COBOL Manual for TNS/E Programs (H06.03+)

Issues Related to Linking

HP COBOL Manual for TNS/E Programs—520347-003

24-11

Linking Programs to Be Called Dynamically

A dynamic call is one in which the name of the called program is not known until run

time (see Dynamic Calls). Every program that a dynamic call could possibly call must

be bound into the run unit or user library before you execute the program. There are

several ways to do this:

•

Compile all the programs in the run unit from a single source file.

•

Use the linker to build the required program units into the run unit.

•

Refer to each possible called program explicitly in the source program—in a

paragraph that is not executed—and then call the ones you want with CALL

identifier statements.

At run time, if identifier specifies the name of a program that is unavailable, the

run-time routines raise an exception.

COBOL Segmentation

HP COBOL ignores segment numbers, but issues warning messages for transfers of

control forbidden by the segmentation rules of the ANSI COBOL Standard. HP COBOL

also issues warning messages for altered GO TO statements in independent

segments, because such alterations will not be restored when control returns to the

independent segments.

Note. The 1985 COBOL Standard classifies the segmentation module as obsolete, so you

are advised not to use it.