> >>Razvojni Center Celje         e-mail:
> >>acip@rcc-irc.si
> >>3000 Celje, Slovenia          URL   :
> >>http://www.rcc-irc.si
> >>
> >>    
> >>
>
>________________________________________________________________
> >  
> >
> >>    
> >>
>