ISIS Formatting Language

The CISIS format language is made up of a series of commands and functions that allow the contents of the database fields to be formatted on screen.

It is a very powerful language, and with it, it becomes possible to present the content of each record in a database in the desired order and appearance, especially if mixed with HTML and CSS.

It is essential that the librarian masters this language in order to be able to create any kind of report or presentation from any of the databases.

Formatting records requires the librarian to know the identification number of each data field that makes up each record in the database to be formatted.

See below the commands and how to use them.

Content

  1. ISIS Formatting Language
  2. The FL for presenting values REF
  3. Structure of Reference Listing
  4. % # ‘’ “” || () / /* @
    1. # - unconditional newline
    2. % - reset blank line
    3. “string” - conditional literal
    4. ‘string’ - unconditional literal
    5. |string| - repeatable conditional literal
    6. (format) - repeatable group
    7. / - conditional newline
    8. /*string*/ - comment
    9. @ - include format file
  5. A
    1. a(field selector) - absence check
  6. B
    1. break - conditional branching/quitting
  7. C
    1. c - column
    2. cat(file) - dump file
    3. continue - repeatable conditional branching
  8. D
    1. d - dummy field selector
    2. date date(keyword) - current date
  9. F
    1. f(num expr,length,decimals) - format value
  10. G
    1. getenv(expression) - get environment variable
  11. I
    1. if … then … else … fi - conditional flow control
    2. instr(string1,string2) - find string
    3. iocc - occurrence index
  12. L
    1. l(key) l([inverted file],key) - key lookup
    2. left(string,length) - left substring
    3. lw(number) - set line width
  13. M
    1. mdl, mdu, mhl, mhu, mpl, mpu - mode
    2. mfn mfn(length) - record number
    3. mid(string, start, length) - substring
    4. mstname - master file name
  14. N
    1. n - not present (dummy field selector)
    2. newline(string) - set newline
    3. nocc(field) - number of occurrences
    4. npost(key) npost([inverted file],key)
  15. P
    1. p(field selector) - presence check
    2. proc(field update format) - field update
    3. putenv(expression) - environment variable set
  16. R
    1. ravr(string) - average value of expression
    2. record number
    3. ref(mfn, format) ref([master file]mfn, format) - record reference link
    4. replace(string1, string2, string3) - replace
    5. right(string, length) - right substring
    6. rmax(string) - maximum value of expression
    7. rmin(string) - minimum value of expression
    8. rsum(string) - sum of expression
  17. S
    1. s(expression) - string
    2. select … case … elsecase … endsel - conditional branch control
    3. size(string) - string size
    4. system(expression) - system call
  18. T
    1. type(string) - string type
  19. V
    1. v - field selector
    2. val(string) - string to value
  20. X
    1. x - spacing

The FL for presenting values REF

This is by far the most important function of the Formatting Language : specifying which data exactly need to be taken and how they will be ‘displayed’ or ‘printed’ (to the screen, to a printer, to a file, to a webpage…).

Separate documents exist to deal with this extensive language, e.g. the dedicated chapter in the ISIS Reference Manual, published by UNESCO (June 2004, chapter 8, p. 94-122).

Basically there are three types of statements in the ISIS FL :

  1. values from fields, given as : Vx, where ‘V’ denotes the value (or ‘contents’) of a field with tag ‘x’, Vx^a is the value of the subfield a (^a) of field x and (Vx/) is the series of all occurrences of field X separated by a ‘new-line’ (/) since the parenthese embrace a ‘repeatable group’ of statements to be applied to all occurrences (repeatable fields are a strong special feature of ISIS).

  2. literals or quotes strings, which can be ‘unconditional’ (single quotes), |conditional| (pipes indicate the string will only be produced if the related field is present) and “repeatable” (double quotes will only produce the string at the first occurrence of a repeatable field). ISIS-applications on the web, such as ABCD, create web-pages with HTML-tags using this method of adding literals to field-values, e.g.

'<table><tr><td>' Vx '</td><td>' Vy '</td></tr></Table>'

will display resp. the fields x and y in two columns of a table in HTML. Note that all HTML- codes are quoted (as unconditionals) and the values taken from the fields in the database are inserted by referring to them with the V-statement.

