Environment Variables

jBASE uses a number of environment variables to modify jBASE behavior. Suitable defaults apply to most of them. Although most environment variables can be set any time, the best place to do so is in the .profile script.
 

SETTING/GETTING

Windows

set variable=value
echo %variable%

Variables can be configured in the System environment for all users, and/or on a per user basis via the user environment. Additional variables for jBASE can also be added to the current user configuration in the Windows registry.

Windows variables are usually configured in the System Properties panel.

UNIX

variable=value
export variable
echo $variable

This works for all shells, although some shells (i.e. ksh) allow "export variable=value".

Variables are usually configured in the .profile of the user login directory.  Global variables can be added to the "/etc/profile" script.
 

jBASE PROGRAMS

The jBC functions PUTENV and GETENV can be used to manipulate environment variables. For example:

SUCCESS = PUTENV(envar=x)
SUCCESS = GETENV(envar)

jBASE INITIALIZATION

Some environment variables can only be set before jBASE initialization. jBASE initialization occurs when the first jBASE program is executed on a particular "PORT number".

The jBASE initialization process reads through the environment entries looking for possible variables required by jBASE. This process provides a substantial performance improvement as the state of these environment variables are saved for subsequent jBASE executions. These states continue to be valid as long as the "PORT" is still attached to a process. Some environment variables can be changed by subsequent program execution. The state of these variables are imported back into the state table after program execution.

Certain jBASE programs expect jBASE initialization to have been previously performed otherwise re-initialization will occur and resources expected by the executing program will have been removed.

For instance:

T-ATT requires a "PORT" against which it saves the tape device assignment.
SP-ASSIGN requires a "PORT" with which to save assignment status for print jobs.
READNEXT in a program after SELECT/GET-LIST.

With jBASE 4.1 all programs execute in the same process unless explicitly executed via the CHAR(255):'k' construct.
 

INITIAL ENVIRONMENT VARIABLES

ADDITIONAL jBASE ENVIRONMENT VARIABLES.

EXECUTION

Note:

The functionality provided by JBASE_WARNLEVEL on 3.x has been implemented in a different fashion on Release 4. This was a design decision to make the behavior of the runtime more flexible and consistent at the same time. Instead of a global setting handling all conditions, there are now settings for individual error messages according to a bit mask. 

For example, we are all familiar with the well-known error message: Non-numeric value -- ZERO USED. If you set (or export) JBASE_ERRMSG_NON_NUMERIC=3, you will not get this error message and the program will not drop into the debugger. 

Other handy environment variables are:

JBASE_ERRMSG_ZERO_USED to handle the condition where a BASIC program encounters an unassigned variable and JBASE_ERRMSG_DIVIDE_ZERO to handle the condition where a BASIC program encounters a zero divisor.

The bit masks available for these environment variables are as follows: 

      1 - Don't print the error message
      2 - Don't enter the debugger
    16 - Caller to place "0" in the target variable after operation
    32 - Caller to place "" in the target variable after operation
   128 - Caller to leave target variable alone after operation
   256 - Caller to place source variable in the target variable after operation

DEVELOPMENT

MISCELLANEOUS

TERMINAL

EMBEDDED SQL

QUERIES

CREATE-FILE

e.g. To convert all files on "jbackup" tape to J4 files set the following environment variable be using jrestore.
export JEDI_PREFILEOP=TYPE=J4 (Unix) Can use quotes to surround multiple parameters
set JEDI_PREFILEOP=TYPE=J4 (NT) Don't use quotes

JRFS

Porting