HP 3000 Manuals HP 3000 Manuals
Communicating with INFORM/V
The following paragraphs tell you how to enter and leave INFORM/V, and
also offer a few basic guidelines that will help you in responding to
INFORM/V prompts.
Entering INFORM/V
After logging on, you gain access to the INFORM/V program by typing the
following command in response to the MPE/V colon prompt:
:RUN INFORM.PUB.SYS
When this command is accepted, INFORM/V is in control.
INFORM/V Security Password
If a password is required, INFORM/V will prompt you for it as follows:
TYPE YOUR INFORM PASSWORD>
You must enter the password exactly as it was communicated to you:
capitals for capitals, lower case for lower case.
INFORM/V Menus
After you have entered the correct password (if one is required),
INFORM/V immediately displays the Main Menu (see Figure 1-1). This is
the starting point for all INFORM/V activities.
The first line is the same on all INFORM/V menus, but it will differ
slightly from that shown in Figure 1-1. The letters v.uu.ff will be
replaced by the number of the INFORM/V version that you are using.
_______________________________________________________________
| |
| INFORM/V HP32246v.uu.ff - (C) Hewlett-Packard Co. 1986|
| |
| INFORM OPTIONS: |
| |
| 1: DEFINE A REPORT |
| 2: DISPLAY REPORT CATALOG |
| 3: SELECT A REPORT DEFINITION |
| 4: PREVIEW REPORT LAYOUT |
| 5: PRODUCE THE REPORT |
| 6: ADD REPORT DEFINITION TO CATALOG |
| 7: DELETE A REPORT DEFINITION FROM CATALOG |
| 8: SET FORMAT OPTIONS |
| 9: MODIFY THE REPORT |
| 10: EXIT FROM INFORM/V |
| |
| TYPE AN OPTION NUMBER> |
| |
| |
_______________________________________________________________
Figure 1-1. Main Menu
Many INFORM/V menus are similar to the Main Menu in that they contain a
numbered list from which you must make a selection.
Prompts
All INFORM/V menus contain prompts, or questions, to which you respond.
The first prompt on the Main Menu is
TYPE AN OPTION NUMBER>
Prompts always end with a greater-than sign (>) and the cursor is always
to the right of the prompt. Frequently, a single menu may include
several prompts which are displayed one at a time.
Responses
Responses to prompts may be numbers, such as an option number you pick
from the Main Menu, single letters, or words, as for a report title. A
carriage return (RETURN) is also considered to be a response and is
described below.
Although the examples throughout this guide are shown in upper case
letters, you can use either upper or lower case in all the material you
enter, with one exception. Passwords, whenever they are requested, must
be typed exactly as they were communicated to you: upper case for upper
case and lower case for lower case.
Carriage Return
After you select an option (from the Main Menu, for example), you press
RETURN. Because the information you type in response to the prompts is
not recognized by INFORM/V until you press RETURN, you can correct
mistakes at any time up until that point by backspacing and retyping.
You can sometimes specify information by pressing RETURN only. This is
true when INFORM/V supplies a default value--a preprogrammed response to
the prompt. For example, in the prompt
RETURN TO CURRENT DATA NAMES MENU(Y/N)?>
the default answer is Y (yes). That is the answer INFORM/V assumes if
you simply press RETURN in response to the question.
By the same token, in the prompt,
DISPLAY OR PRINT(D/P)?>
the default is D, and that is the response you specify by entering RETURN
alone.
If there are two values in parentheses in the prompt, the first value is
always the default. If one value is given in the prompt, that is the
default. After you learn to use INFORM/V, you will find you can work
much faster by using RETURN to enter default values.
Errors
INFORM/V checks each answer you enter to see if it is appropriate. If it
is not, INFORM/V displays an error message. The error messages from
INFORM/V are generally self-explanatory and are followed by a prompt
telling you what to do next. For example, if you make a mistake entering
a database name, INFORM/V will print the message
BASE DOES NOT EXIST IN DICTIONARY
TYPE 'RETURN' KEY TO CONTINUE
When you press RETURN, INFORM/V returns you to the Main Menu.
You may occasionally see error messages from the operating system or from
other software used by INFORM/V. If you see an error message that you do
not understand, refer to Appendix B, which contains an alphabetical list
of error messages and a brief explanation of each. If Appendix B does
not solve the problem, talk with your database administrator.
Characters & Keys that Control Execution
If INFORM/V prompts you for an entry and you respond with only a RETURN,
one of two things will happen:
* If there is a default value for the prompt, INFORM/V assumes the
default value and presents the next prompt.
* If there is no default value for the prompt, INFORM/V will redisplay
the preceding prompt so that you can change the value you entered
there.
Entering one right bracket (]) terminates the current operation and
returns you to the previous prompt.
Entering two right brackets (]]) terminates the current operation and
returns you to the menu that is in control of the current operation.
CONTROL Y causes an operation break and returns you to the Main Menu. To
generate CONTROL Y, press the CONTROL (CNTL or CTRL) key and hold it down
while you press Y.
Exiting from INFORM/V
To exit from INFORM/V, return to the Main Menu. Type 10 and press RETURN
to select the EXIT FROM INFORM/V option, as shown in Figure 1-2. MPE/V
responds with the following message:
END OF PROGRAM
and you will see the system prompt.
_______________________________________________________________
| |
| INFORM/V HP32246v.uu.ff - (C) Hewlett-Packard Co. 1986|
| |
| INFORM OPTIONS: |
| |
| 1: DEFINE A REPORT |
| 2: DISPLAY REPORT CATALOG |
| 3: SELECT A REPORT DEFINITION |
| 4: PREVIEW REPORT LAYOUT |
| 5: PRODUCE THE REPORT |
| 6: ADD REPORT DEFINITION TO CATALOG |
| 7: DELETE A REPORT DEFINITION FROM CATALOG |
| 8: SET OPTIONS |
| 9: MODIFY THE REPORT |
| 10: EXIT FROM INFORM/V |
| |
| TYPE AN OPTION NUMBER> 10 |
| END OF PROGRAM |
| |
| : |
| |
| |
| |
_______________________________________________________________
Figure 1-2. Exiting from INFORM/V