  1. commands, which can be of different types, e.g. :

  • mode commands : mhl/u (mode heading lowercase/uppercase), mdl (mode data upper/lowercase) or mpl/u (mode proofreading upper/lowercase)

  • (in Windows-environments) : commands defining screen attributes (colors, fonts, boxes) or links (requesting the operating system to open other data, e.g. multimedia data referred to in a record), e.g.

LINK(‘click here for tull-text’, OPENFILE Vx) will request - when the user clicks on the hyperlinked text ‘click here for full-text’, Windows to open the file of which the name is in Vx, with the Windows-application associated to the extension of that file.

  • the REF-command, which can retrieve data from other records (in the same or another database when ex- pressly referenced to), allowing semi-relations setups in ISIS-applications (but with the advantage that the relation is followed only at run-time when requested). e.g.

REF(['users']) L(['users']V2),V1)

will retrieve the value from field 1 in the database ‘users’ if the L(ookup) function has found the value of field 2 (in the actual database) in the index of the users-database, so that the MFN of the record can be identified.

  • conditional routing statements : e.g.

'IF...THEN... (ELSE....)FI'

or even the

SELECT [case1 case2...] ELSE- CASE... ENDSEL

construct can be used to apply formatting statements only to database values which comply with given conditions.

  • in the CISIS-environment extra FL statements are available, the most important one being a command which will actually PROCess a record to alter the contents of the fields. The general syntax is :
    proc(x|y...)

where x or y can be any of the following : 'Dxxx' (to delete field with tag xxx)

  • |Axx#|value|#| (to Add value into field xx)
  • functions, mostly for string-operations (e.g. substr, size, val) or numerical (e.g. rmin, rmax, rsum…)

Structure of Reference Listing

Support: If Standard, means that command/function has the same usage/result both in ISIS and CISIS. If CISIS is specified, means that it is available only in CISIS. Functions that are enhanced in CISIS, are presented with Standard/CISIS notation. (item always present)

Function type: Displays the data type of a function return value. Possible values are: boolean, string and numeric. (item only applicable to functions)

Syntax: Formal notation of a command/function usage. (item always present)

Definition: Explanation of a command/function usage.

Components: Explains additional features of a command/function.

Notes: Elucidates particularities, restrictions and/or differences between ISIS and CISIS.

Examples: Lists one or more examples of command/function usage.

See also: Lists related commands and functions.

% # ‘’ “” || () / /* @

# - unconditional newline

Support: Standard

Syntax:
#

Definition:
Begins a newline unconditionally.

Examples:

#,("address:"v3(9,9)+|;  |#),

(|Name:  |v1^n,c20,|Surname:|v1^s/),###,

See also:

/ [conditional newline]

% [reset blank line]

% - reset blank line

Support: Standard Syntax: % Definition: Resets all previous blank lines, if any.

Examples:

|Name: |v1^n,c20,|Surname:|v1^s,###,%,/,

v10/#,v20/#,v30/#,%#,

See also:

/ [conditional newline]

# [unconditional newline]

“string” - conditional literal

Support: Standard

Syntax:

"<text>"<field selector>"<text>"
	"<text>"<dummy field (selector)>
"<text>"<not present>

Definition:

Outputs the text between the quotes only if <field selector>,<dummy field (selector)> or <not present> evaluates to TRUE. Both prefix and suffix literals can be placed together when using , and data field content is also output. If combined with `<dummy field (selector)>`, output is generated if data field is present. If combined with ``, outputs only if data field is absent.

Notes:

<text> is produced only once, independing on repeatable fields.

Examples:

"Author: "v1^a,

"this text outputs if data field 10 is present"d10,

"this text outputs if data field 10 is absent"n5,

See also: ‘string’ [unconditional literal] |string| [repeatable conditional literal] d [dummy field selector] n [not present] v [field selector]

‘string’ - unconditional literal

Support: Standard

Syntax: '<text>'

Definition: Unconditionally outputs the text contained between a single quotes pair.

Notes:

Unconditional literals may be placed anywhere in a format and can be passed as parameters to functions.

