RSE Tips

RSE is great "right out of the box," but there are many preferences we like to set to tweak it to work even better. Since we spend a lot of time editing RPG code, we thought we'd discuss some of own favorite preference options specifically geared toward editing RPG IV source. Like our keyboard shortcuts, this tip is equally applicable to the RSE editor in RDi or WDSC.

Here's our favorite way to get to the preference page we need. Take the Preferences... option from the Windows pull down menu in RSE. In the entry box at the top left of the resulting dialog page, key in "rpg" to find the relevant preferences. Select from the resulting list under Parsers (i5/OS in RDi or iSeries in WDSC) ILE RPG. This is illustrated in the screen shot, which shows the default preferences for editing RPG code.

Our favorite preferences here are related to Enter key behavior and User defined tabs. When maintaining existing code, especially, the "Automatic closure of control block" feature seems to get in the way, so we typically like to turn that off. We often also turn off "Repeat previous specification type" as well. Now pressing Enter in RPG will simply insert a blank line and position the cursor there.

The ability to set your own tab stops in the RPG editor is a great time saver. Simply check the "User defined tabs" box and then select "C: Calculation" to get an idea of what we mean. To customize the tab positions, simply change the positions of and/or remove the tab markers ("^" characters).

For the standard C spec, for example, we remove the tab stops for the level break and conditioning indicators as well as for Factor 1.We rarely use Factor 1, so it saves many keystrokes to eliminate all those. We also always remove the Len and Hi, Lo and Eq tab stops because they are just so RPG/400!

Question: What tab stops do we customize for our D specs?

Answer: Navigate your way to the ILE RPG preferences under parsers (see earlier tip on customizing your RPG editor for details.) Select the "User Defined Tabs" check box. Then select the Definition spec. As with the C spec, each tab position is marked by a ^ symbol (aka a "hat" or "caret" to most of us). Now you can set up your own custom tabs by positioning the ^s in the right spots.

The image below shows what we like to do with our D spec tabs. We'll explain the reasons why we like these settings.

1. The first tab stop after the "D" is at the second character in the name area. Just because the RPG IV language doesn't require that we leave a blank between the D and the field name is no reason why we should code it that way. If we do, then the variable names look really horrible because they all start with D! (For example DcustNum, DdiscountCode, Daddress, etc.) So we always start the name in the second position.
2. You may want to keep the tab position in the "Ds" position for coding your DS, S, PR or PI lines. We find that we spend more time defining fields within Data Structures or parameters within prototypes, so our next tab stop is at field length. Since most field lengths will be either 1 or 2 digits, the tab stop is at the second to last position to minimize spacing. In this case, when defining a Stand-alone variable or a DS or PR, we simply use the mouse to position the cursor.
3. Our next stop is at the second position of the decimal places area (when was the last time you defined a field with more than 9 decimals?)
4. The keywords area is next, followed by Comments - although we rarely use that area, preferring to use line comments instead.

Once the changes have been made all that remains is to push the "Apply" button and you are done. When you return to your edit window the new tabs will be immediately in force.

Question: Are there tab stops for /Free C spec?

Question: How does automatic indent work for /Free logic?

Question: I like the automatic closure of control block, but want to customize how it works. Can I do that?

Question: Why don't I have the option for automatic indentation available?

We would like to introduce you to our favorite RSE feature ... The Outline view!

The Outline view gives you a complete overview of your program. It provides details of every field, file, record format, prototype, subroutine and subprocedure in your program. All fields are listed, including their definitions as shown in the screen shot below.

The numbers beneath the field name identify the lines where the item in question is referenced. References marked with an (M) identify the lines in the logic where the field is modified. Even better is the fact that if you click on an item in the list (as we have done in the example) the editor is instantly positioned on the relevant code.

For more detail on this fantastic feature, check out the answers to the questions below by clicking on the :

Question: My Outline view is empty. How do I populate it?

Answer: If you are editing an RPGLE source member, the text in your Outline view probably says "Press Refresh to update view". Of course, that begs the question "What's Refresh?" The Refresh button looks like 2 small yellow arrows chasing each other in a circle.
In the Outline view it appears near the upper right hand corner of the view. Pressing this button will populate your Outline view. You'll want to remember this button because you'll also need to use it after you have made changes to the source member to refresh the information in the Outline view.

If you are editing a DDS source member, the Outline view is populated automatically. You need only to expand the + sign to see the record(s) and fields. If you are editing a CLP member or an RPG member (not RPGLE) then you will only see labels (in CL) and subroutines (in RPG). For COBOL source members, the Outline view contains some (not all levels) of your data definitions and your paragraph names. Clearly, Outline view is most useful for the RPGLE language.

Question: Why doesn't my Outline view appear in my workbench?

Question: How can I see my Outline view while editing a source member in full-screen Editor mode?

Answer: There are multiple ways, but probably the simplest way is to make the Outline view a Fast View. If you have not used Fast Views before, you are in for a treat. Almost any view in the workbench can be made a Fast View, but we find it particularly useful for the Outline view. To do this right click anywhere on the bar at the top of the view (i.e. click on or just to the right of the tab at the top of the view) and select Fast View.
By default, that will "park" the view in the bottom left margin of the perspective - which is probably not where you want it since every time it pops-up it will overlay the left-hand side of the edit window, covering most of your code. For most people, the best place to park it is on the right hand side of the perspective where it will only overlay the (mostly empty) right-hand side of your source window. To do this, hover your cursor over the small gray dots just in front of the Fast View icons in the lower margin until the cursor turns into a 4-headed arrow, as shown here:
At this point, you can right click and from the pop-up menu select Dock on -> Right or you can simply drag the Fast View icons to the top right margin. All Fast Views must be docked in the same location - i.e., you can't have Outline docked on the right and your Error List Fast View docked on the bottom. However, you can choose the orientation (horizontal or vertical) for each. Read on for more details.

To use the Outline view, click its Fast View icon, and it will pop out. You only need to click somewhere in the edit window to make it pop back in again. Don't click the X on the tab in the Outline view or you will close the view completely. Not to worry if you do that by accident, though - just see the answer to the earlier question above to get it back.

As we said earlier, almost any view can be made a Fast View. Some of the others that we find particularly useful as Fast Views include the iSeries Error List, iSeries Indent and, for those who still find the need for prompting while in the editor, the iSeries Source Prompter. (We have happily replaced prompting 99% of the time by using the tab key plus the cursor-oriented format line in the editor.) All of those views work better in a horizontal orientation. To change the orientation of a Fast View, simply right click on its Fast View icon and use the Orientation option.

Once you get a nice set of Fast Views that work well for your style of development, you may want to create your own perspective. To do this use the Window pull-down menu and choose Save Perspective As . . . supplying your own perspective name. Once you have done this you can now make use of the Reset Perspective option discussed above to bring back any views that you may have closed accidentally.