HP OpenVMS DCL Dictionary
DECK
Marks the beginning of an input stream for a command or program.
Format
DECK
Description
The DECK command marks the data that follows it as input for a command
or program. The DECK command can be used only after a request to
execute a command or program that requires input data.
In command procedures, this command is required when the first nonblank
character in any data record in the input stream is a dollar sign. Also
in command procedures, the DECK command must be preceded by a dollar
sign; the dollar sign must be in the first character position (column
1) of the input record.
The DECK command defines an end-of-file (EOF) indicator only for a
single data stream. Using the DECK command enables you to place data
records beginning with dollar signs in the input stream. You can place
one or more sets of data in the input stream following a DECK command,
if each is terminated by an EOF indicator.
After an EOF indicator specified with the /DOLLARS qualifier is
encountered, the EOF indicator is reset to the default, that is, to any
record beginning with a dollar sign. The default is also reset if an
actual EOF indicator occurs for the current command level.
Qualifier
/DOLLARS[=string]
Sets the EOF indicator to the specified string of 1 to 15 characters.
Specify a string if the input data contains one or more records
beginning with the string $EOD. Enclose the string in quotation marks
(" ") if it contains literal lowercase letters, multiple
blanks, or tabs. If you do not specify /DOLLARS or if you specify
/DOLLARS without specifying a string, you must use the EOD command to
signal the end-of-file (EOF).
Note
A single dollar sign is not allowed as the end-of-deck or file
indicator.
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Examples
In this example, the Fortran and LINK commands compile and link program
A. When the program is run, any data the program reads from the logical
device SYS$INPUT is read from the command stream. The DECK command
indicates that the input stream can contain dollar signs in column 1 of
the record. The EOD command signals end-of-file (EOF) for the data.
The CREATE command in this example creates the command procedure file
TEST.COM from lines entered into the input stream. The DECK/DOLLARS
command indicates that the percent sign (%) is the EOF indicator for
the CREATE command. This allows the string $EOD to be read as an input
record, signaling the end of the input for the RUN command.
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