HP 3000 Manuals HP 3000 Manuals
GENCAT MAKECAT Comparison
To allow you to compare the GENCAT and the MAKECAT utilities, the
differences between GENCAT and MAKECAT are listed in tabular form below.
Table B-1. MAKECAT/GENCAT Comparison
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| FEATURES | MAKECAT | GENCAT |
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| Access Methods | The FOPEN, GENMESSAGE, and FCLOSE | CATOPEN, CATREAD, and |
| | intrinsics open, access, and close | CATCLOSE intrinsics |
| | formatted MAKECAT catalogs. | open, access and |
| | | close formatted |
| | | GENCAT catalogs. |
| Formatting | Places an internal directory in the | A source message file |
| | file's user labels. The file is | is formatted into |
| | formatted in place without creating | another file, leaving |
| | a new file. | the original source |
| | | intact. The |
| | | application uses the |
| | | formatted file. The |
| | | original source file |
| | | can be purged. The |
| | | formatted file can be |
| | | expanded to restore |
| | | the original source |
| | | file. |
| Function | Converts or formats HELP and | Formats application |
| | message files into catalogs. | message catalogs. |
| | Installs system message catalog, | Provides maintenance |
| | using the BUILD entry point. | facility to modify |
| | | existing source |
| | | catalogs. Provides |
| | | capability of |
| | | expanding a formatted |
| | | file back into the |
| | | original source file. |
| Input | The name of a file must be entered | GENCAT prompts the |
| | in a file equation. :FILE | user for the name of |
| | INPUT=<your file>. | a file. |
| Literal | Not supported. | The tilde "~" serves |
| Character | | as a literal |
| | | character, causing |
| | | the character which |
| | | immediately follows |
| | | it to be treated as |
| | | text. |
| Messages | The message number range per set is | The message number |
| | 1-32,766. | range per set is |
| | | 1-32,766. |
| Numerical | Not supported. | Up to 5 numerical |
| Parameters | | parameters can be |
| | | contained in a |
| | | message. |
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Table B-1. MAKECAT/GENCAT Comparison (Cont.)
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| FEATURES | MAKECAT | GENCAT |
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| Output | Saves the formatted file as a | GENCAT prompts the |
| | temporary file with the name | user for the name of |
| | CATALOG. | the formatted file. |
| | | The file is saved as |
| | | a permanent file. |
| Processing | Formats more quickly than GENCAT. | GENCAT verifies each |
| | | message for correct |
| | | parameter |
| | | substitution |
| | | characters. |
| | | Manipulates two |
| | | temporary files while |
| | | formatting the source |
| | | file. |
| Record Format | Accepts source files of any size, | Accepts source |
| | but the file it saves has a record | catalog files with |
| | size of 80 bytes. The system | record sizes from 40 |
| | message catalog is fixed binary. | to 256 bytes. The |
| | An application catalog is fixed | formatted file has a |
| | ASCII. | record size of 128 |
| | | words, and is fixed |
| | | binary. When a |
| | | formatted catalog is |
| | | expanded into a |
| | | source catalog, the |
| | | new source catalog is |
| | | fixed ASCII with a |
| | | record size identical |
| | | to the original |
| | | source catalog. |
| | | When maintenance is |
| | | being performed, both |
| | | the source file and |
| | | the maintenance file |
| | | must be of equal |
| | | lengths in fixed |
| | | ASCII. The resulting |
| | | source file, and |
| | | collision file, if |
| | | specified will be |
| | | fixed ASCII, and |
| | | their record sizes |
| | | will equal the record |
| | | size of the original |
| | | source file. |
| Sets | The set directive is $SET. The set | The set directive can |
| | number range for a catalog is 1-63. | be $SET or $set. The |
| | | set number range for |
| | | a source catalog is |
| | | 1-255. |
| User Interface | The user must know which entry | GENCAT is |
| | points to use and when to use them. | menu-driven. The |
| | Files are input via file equations. | menus originate from |
| | Error messages require user | a catalog. Each |
| | interpretation. | prompt has HELP text |
| | | associated with it. |
| | | Error messages are |
| | | self-explanatory. |
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