What can you do with views?

When you apply a view to a database:

• Format and edit fields

  You can display, print and edit fields according to their data types. For example, binary numeric fields are displayed as their true numeric values, not as the character representation of their binary value.

  When editing, you can overtype or use CHANGE commands to replace formatted numeric field values with different numeric values; FM/IMS stores the underlying binary value in the segment.

  You can select which fields are displayed or printed. When browsing or editing data, you can limit the scope of commands (such as FIND and CHANGE) to particular fields.

  You can change the order in which fields are displayed or printed.

  For numeric fields, you can display or suppress leading zeros (so that, for example, 00057 is displayed and printed as 57); the default is to suppress leading zeros.

• Identify layout types and select segments with those types

  In addition to selecting segment types, you can select segments using two levels of criteria:

  • Layout identification criteria

    The unique characteristics of a segment layout are identified within your template, enabling File Manager to distinguish it from other layouts in the same segment. In your view, you can select which segment occurrences you want to use, based on their layout type.

  • Field selection criteria

    After a segment occurrence has been identified as belonging to a particular layout, you can specify selection criteria for field values, to narrow down which occurrence of a particular layout type you want to use.