Examples:

this text will always output',

'Name: ',v1/,

See also: “string” [conditional literal] |string| [repeatable conditional literal]

|string| - repeatable conditional literal

Support: Standard

Syntax:

|<text>|<+><field selector><+>|<text>|

Definition: Outputs the text between the vertical bars for each occurrence of a repeatable field, only if field selector evaluates to TRUE. Combined with a repeatable field, command behavior can be extended by using the <+> operator. When <+> is present, the first prefix literal and/or the last suffix literal is not output.

ex:

(|; |+v1), /* prefix-literal */ (v1+|; |), /* suffix-literal */

Notes: Prefix and suffix-literals can be used together, including with <+> operator. If a prefix or suffix-literal is used with <+> outside a repeatable group, literal contents may not be output as desired. If field is not repeatable, literal output occurs for the first and only occurrence of data field.

Examples:

(|; |+v1^s,|,|v1^n*0.1|.|),

(v10|: |, ,v11,| - |v12),

See also:

“string” [conditional literal] ‘string’ [unconditional literal] (format) [repeatable group] v [field selector]

(format) - repeatable group

Support: Standard

Syntax:

 (<format>)

Definition:
Applies the format between the parenthesis to all occurrences of repeatable field(s) individually, or only once, if no repeatable field is present.

Notes:
Repeatable groups cannot be nested.

Examples:

(|;  |+v2^s/),

(v1,c15,v2,c35,v3/),

(if  iocc<=3  then  f(iocc,1,0),|  -  |v3/ else  '-> more than  3'/,  fi),

See also:

** string ** [repeatable conditional literal]

v [field selector]

/ - conditional newline

Support: Standard

Syntax:

/

Definition: Begins a new line if not at the beginning of a line.

Notes:

Several conditional newline commands (,/,/,/,/,) have the same effect of a single one.

Examples:

v1/,

v1/,v3/,v10/,mfn/,

s(v1,v3,v10)/,

See also:

# [unconditional newline] % [reset blank line]

/*string*/ - comment

Support: CISIS Syntax:

/* <comment> */

Definition: Encapsulates a comment.

Notes: Comments can span over several lines.

Examples:

/* this is a single line comment */,

/* this comment begins here and ends here */,

if a(v10) /*and p(v20) */ then v20/ fi,

@ - include format file

Support: CISIS

Syntax:

@<filename>

Definition: Includes a format specification stored in a file in the current format.

Notes: <filename> may include drive and path information. Syntax of commands from the included file is evaluated when current format is executed. It is mandatory to separate <filename> with commas.

Examples:

@test.pft,v20,

s(@c:\temp\test.pft,v3),

if v1='L' then @large.pft, fi,

A

a(field selector) - absence check

Support: Standard

Function type: Boolean

Syntax:

a(<field  selector>)

Definition: Returns TRUE if data field is absent, otherwise returns FALSE.

Notes: All components of field selector may be used, except indent.

Examples:

 if  a(v12) then  v13  else  v12, fi,

if  a(v20^b) and  p(v30) then  v40/,  fi,

See also:

p function

v [field selector]

B

break - conditional branching/quitting

Support: CISIS

Syntax:

break

Definition:

Breaks the execution of a repeatable group format. When outside a repeatable group, quits the execution of the current format.

Notes: The execution resumes after the end of the repeatable group. When used inside a ref function, execution continues with the format after the function.

Examples:

(if  iocc  >  10  then '10+  occurrences'/,**break** else  v5^n|-|,v5^s,/,  fi,),

See also: (format) [repeatable group]

C

c - column

Support: Standard

Syntax:

c<int>

Definition: Skips to the specified column in the current or next line.

Examples:

'Name:  ',c10,v1^n/,

if  p(v1^s)  then  c10,v1^s/,  fi,

See also:

x [spacing]

cat(file) - dump file

Support: CISIS

Function type: String

Syntax:

cat(<format>)

Definition: Outputs the contents of a file whose name is generated by <format>. Used for display file.

Examples:

mfn,cat('myfile.html'),

cat('current  document'/,  ,if  v10='c'  then  'firstdoc.txt'  else  'default.doc'  fi),

cat(v101),

See also:

s(expression)

continue - repeatable conditional branching

Support: CISIS

Syntax: continue

Definition: Executes the next occurrence of a repeatable group if at least one data field has a subsequent occurrence.

Notes:

Examples:

(if  iocc  =  1  then  **continue** else  v10/  fi),

(f(iocc,1,0),'=',v70,continue/),

See also:

(format) [repeatable group]

D

d - dummy field selector

Support: Standard

Syntax:

d<field tag><subfield>

Definition: Outputs the conditional literal prefix if a data field or subfield exists. Used in conjunction with conditional literals.

