Handling long strings in FIND
For character columns (CHAR, VARCHAR), you can specify a search string up to 100 characters long. However, when you are dealing with a long search string, you may find that you cannot fit the whole FIND command (including other parameters) on the command line. To overcome the problem, do one of the following to display an Extended Command Entry pop-up panel:
- Enter
FX(for Find Extended) - Enter the FIND command (or one of its abbreviations, such as F or /) with no parameters
The Extended Command Entry pop-up panel contains five lines (each 50 characters long) that you can use to enter all the FIND command parameters (but not the actual keyword FIND or any of its abbreviations). FM/IMS treats the five lines on the pop-up panel as contiguous, allowing you to specify a long search string and optionally any other parameters, using up to 250 characters in total.
Note: You can continue the search string
(or any other parameter) from the last position on one
line of the pop-up panel to the first position of the
next line. However, this does not mean that you need to
completely fill a line before using the next line.
For example, you can specify the search
string on the first of the five lines, and the
FM/IMS field number (specified as #n)
on the next line. If you do not use all of a line,
FM/IMS treats the unused part of the line as a
single space.