COBOL Manual for TNS and TNS/R Programs

Data Fundamentals
HP COBOL Manual for TNS and TNS/R Programs—522555-006
4-24
Identifiers
Identifiers
An identifier is a data-name made unique by a combination of qualifiers, subscripts,
and reference modifiers.
data-name
is the name of a data item. If it has reference modifiers, it must be USAGE
DISPLAY. If it is used as a subscript or qualifier itself, it can be qualified but not
subscripted.
Example 4-8. Reference Modifiers
A program contains these data descriptions:
01 SPREAD.
03 LTH PIC 99 VALUE 10.
03 MM.
05 FF PIC A(10) VALUE "MARGARINE ".
05 GG PIC $$9.99.
The same program contains these statements:
MOVE 3.15 TO GG
DISPLAY MM
DISPLAY MM (1:LTH)
MOVE "GONE" TO MM (11:)
DISPLAY MM
Executing the program produces these display:
MARGARINE $3.15
MARGARINE
MARGARINE GONE
data-name
OF
IN
(
leftmost-character-position
)
length
qualified-name
subscript
(
)
:
VST009.vsd