Notes: Dummy field (selector) does not return a value.

Known bugs: When in a repeatable group, <subfield> is evaluated only for the first occurrence of data field.

Examples:

"this  text  outputs  if  data  field  10 exists"**d**10,

Name:  "v20(5,5)/,  ,"Name:  "n20,v21(5,5)/,

See also: “string” [conditional literal] n [not present] v [field selector]

date date(keyword) - current date

Support: CISIS Function type: String

Syntax:

date

date(<keyword>)

Definition: Outputs current system date. Used without parameters, returns:

yyyymmdd hhmmss w nnn

where:

  • mm = month
  • dd = day
  • mm = minute
  • ss = second
  • nnn = number of elapsed days from Jan 1st.

Components:

keywords DATETIME and DATEONLY

Notes:

DATETIME shows system date in european format plus current time (dd/mm/yy hh:mm:ss) while DATEONLY displays the same output without time information.

Examples:

'Today  is  ',**date**,

'Current  date:  ',date(DATEONLY)/,  ,'Current  time:  ',mid(date(DATETIME),10,8)/,

F

f(num expr,length,decimals) - format value

Support: Standard

Function type: String

Syntax:

f(<format>,<expr-1>,<expr-2>)

Definition: Converts a numeric value to string. <format> is the numeric expression to be converted. <expr-1> and <expr-2> are optional and determine the minimum output length and the number of decimal places respectively.

Notes: If <format> is not a valid numeric expression, an error is issued. If <expr-2> is set, <expr-1> must also be placed or a syntax error is issued. If only <expr-1> is defined, the result is output in scientific exponent notation. If the number of characters required to represent <format> is greater than <expr-1>, additional positions are provided automatically. If <expr-1> is missing, a width of 16 characters is assumed.

Examples:

f(val(v1),2),

f(((3+5)/2)+1,4,2),

f(v2),

See also: val function

G

getenv(expression) - get environment variable

Support: CISIS

Function type: String

Syntax:

getenv(<format>)

Definition: Returns the value of an environment variable.

Notes: If <format> does not generate a valid environment variable name, no value is returned.

Examples:

'Current path: ',getenv('PATH'),

(v1|=|,getenv(v1)/),

See also: putenv function

I

if … then … else … fi - conditional flow control

Support: Standard

Syntax:

if <bool expr> then <format-1> [else <format-2> ] fi

Definition: Executes a block of formatting language specifications (<format-1>) if <bool expr> evaluates to TRUE. Allows the execution of another block of formatting language specifications (<format-2>) by using the clause else when <bool expr> evaluates to FALSE.

Notes: Clause then precedes the first block of formatting language specifications. else is optional and if present in the code, must be followed by a format. The fi clause must always end the command scope and if missing, a syntax error is issued. The if…fi command can span over several lines, therefore it is recommended the use of indentation.

Examples:

,ifinstr(v5,'ab')>0 then ,v5/, fi,

,if p(v10) then ,|Title: |v3, else ,|Alternate title: |v4, ,fi,

instr(string1,string2) - find string

Support: CISIS

Function type: Numeric

Syntax:

instr(<format-1>,<format-2>)

Definition: Returns a number specifying the starting position of the string generated by <format-2>, found in string settled by <format-1>. If there is no match, return value is zero.

Notes: Both <format-1> and <format-2> must generate strings, otherwise a syntax error occurs. The use of s function may help in cases where a complex string is required as parameter.

Examples:

if instr(v5,'ab')>0 then v5/, fi,

if instr(s(|'|v1|'|),v5)>0 then v1, fi,

left(v18,instr(v18,'.')-1),

iocc - occurrence index

Support: CISIS

Function type: Numeric

Syntax: iocc

Definition: Returns the occurrence index number (starting from 1), otherwise returns zero.

Examples:

("Author: "v1/, ,if iocc > 3 then 'et all',break, fi),

(f(iocc,3,0),|.|v10/),

See also: nocc function

L

l(key) l([inverted file],key) - key lookup

Support: Standard/CISIS

Function type: Numeric

Syntax:

l(<format key>)

l([<format ifname>]<format key>)

Definition: Returns the MFN of the first posting (if any) by using the key generated by <format key> to search the current inverted file. It can also seek in a specific inverted file defined by <format ifname>.

