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Appendix 3: Glossary

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Following is a list of important terms which are used frequently in this manual, including a number which have certain specialized meanings when used with respect to the Commercial Translator system. The definitions given in this glossary are not exhaustive, and the reader is referred to the text of the manual for amplification when required.

ABSOLUTE VALUE

The value, or magnitude, of a number, regardless of sign. When used arithmetically, the absolute value is treated as having a plus sign.

ADDRESS

In data processing, a specific location within storage, or a specific item or feature of data processing equipment. In the Commercial Translator language, addresses are represented by names. Actual address, absolute address, or machine address—an address defined in terms of the operating specifications of a data processing system; such addresses are not used by the programmer in writing Commercial Translator programs.

ALPHABETIC

With respect to data, consisting of one or more non-numeric characters, including the blank. As used in the Commercial Translator system, the term is not limited to the letters of the alphabet.

ALPHAMERIC

In the Commercial Translator system, consisting of any of the characters of a machine's character set, except that an alphameric literal may not contain a quotation mark. (See the rules governing literals in Chapter 2.)

ARITHMETIC EXPRESSION

An expression containing any combination of data-names, literals, constants, and truth functions, joined together by one or more arithmetic operators in such a way that the expression as a whole can be reduced to a single numeric value. (See the discussion of arithmetic expressions in Chapter 2 and the commands SET and ADD in Chapter 3.)

CHARACTER

One of a set of elementary symbols which may be arranged in ordered groups to express information. These symbols may include the decimal digits 0 through 9, the letters A through Z, punctuation symbols, special input and output symbols, and any other symbols which may be accepted by a data processing system.

CLAUSE

In the Commercial Translator language, a group of words (including symbols where appropriate) which either expresses a complete command or defines a condition to be tested. (See also IMPERATIVE CLAUSE and CONDITIONAL CLAUSE.)

CLOSED SUBROUTINE

In the Commercial Translator system, a section of procedure which is executed by means of a DO command. Also called a linked subroutine. (See also OPEN SUBROUTINE.)

COMMAND

In the Commercial Translator language, a verb and its associated operand(s).

COMPOUND NAME

In the Commercial Translator language, a name consisting of two or more simple names combined for the purpose of making the right-most one unique, in accordance with the rules given in Chapter 2 of this manual.

CONDITION

In the Commercial Translator language, the presence of a specified value in a variable field. (See CONDITIONAL EXPRESSION.)

CONDITIONAL CLAUSE

A clause containing a conditional expression introduced by the word IF and terminated by the word THEN.