TACL Reference Manual

HP NonStop TACL Reference Manual—429513-018
Glossary-1
Glossary
access mode. A file attribute that determines what operations you can perform on the file,
like reading and writing.
alias. An alternative name for a given function.
ancestor. The process that is notified when a named process or process pair is deleted.
The ancestor is usually the process that created the named process or process pair.
argument. A parameter that you specify when you invoke a macro or routine.
array data item. A portion of a STRUCT that is treated as an array; that is, you can refer to
the whole item, or you can refer to individual elements of it.
ASSIGN. An association of a physical file name with a logical file name made by the TACL
ASSIGN command. The physical file name is any valid file name. The logical file name
is used within a program. The ASSIGN is therefore used to pass file names to
programs.
Blade Element. See slice. Also known as a NonStop Blade Element.
BREAK mode. A mode of process execution where a process gains exclusive access to a
terminal when the BREAK key is pressed. BREAK mode is established using
SETPARAM function 3 or SETMODE function 11.
BREAK owner. The process that receives the break-on-device message when the BREAK
key is pressed. The establishment of BREAK ownership is achieved using SETPARAM
function 3 or SETMODE function 11.
breakpoint. A location (or point) in a program where execution is to be suspended so that
you can then examine and perhaps modify the state of the program. You can set and
clear breakpoints with _DEBUGGER commands.
built-in. A function or variable built into TACL; a built-in cannot be modified. Other variables
can be modified by the user.
C-series system. A system that is running a C-series RVU.
CAID. See creator access ID (CAID).
child process. A process created by the current process.
code segment. An area of memory that contains program instructions to be executed, plus
related information. An absolute segment whose logical pages are read from but never
written back to the swap file. command. A text string that directs the computer to
perform a task. Commands are usually composed of a verb that tells the computer
what to do and an object or list of objects that is acted on by the verb. TACL
commands are interpreted by TACL and are extensible.