Notes: Keys are converted to upper case before the expression is seek. Default display mode used by lookup is mpl. If a different mode is specified in the FST file, key must also use the appropriate mode. If key is not found, function returns zero. The <format ifname> parameter must evaluate to a string having a valid inverted file name, otherwise a syntax error is issued. This is often used in conjunction with ref function to allow output of data fields from a different record.

Examples:

if l(v15)<> 0 then |Term: |v15, fi,

ref(l(['books']v1,'-',v2),v10/),

See also: ref function

left(string,length) - left substring

Support: CISIS

Function type: String

Syntax:

left(<format-1>,<format-2>)

Definition: Returns a new string, containing the leftmost characters from of the original string generated by <format-1>. <format-2> specifies the actual number of characters to be read from <format-1> starting from left to right.

Notes: If the string generated by <format-2> is greater than the size defined by <format-1>, function returns the <format-1> string. If <format-2> is zero or is set to a negative number, returns a NULL string.

Examples:

if left(v1^n,2)='Ma' then v1^n/, fi,

left(v1,instr(v1,'.')-1),

See also: right function mid function

lw(number) - set line width

Support: CISIS

Function type: Numeric

Syntax:

lw(<int>)

Definition: Sets the output line width to characters.

Notes: Output line width default depends on the application program

Examples:

if size(v10) > 76 then lw(254), fi,

lw(70),v20/,lw(10),v30/,

M

mdl, mdu, mhl, mhu, mpl, mpu - mode

Support: Standard

Syntax:

m<mode><conv>

Definition: Sets a new displaying mode for the current output.

Notes: Default mode is mpl. <mode> represents the desired mode to be set. <conv> specifies whether upper case conversion is set. Mode may appear several times in a format and its formatting effect is active until a new mode is set.

<mode> can be as follows:

  • p = proof: fields are displayed as they are stored in records.
  • h = heading: control characters and descriptor delimiters are ignored, except subfield descriptor, which are translated to punctuation.
  • d = data: similar to heading mode, appends a full stop at the end of data fields, followed by two spaces. <conv> can be as follows:
  • u: converts data to upper case
  • l: leaves data unchanged

Examples:

mpl,"First author: "v10[1]/,

mpu,"Second author: "v10[2]/,

mdl,"Third author: "v10[3]/,

mfn mfn(length) - record number

Support: Standard

Function type: String or numeric

Syntax:

mfn

mfn(<int>)

Definition: Returns the master file number of a record.

Notes: An integer value can be passed as parameter to set the return value size. mfn returns the appropriate return type according to the format requirements.

Examples:

'Record: ',mfn(3)/,

if mfn > 2 then mfn/, fi,

ref(mfn-1,v2/),

See also: ref function l function

mid(string, start, length) - substring

Support: CISIS

Function type: String

Syntax:

mid(<format-1>,<format-2>,<format-3>)

Definition:

Returns a new string, containing a specified number of characters from the original string (<format-1>). <format-3> gives the actual number of characters to be read from <format-1> and <format-2> gives the start position in string where extraction begins.

Notes:

If <format-2> is greater than <format-1> size, function returns a NULL string. If <format-2> is zero or is set to a negative number, default is 1.

Examples:

mid(v2,2,80),

mid(v1,instr(v1,'key'),size(v1))/,

See also: right function left function

mstname - master file name

Support: CISIS

Function type: String

Syntax:

mstname

Definition: Returns the current master filename.

Examples:

'Current database: ',mstname/,

ref(['names']l(['names']'X39BJ'), ,'Database now is ',mstname/),

N

n - not present (dummy field selector)

Support: Standard

Syntax: n<field tag>

Definition: Tests the absence of a data field. Used in conjunction with conditional literals.

Notes: As a dummy (field) selector, it does not return a value.

Examples:

"this text outputs if data field 10 is absent"n10,

"Author:"v10/, ,"Author: "n10,v20/,

See also: “string” [conditional literal] d [dummy field selector] v [field selector]

newline(string) - set newline

Support: CISIS

Function type: String

Syntax: newline(<format>)

Definition: Sets and/or resets default CR/LF pair with character(s) from resulting .

Notes: <format> may even contain reserved escape sequences such as: \r - carriage return \n - line feed Subsequent \ commands will be automatically replaced by resulting format until a newline sets a new character or string.

