Re: Why you shouldn't be afraid to use VARCHAR in RPGLE

As RPG and C differ in a lot of spaces - I would suggest, to not make it so "non obvious" as the ternary operator in C - just make it a %BIF - e.g.:

    var = %IF( a = b : trueVal : falseVal );
 
or

    var = %CASE( a = b : trueVal : falseVal );

This would be RPG-like - compact - easy to read and understand. 

Regards,
Daniel


> Am 11.12.2025 um 21:20 schrieb Javier Sanchez <[email protected]>:
> 
> Brian,
> The "ternary" operator is a very simple concept.  Test in one single line
> "a query" that will yield a true or false and return one out of two values
> that are the ones in the expression after the question mark.
> 
> Put it more clear again:
> dcl-s boolVal int(5) inz;  // No need more room than two bytes
> dcl-s a int(5) inz(10);
> dcl-s b int(5) inz (15);
> 
> boolVal = (a = b ? 1: 0);
> 
> I confess, recognize that my initial example was way too fast written.
> This one is more clear.  Now, without this ILE RPG TR:
> 
> if a = b;
>  boolVar = 1;
> else;
>  boolVar = 0;
> endif;
> 
> 5 lines of code.  Sure, very clear, but very unnecessary!
> This is elegance and efficiency.
> Hey guys! For if any of you took care about it, even Einstein was excited
> with his elegant e=mc2, just look a bit at it!
> One single line! Not a function, not code at all, just concept and
> simplicity!
> “Imagination is more important than knowledge.
> For knowledge is limited, whereas imagination embraces the entire world,
> stimulating progress, giving birth to evolution.”
> -- Albert Einstein
> 
> JS
> 
> 
>> El jue, 11 dic 2025 a las 14:01, Brian Parkins (<[email protected]>)
>> escribió:
>> 
>> May I beg to differ?
>> 
>> I would suggest many folk will find such an expression too cryptic,
>> especially when maintaining code written by others. It may be efficient,
>> it may be "elegant" - but is it easy to read and understand? Take a very
>> simple example:
>> 
>> a = a + 5;  -or-  a += 5;
>> 
>> Personal opinion: the former is more readily understood, the latter not
>> so, and open to miscoding (a =+ 5;). It is my experience that a majority
>> will favour readability in preference to "elegant" coding
>> 
>> Brian.
>> 
>>> On 11/12/2025 14:14, Javier Sanchez wrote:
>>> BTW, I have wondered a lot why you guys have not yet implemented the
>> C-like
>>> expression as:
>>> boolVal = (a = b ? 0: 1);
>>> This is not only necessary for modern RPG but it should have been
>> provided
>>> long time ago! 🙂
>> 
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