A printed report does not look exactly as it does on-screen. For example, the displayed report is treated as a single page even with one or more page breaks in the printed report.
The differences between the printed report and its displayed version are largely cosmetic; the facts and figures on the screen and those on the printed page are the same. However, the differences can be important. (For more detailed information about the differences, see the Using QMF manual.) IBM supplies the QMF application DPRE to display the report as it will look when printed. After QMF is installed, the application can be invoked using a command stored in the Q.COMMAND_SYNONYMS table. The application is shared for everyone's use.
DPRE components under CMS are a procedure named Q.DSQAER2p in the database and a CLIST named DSQABR23 in the QMF production library.
To use DPRE, load the DATA object with the report data and the FORM object with the appropriate form, then issue the command:
DPRE
The application then generates the printer output and displays it through the ISPF browse facility. After you are done browsing, the printer output disappears.
If you are using an NLF: Issue the translated command synonym for DPRE to display printed reports. For example, the translated German command synonym for DPRE is AGB. For the translated command synonym for DPRE in the other language environments, see the Q.COMMAND_SYNONYM_n control table or the translated online help for the command.
The LENGTH parameter for the report being browsed is taken from PROFILE. The WIDTH parameter specified in PROFILE is used if it is less than 132 (lrecl); otherwise, a width of 132 (lrecl) is used because this is the length specified in the CMS FILEDEF statement for DSQPRINT. If 132 is too small, the CMS FILEDEF statement for DSQPRINT can be changed to accommodate a larger width.
The design of QMF encourages users to develop their printed reports by alternately modifying the FORM panels and displaying REPORT, until the report suits the user's needs. With DPRE, the user can alternate changing the FORM panel and browsing the tentative report with DPRE. Users should be aware, however, that this method of development is more expensive than the first method, and should be used sparingly when resources are at a premium.
For a large report, all the rows of the report are fetched before the report is displayed.
DSQPRINT is the name of the file that receives output from QMF PRINT commands in which PRINTER=' ' is either expressed or implied. When a user runs DPRE, DSQPRINT is redefined as the file that holds the material to be browsed. If an error stops the run, this definition might still be in effect after the run terminates.
Important: When making modifications to any file, first rename it and be sure to keep backup copies of original and modified files.
Under CMS, you can change the parameters that DSQPRINT has when DPRE ends normally. This is controlled by statements in the QMF procedure DSQAER2P which is invoked by the DPRE command synonym. This statement:
Print_opts = "LRECL 121 RECFM FBA BLKSIZE 1210"
Address COMMAND "FILEDEF DSQPRINT PRINTER ("Print_optschanges the record format (LRECL) from 133 to 121, and changes the block size (BLKSIZE) from 1330 to 1210.
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