Examples:

newline(if v151='unix' then '\n' else '\r\n' fi,

newline(v301),

newline('<BR>'),

See also: / [conditional newline] # [unconditional newline]

nocc(field) - number of occurrences

Support: CISIS Function type: Numeric

Syntax:

nocc(<field selector>)

Definition: Returns the number of occurrences of a data field or subfield defined by .

Notes:

<field selector> means only field and subfield in this function scope. All other field selector components, if used, issue a syntax error.

Examples:

if nocc(v3)> 10 then 'Too many occurrences.'/, fi,

'There are ',f(nocc(v20),2,0),' authors.'/,

See also: iocc function v [field selector]

npost(key) npost([inverted file],key)

Support: CISIS

Function type: Numeric

Syntax:

npost(<format key>)

npost([<format>],<format key>)

Definition: Returns the total postings for a key (given by <format key>) in an inverted file. <format> if defined, must generate a string containing the inverted file name. <format key> settles the key to be searched in the inverted file.

Examples:

if npost(v1)> 1 then 'duplicate key ',v1,' found'/, fi,

'There are ',f(npost(v20),3,0),'keys for ',v20,'. '/,

See also: l function

P

p(field selector) - presence check

Support: Standard

Function type: Boolean

Syntax:

p(<field selector>)

Definition: Returns TRUE if data field is present, otherwise returns FALSE.

Notes: All field selector components can be used, except indent.

Examples:

if p(v12) then v12 else v13, fi,

if p(v50^a) and p(v50^b) then v50^a/,v50^b/, fi,

See also: a function v [field selector]

proc(field update format) - field update

Support: CISIS Function type: String

Syntax:

proc(<fldupd format>)

Definition: Appends or replaces data fields in the current record. <fldupd format> is a format that generates the field update specific commands to be executed by the function.

Notes: A CISIS field update specification is a string of d (delete) and a(add) and h (add) commands to be applied in the current record. All d (delete) commands must preceed the add commands.

The following commands are available: d* - deletes all present fields d<field tag> - deletes all occurrences of <field tag> d<field tag>/<occ> - deletes occurrence <occ> of <field tag> a<field tag>#<string># - adds <string> as a new occurrence of <field tag> h<field tag> <n> <string> - adds <string>, <n> bytes long, as a new occurrence of <field tag> The # delimiter may be any non-numeric character. A space must be provided between the <field tag>, <n> and <string> parameters of the h command.

Examples:

proc('d70',|a10#|v70|#|),

proc(if v24*0.4 = 'Tech' then 'd*', fi),

putenv(expression) - environment variable set

Support: CISIS

Function type: String

Syntax:

putenv(<format>)

Definition: Sets an environment variable at the operating system level with its corresponding value.

Notes: The variable is available only within the scope of current process.

Examples:

putenv('TEST=test'),getenv('TEST'),

set CIPAR=somefile
set
mx null "pft=putenv('CIPAR=another'),getenv('CIPAR')/"
set

See also: getenv function

R

ravr(string) - average value of expression

Support: Standard

Function type: Numeric

Syntax:

ravr(<format>)

Definition: Returns the average value of a given format. <format> must generate a string expression.

Notes: Can be used to compute the average of numeric values in repeatable fields.

Examples:

f(**ravr(**s(v8,x1,v1)**)**,3,0),

f(**ravr(**v1,x1,v2**)**,5,2),

f(**ravr(**'8;15;16.73'**)**,3,2),

if  **ravr(**v20|;|**)**>=5  then  'pass'/  else  'fail'/,  fi,

See also: rmin function rmax function rsum function

record number

ref(mfn, format) ref([master file]mfn, format) - record reference link

Support: Standard/CISIS

Function type: String

Syntax:

ref(<expr>,<format>) ref([<format dbname>]<expr>,<format>)

Definition:

Executes <format> with the record selected by <expr>. If <format dbname> is set, another (or the same) database can be referenced and a different record is selected.

Notes: <expr> can be any format returning the MFN of a record. l function can be used to perform a seek and return the MFN. Examples:

ref(l(v3),v1/,v2/,v3/),

if ref(['account']l(['user']v2),v4)='active' then |Name: |v10/, fi,

(if p(v99) then ref([v99]1,v30/), fi),

See also: l function

replace(string1, string2, string3) - replace

Support: CISIS

Function type: String

Syntax:

replace(<format-1>,<format-2>, <format3)

Definition: Returns a new string, after replacing <format-2> with <format-3>.

