Re-formating checks from the "checks" print file

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You might be better off using the PR160 PMTOUT "laser" file instead--it's a flat file already ...

John,

yea, we are going to do that once we convert to 9.0. Right now, the powers that be have decided they want to get this done ASAP.  We currently ftp the print file to an AS400 and manipulate it there.

I have taken that cobol program, from the AS400, and converted it to work in Lawson on a unix box. Now the new cobol program wont read the file correctly. When I look at it in LED it looks fine. With vi it looks like variable lenght records, which is how the cobol program sees it too.

Thanks.

Not sure if this is your issue, but there are 2 KB articles 71213 and 557467 on Lawson's support site with instuctions on how to change the file to a fixed length of 94.  Good luck!!

Correct me if I'm wrong but the CHECK file in 803 is already a fixed 132 characters. In your cobol program just reference the file as a 132 length. If your field does not totals 132 then just put a filler to make it 132. Actually it really does not matter what the length is. Since it is a flat file you can just the cobol verb READ. example..

READ CHECKS-FILE INTO WS-CHECKS-FILE
AT END
MOVE WS-TRUE TO CHECKS-END-OF-FILE.


Just as John has stated, I've used PMTOUT as input to our check print program from MCH.

He is referring to the report file, not the ACH/TAPE file, which is the subject of those KB articles.

COBOL handles variable length records differently on some platforms than for others. For example, on some platforms, shorter records include data from the previous longer records. Is that what you're seeing?

COBOL handles variable length records differently on some platforms than for others. For example, on some platforms, shorter records include data from the previous longer records. Is that what you're seeing?

Thanks all for you comments. I was able to convert the print file to a CSV, which added a quote to the first and last character of each record. I then defined my input file, in the COBOL program, as a csv and modified the attributes of the file and set the "Field Seperator" to "none".