Use the $ALIAS() function to enable the establishment and use of tables of aliases. An alias is a string that, when it matches a minimum portion of an alias table entry, will have another value substituted for it.
The $ALIAS() function has this syntax:
result = $ALIAS({ADD },table,{alias })
{CREATE} {width }
{DELETE} {name,object}
{LIST } {name }
{XLATE }
The $ALIAS() function takes these arguments:
|
result |
Contains one of these values: (any successful list operation): Maximum length of any instance of name, followed by the maximum length of any instance of object (separated by a blank). (any other successful operation): Affirmative message. (any unsuccessful operation): Error text. |
|
ADD |
Adds an alias entry. |
|
CREATE |
Creates a new alias table. |
|
DELETE |
Deletes an alias entry. |
|
LIST |
Lists the contents of an alias table. Entries are returned on the stack, one entry per record. Fields are blank-delimited and consist of:
|
|
XLATE |
Translates the given alias string into an object. |
|
table |
Name of an alias table. This is an arbitrary name. It should not begin with a dollar sign ($), since these names are reserved for use by CA. |
|
alias |
Character string to be used in a search of the alias table. This string is not case-sensitive. |
|
width |
Maximum number of characters that can appear in any object in the table being created. |
|
name |
Name to be added to the table as an alias. The first character must be an uppercase character. During comparisons, the leading uppercase portion of the name must be present in the alias being checked. The remaining characters in the alias being checked (if any) must then match the trailing, lowercase portion of the name. When specified with a DELETE operation, the case is not checked. |
|
object |
Text string that is returned upon match by an alias. |
The $ALIAS() function produces these return codes:
101 - 103 ARG n MISSING OR INVALID
121 TABLE ALREADY EXISTS
122 TABLE DOES NOT EXIST
123 NO REQUIRED CHARACTERS
124 THIS ENTRY MATCHES EXISTING ENTRY
125 ALIAS NOT FOUND
Example
$ALIAS('CREATE',TAB1,80)
$ALIAS('ADD',tab1,'ABCdef','xyz')
$ALIAS('XLATE',tab1,'abc') == 'xyz'
$ALIAS('XLATE',tab1,'ab') == 'ALIAS NOT FOUND'
$ALIAS('XLATE',tab1,'abcdefx') == 'ALIAS NOT FOUND'
$ALIAS('XLATE',tab1,'abcde') == 'xyz'
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