Notes: If <format-2> is a null string or is not found in <format-1>), function returns <format-1> string. If <format-3> is null, <format-2> string will be excluded from <format-1>. replace is case sensitive for both search string (<format-2>) and replace string (<format-3>).

Examples:

replace('Mary And John','And','and')/,

if replace(v1^a,'01x','01X')= '894501X' then v1^n/, fi,

replace(s(v304,v333),',',', ')/,

replace(s(if v415='spanish' then v299 else 'none' fi),v1,v759)/,

right(string, length) - right substring

Support: CISIS

Function type: String

Syntax:

right(<format-1>,<format-2>)

Definition: Returns a new string, containing the rightmost characters of the original string (<format-1>). <format-2> gives the actual number of characters to be read from <format-1> starting from right to left.

Notes: If <format-2> is greater than <format-1> size, function returns <format-1> string. If <format-2> is zero or is set to a negative number, returns nothing.

Examples:

if right(v1^n,1) = 'r' then v1^n/, fi,

right(v65,4)/,

to capture a file extension, use:

right(v856^u[LAST],3)

rmax(string) - maximum value of expression

Support: Standard Function type: Numeric Syntax:

rmax(<format>)

Definition: Returns the maximum value of a given format. <format> must generate a string expression.

Notes:

Can be used to compute the maximum of numeric values in a repeatable field.

Examples:

f(rmax('72,54,2'),2,0),

f(rmax(v1,x1,v4,x1,(v8|,|)),5,2),

if rmax(v40|;|)>val(v41) then 'Limit of ',v41,'exceeded.'/, fi,

See also: rmin function ravr function rsum function

rmin(string) - minimum value of expression

Support: Standard

Function type: Numeric

Syntax:

rmin(<format>)

Definition: Returns the minimum value of a given format. <format> must generate a string expression.

Notes: Similar to rmax function, rmin can compute the minimum of numeric values in a repeatable field.

Examples:

f(rmin('10;2;5;4;-2'),2,0),

f(rmin(v1,x1,v2,x1,'44'),4,2),

if rmin(v80||,v90|  |,v100|  |)<  1990  then  'Wrong  decade.'/,  fi,

See also: rmax function ravr function rsum function

rsum(string) - sum of expression

Support: Standard

Function type: Numeric

Syntax:

rsum(<format>)

Definition: Returns the sum of a given format. <format> must generate a string expression.

Notes: Similar to rmax and rmin functions, rsum computes the sum of numeric values in a repeatable field.

Examples:

f(rsum('102,45,-37'),2,0),

f(rsum(v1,x1,v3,x1,f(val(v8)+2)),4,2),

if rsum(v20^d)>1000  then  'Aborted.'/  else  'OK'/,  fi,

See also: rmax function ravr function rmin function

S

s(expression) - string

Support: Standard

Function type: String

Syntax:

s(<format>)[command  component]

Definition: Returns the concatenation of string expressions generated by .

Components: extraction

extraction: Extracts partial content of the resulting string. <offset int> is the first position to start extraction, while <length int> determines how many characters will be extracted. If <length int> is omitted or is greater than the resulting string, the default is the end of the resulting string.

Notes: Can be passed to functions that require a string expression as parameter.

select … case … elsecase … endsel - conditional branch control

Support: CISIS

Syntax:

	select <format expr>
case <option-1>: <format-1>
	case <option-2>: <format-2>
	case <option-n>: <format-n> [elsecase <format-0>]
	endsel

Definition: Evaluates <format expr> and compares the result to each case option (<option-1>, <option-2>…<option-n>). If an option matches <format expr>, the appropriate block of formatting language specifications is executed (<format-1>, <format-2>…<format-n>), otherwise elsecaseclause (if defined) is executed (format-0).

Notes: <format expr> must generate a string or numeric value. If <format expr> evaluates to string, all option values in case clauses must be of string type, otherwise, if <format expr> is numeric, option values must be also numeric.

