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Status Not under consideration
Workspace IBM i
Categories Languages - RPG
Created by Guest
Created on Feb 13, 2020

RELATED IDEAS

More than one statement per line

It would be nice to be able to put more than one statement per line in free format separated by the Semicolon.

If X = 1; X=2; Else; X=3; EndIf;

Would be an easy solution without changing the whole language to be similar to what other languages commonly do on one line of code.

If X=1 then X=2 else X=3;
If (X=1) { X=2 } else { X=3 }

I'm suspecting the harder problem with this is changing the debuggers to be able to step through the code. It might make sense to insert a line break where there is a semicolon during compile time for (legacy) debugger views.


Use Case:

Simple statements where it would normally take up more screen real estate than it needs.

In some cases, it's easier to follow.

It could lead to messy code, but so does bad indenting.


Idea priority Low
  • Guest
    Reply
    |     Dec 4, 2020

    This is a very, VERY bad idea. I'm pretty sure this would cause the homicide rate to rise sharply in RPG shops. And lawyers aren't cheap.

    It's. A. Joke. People!
    But it's still a bad idea.

  • Guest
    Reply
    |     Mar 9, 2020

    IBM does not intend to provide a solution to this request at this time, so it is being closed.

    While it is sometimes convenient to write multiple statements per line when a programming language, such as Java, supports it, there are differing opinions about whether that style of coding contributes to more maintainable code. Often, coding guidelines recommend against the practice.

    It is very unlikely that IBM will implement this requirement for RPG.

    However, please refer to RFE 111965 which is requesting that RPG support a "ternary" operator which would allow a simple "IF / ELSE" statement on one line.

  • Guest
    Reply
    |     Mar 4, 2020

    Due to processing by IBM, this request was reassigned to have the following updated attributes:
    Brand - Servers and Systems Software
    Product family - Power Systems
    Product - IBM i
    Component - Languages - RPG
    Operating system - IBM i
    Source - None

    For recording keeping, the previous attributes were:
    Brand - Servers and Systems Software
    Product family - Programming Languages
    Product - Developer for Power Systems
    Component - RPG/COBOL Development Tools
    Operating system - IBM i
    Source - None

  • Guest
    Reply
    |     Feb 14, 2020

    I wouldn't recommend this.
    This will result in a really messy program.

    Instead another suggestion here might be a better idea:
    http://www.ibm.com/developerworks/rfe/execute?use_case=viewRfe&CR_ID=111965

    Besides you have to consider that use of characters like {} depends on the CCSID.
    The example you give
    If (X=1) { X=2 } else { X=3 }
    would look like this for me
    If (X=1) æ X=2 å else æ X=3 å
    Lovely syntax -- right?

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