An Acu4GL product uses data dictionaries created by the ACUCOBOL-GT compiler. These dictionaries map COBOL records into database fields, and map the database fields back into records. Data dictionaries are also known as XFDs (eXtended File Descriptors).
The following sections describe the Acu4GL products and explains how they interface to database systems by referencing data dictionaries.
Interfaces to indexed file systems such as Vision, C-ISAM, MINISAM, and Btrieve do not require data dictionaries, because they are record-oriented systems, but they can be used by indexed file editor Alfred to view the records.