Built-In Functions and Syntax › Translate

Translate

The translate function returns a string that results from:

• Extracting characters from an original string that match a selection string
• Replacing the extracted characters with corresponding characters in a substitution string

Characters in a selection string correspond positionally to characters in a substitution string. The first character in the selection string corresponds to the first character in the substitution string, the second corresponds to the second, and so forth.

Example:

If the selection string contains the letter A in its tenth position, each occurrence of A in the original string is replaced by the tenth character in the substitution string.

Syntax:

►►─┬─ TRANS ─────┬─ (string, substitution-string ─┬─────────────────────┬─ ) ─►◄
   └─ TRANSLATE ─┘                                └─ ,selection-string ─┘

Invocation names:

TRANS
TRANSLATE

Parameters:

string

Specifies the variable on which the translate function is performed.

substitution-string

Specifies the substitution string.

selection-string

Specifies the selection string (optional):

• If selection-string is longer than substitution-string, the excess characters correspond to blanks.
• If selection-string specifies the same character more than once, the translate function uses the first occurrence of the character.
• If selection-string is not specified, the 256-character EBCDIC table is used, consisting of hexadecimals 00 through FF.

Example:

This example translates all occurrences of 1, 2, and 3 in course ID values to A, B, and C, respectively. The initial value of COURSE-ID is '321 '.

select trans(course-id,'123','abc')
from course-list

  ' CBA                '