Format Builder
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Defines the fields contained in the message format. Fields are a sequence of bytes that have some meaning to an application. (For example, the field EMPNAME
contains an employee name.) You can create a field as a child of the message format item, as a child of a group, or as a sibling of a group or another field.
The name of the field. This name must comply with XML element naming conventions (see Valid Names for more information). |
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Select this option if this is an optional field. Optional means that the data for the field may or may not be present. If the Optional option is selected for a file, then you must also set the Field is Tagged option from the Field Attributes pane. In addition, in the Field Is Tagged text box enter a unique value for each optional field in a group. Multiple groups can use the same tag value but the tag value for each optional field in a group must be unique. |
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Select the data type of the field from the drop-down list. The default is String. Note: The Field Type you select dictates the Field Data Options that appear on the dialog. Refer to Supported Data Types for a list of data types supported by Format Builder. |
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Choose one of the following to indicate how often this field appears in the message format:
Note: Unless a field is defined as optional, the field will occur at least one time. |
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Note: The fields that display in the following sections of the detail window depend on the Field Type selected. |
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If the field is a date or time field, the base type indicates what type of characters (ASCII, EBCDIC, or Numeric) make up the data. |
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If the field is a date field that has a 2-digit year, the year cutoff allows the 2-digit year to be converted to a 4-digit year. If the 2-digit year is greater than or equal to the year cutoff value, a '19' prefix will be added to the year value. Otherwise a '20' prefix will be used. |
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Select this option if this is a tagged field. Being tagged means that a literal precedes the data, indicating that the data is present. For example: If you selected the Field is Tagged option, enter the tag in the text box to the right of the checkbox. |
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Select this option if the field has a default value. Then, enter the default value in the text box to the right of the checkbox. |
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Variable-sized data types can be assigned a fixed length, eliminating the need to use a delimiter to specify the termination point of the field.
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Variable-sized data types can have their termination point specified by an imbedded length. An imbedded length precedes the data field and indicates how many bytes the data contains.
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Variable-sized data types can have their termination point specified by a delimiter. A delimiter is a character that marks the end of the field. The field data continues until the delimiter character is encountered. |
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Variable-sized data types can have their termination point specified by a field that contains a delimiter character. A delimiter is a character that marks the end of the field. The field data continues until the field containing the delimiter character is encountered.
For more information on delimiters, see Specify Delimiters. |
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Specifies the number of digits (0-16) to the left of the decimal point. |
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Makes a copy of the field currently displayed. The duplicate field contains the same values as the original field. The name of the duplicate field is the same as the original field name, with the word "New" inserted before the original name. For example, duplicating a field called "Field1" results in a field with the name "NewField1". When you duplicate an item with a numeric value in its name, the new item name contains the next sequential number. For example, duplicating "NewField1" results in a group named "NewField2". |
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Discards your changes to the detail window and resets all fields to the last saved values. |
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Note: The Apply and Reset buttons are only enabled once changes are made to the detail panel's components.
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