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AFTER POSITIONING Clause

IBM DOS/VS COBOL has a Format 2 WRITE statement that is similar to the ACUCOBOL-GT Format 1 WRITE statement, except that the ADVANCING clause is replaced by a POSITIONING clause:

ACUCOBOL-GT:

     {BEFORE} ADVANCING {number [LINE ]}
     {AFTER }           {       [LINES]}
                        {PAGE          }

IBM DOS/VS COBOL:

     AFTER POSITIONING {identifier} LINES
                       {integer   }

If the line count in the IBM form is an identifier, it must be a one-character alphanumeric item, interpreted as follows:

Character
ACUCOBOL-GT Equivalent
' '
AFTER ADVANCING 1
'0'
AFTER ADVANCING 2
'-'
AFTER ADVANCING 3
'+'
AFTER ADVANCING 0
'1'
AFTER PAGE
others
invalid or not supported in ACUCOBOL-GT
(implemented as AFTER ADVANCING 1)

If the line count in the IBM form is an integer literal, it is interpreted as follows:

Value
ACUCOBOL-GT Equivalent
0
AFTER PAGE
1
AFTER ADVANCING 1
2
AFTER ADVANCING 2
3
AFTER ADVANCING 3
others
invalid or not supported in ACUCOBOL-GT
(implemented as AFTER ADVANCING 1)

ACUCOBOL-GT accepts the IBM form (along with its own form, even in the same file) if the "-Cv" option is in effect. ACUCOBOL-GT does not enforce the one-character limit on the line count and uses only the first character or digit if there are two or more.

Note: In the absence of either an ADVANCING or POSITIONING clause, a WRITE statement for a sequential PRINT file advances one line BEFORE printing for ACUCOBOL-GT without the "-Cv" option, and one line AFTER printing for IBM DOS/VS COBOL or ACUCOBOL-GT with the "-Cv" option.