Examples:

select s(v5)
	case '1': ,f(val(v5)/2,2,2)/,
	case '2': ,v5/,
case '3': ,v6,'-',v1/,
elsecase ,|Error in field v5 = |v5/,
endsel,


select nocc(v7)
	case 0: 'absent'/,
	case 1: 'one occurrence'/,
case 2: 'two occurrences'/,
elsecase 'more than 2 occurrences'/,
endsel,

See also: if … then … else .. fi

size(string) - string size

Support: CISIS Function type: Numeric Syntax:

size(<format>)

Definition: Returns the string size.

Notes: <format> must return a string or a syntax error occurs.

Examples:

if size(v10)>  76  then  lw(254),  fi,

f(size(v10,v20),1,0),

system(expression) - system call

Support: CISIS Function type: String

Syntax:

system(<format>)

Definition: Executes the argument produced by <format> as an operating system command.

Notes: <format> must generate a string containing the code to be executed. The possible output from the command is sent directly to the standard output.

Examples:

system('dir'),

if p(v2) then system('type ',v2),fi,

T

type(string) - string type

Support: CISIS

Function type: String

Syntax:

type(<format>)

Definition: Returns the string type as follows:

  • A - if string contains only alphabetic characters (according to a default alphabetic character table, like ISISAC.TAB) or space
  • N - if string contains only numeric characters (0-9)
  • X - for all other cases

Notes: Format must generate a string or a syntax error is issued.

Examples:

if  type(**v1**)**='N'  then  f(val(v1),3,2)/  else  v1/,  fi,

if  s(type(v1),type(v2),type(v3))<>'AAA'  then  'Invalid  character  type detected'/,  fi,

V

v - field selector

Support: Standard

Syntax:

v<field tag>[command components]

Definition:

Outputs data field contents. Content can be selected, restricted, narrowed, extracted or indented by using command components (see below). v stands for variable length field. Components: subfield, occurence, extraction and indent

syntactic orde r:

^<subfield id> [<index>[..<upper index>]] *<offset int>.<length int>
(<first line int>,<next line int>)

subfield: Restricts the output to the contents of a subfield. If data field exists but subfield is not present, no output is generated.

occurrence: Narrows the output to one or a range of occurrences of a repeatable field. <index> and <upper index> refer to the first (or unique) and last occurrences, respectively. If the specified is greater than the actual number of occurrences, no output is generated. The same occurs if data field is not repeatable and is set to a number equal or greater than

  1. However, if <index> is set to 1 and it is used in a non-repeatable field, content is normally output. This component must be used outside a repeatable group; otherwise, <upper index> is ignored. If double dot (..) is used and <upper index> is missing LAST is assumed. The LAST keyword is set with the value of total occurrences of a data field. extraction: Extracts partial content of a data field, subfield or occurrence. <offset int> is the first position to start extraction, while <length int> determines how many characters will be extracted. If <length int> is omitted or is greater than field length, the default is the end of data field. indent: Aligns the output of data field, subfield, occurrence or extracted content, according to <first line int> (alignment for the first line) and <next line int> (alignment for successive lines). Both values are numeric constants. If current line position differs from zero, indentantion is disabled. Notes: The behavior of the field command depends on the component(s) used. No output is generated when data field is absent or when component performs a restriction or extraction that is out of data boundary.

Examples:

v2/,v3^a| - |,v1/,

v1^n*0.3,

(|; |+v3^s)/,

v20[4],

v10[2..7]/,

v5[3..]/,/* equals to ,v5[3..LAST], */

v1[LAST]*2.7/,

v1(5,5)/,

|Title: |v1^n(5,5)/,

See also: “string” [conditional literal] d [dummy field selector] n [not present] |string| [repeatable conditional literal] (format) [repeatable group]

val(string) - string to value

Support: Standard

Function type: Numeric

Syntax:

val(<format>)

Definition: Returns the numeric value of the argument generated by .

Notes: If <format> produces only non-numeric characters, function returns zero.

If more than one numeric value is encountered, only the first one is returned.

Examples:

if val(v2)>5 then 'Error'/ else 'OK'/, fi,

f(val(v2)/3,4,2),

X

x - spacing

Support: Standard

Syntax: x<int>

Definition: Inserts the number of spaces defined by <int> before the next block of formatting language specifications is output.

Notes: If <int> is greater than the available space in the current line, it skips to the next line.

Examples:

'Name:  ', x5,v1^n/,

(v1,x3,v2,x8,v3/),

See also: c [column]