Pathway/iTS SCREEN COBOL Reference Manual (G06.24+, H06.03+, Pathway/iTS 1.0+)

Compaq NonStop™ Pathway/iTS SCREEN COBOL Reference Manual—426750-001
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SCREEN COBOL Compiler Diagnostic
Messages
The SCREEN COBOL compiler produces three types of diagnostic messages to report
the severity of problems in the source text or compilation process:
•
Warnings—A warning message reports a questionable condition but does not inhibit
code generation. Some warnings merely report a minor deviation from the
conventions of the SCREEN COBOL language. Other warnings indicate more
important violations that could result in a different interpretation of the program than
is intended. The explanation of a warning includes a brief description and any
actions taken or assumptions made by the compiler. Warning messages can be
suppressed with the NOWARN compiler command, as described in Section 7,
Compilation.
•
Errors—An error message reports a serious violation of SCREEN COBOL syntax or
semantics. The compiler stops generating code and deletes any previously
generated code, but compilation continues for syntax checking purposes. Because
information at this point would be incomplete or incorrect, correct syntax might be
reported as an error.
•
Failures—A failure message reports a condition so severe that the compiler cannot
continue. Any previously generated code is deleted.
Most warnings or errors pertain to a specific portion of the source text or a specific user-
defined item. The compiler assists in locating the error as follows:
•
When the problem is local, the line preceding the message contains a caret (^). The
language element in error is in the last source line either at the position indicated or
somewhere to the left of that position. Occasionally, the language element to the left
is actually on a source line preceding the last one listed.
•
Some problems are not found until the entire program is examined. When the line
preceding the message contains the phrase PROBLEM AT OR NEAR LINE nnnnn,
it refers to a preceding portion of the program by line number. The cause of the
problem, or one of several interrelated causes, is found in the vicinity of the
specified line.
•
When a user-defined name appears at the end of a message, the message concerns
the item specified.
SCREEN COBOL compiler error messages are written to the file or printer device
specified by the OUT parameter of the SCOBOLX run command. In addition, a failure
message is sent to the home terminal. The explanations describe the problem in further
detail or describe the language rule violated. When the same message can sto different
problems, the discussion includes several independent explanations.