COBOL Manual for TNS/E Programs (H06.08+, J06.03+)

16 ANSI Reference Format
In ANSI reference format, each line has 80 characters (columns). Five margins divide each line
into five areas.
Figure 26 ANSI Reference Format
To ensure that each line has 80 characters, the COBOL compiler truncates lines that are too long
and space-pads lines that are too short. The topics of this section explain the five areas that Figure 26
shows, which are:
• Sequence Number Area
• Indicator Area
• Area A
• Record Description Entries
• Identification Field
Sequence Number Area
The Sequence Number Area begins at Margin L and uses columns 1 through 6. It can be empty,
or it can contain a line number (up to six digits) or a line label (a combination of letters and
numbers).
No sequence number area exists for compiler directive lines.
Indicator Area
The indicator area begins at Margin C and uses only column 7. It can be empty, or it can contain
a single character that describes the type of information on the line.
Table 104 Valid Indicator Area Characters (ANSI Reference Format)
Indicates that the line is a …Character NameValid Character
Compiler DirectiveQuestion mark?
Ordinary CommentAsterisk*
Comment for Top of PageSlash/
Debugging LineUppercase DD
Debugging LineLowercase dd
Continuation LineHyphen-
702 ANSI Reference Format