Data Transformation Engine Type Designer Reference Guide

Chapter 8 - Components Components are Required for Group Types
the number of occurrences. The range (s) represents some or any number
greater than one.
When a component is selected, the component name appears in the rule bar. Click
in the rule bar after the component name to type the component range.
The range appears in parentheses immediately after the component name. The
range is two numbers separated by a colon. The first number indicates the
minimum number of consecutive occurrences of that component. The second
number indicates the maximum number of consecutive occurrences of that
component. The syntax of the component name and range is:
Component (MIN:MAX)
To enter a range after a component name, type in the rule bar or use the Set
Range command. Set Range is discussed later in this chapter in Using the Set
Range Command.
Note The maximum component range is 2147483647.
Whenever a component has a range, each occurrence of that component may be
referred to as a "member" of a series. The words "occurrence" and "member" are
used interchangeably in the documentation.
Indefinite number
When there is no maximum number of occurrences of a component (the maximum
is indefinite) use the letter s to stand for "Some - you do not know how many".
Therefore, a file that contains at least one record and has no maximum number of
records has this component:
Record(1:s)
If the range minimum is zero, omit the 0 and only enter s. If a file has a minimum
of zero records and no maximum number of records, it would have this as its
component:
Record(s)
Remember that when you see (s), the minimum of zero is implied. Therefore,
Record(0:s) is the same as Record(s)
If you enter any number alone in the parentheses, the range changes to a
minimum of 0 and a maximum of that number. For example, if you enter (5) for a
range and save and close the group window, the next time you open it, you see
the range displays:
(0:5)