Data Dictionary Maintenance Form

The Data Dictionary Maintenance form is displayed, when the Edit data dictionaries option is selected from the TOPIC DEVELOPMENT STEPS menu.

The Data dictionary to be edited will default the company number of the marketing company number for which you are devising this data into the first two characters, the module definition AA into the fourth and fifth positions. You must input raw into the seventh, eighth and ninth positions, followed by the Topic Code that is associated with this data dictionary in the tenth and eleventh positions. The system will default the file type dd for data dictionary into the final positions, with decimal place separators between each element. This default should never be changed

Note: It is important to remember to name your data dictionary rawXX, where XX is replaced by the 2 Capital letters that are then being used as the CODE for that Advanced Analysis. The example being used in this document is ST - Stock age analysis - where ST is the TOPIC CODE.

Therefore the data dictionary would be named rawST. If a user-defined dictionary already exists, the system will access it directly. If this is being done for the first time, the system will offer the options to Cancel if this has been selected by mistake or Create-new-dictionary.

Creating a New Data Dictionary

If the Create-new-dictionary option is taken, the system will prompt for the maximum number of user-defined data fields to be defined and the name of the data file for Ad-hoc enquiry, report generator and file usage statistics purposes. After these have been defined, you will be prompted to create the dictionary via the Create-file option.

The system will then provide you with a standard Rev. 8 dictionary maintenance menu.

The Create button should be clicked which will provide an entry screen:

Note: The first field that should always be created should be called sequence, and this will be used to define a sequence or record number for each record within the raw data file. This will normally be a binary field type and should be sized large enough in bytes to cater for the maximum number of records that will be created.

Field name: The mnemonic for a field.

This field should be the same as the field name in the standard records.

Field type: Only three major field types should be necessary which are C for character or alpha-numeric fields, P for (packed) numeric only fields and J for (Julian) date fields (all dates are held in the Autoline Rev. 8 database as a Julian number).

Note: When using numbers the convention is as follows:

P - a value/total 1 byte equals 2 digits or 1/2 byte equals a sign.
B - a number - 1 byte for numbers up to 255
2 bytes for numbers up to 65535
3 bytes for numbers up to 16777216 in length (e.g. record number)

Occurs: This can be used where several occurrences of the same type of data are to be defined. The type and length of each field occurrence will be identical, and the system will reserve space for the number of specified occurrences.

Start byte: The system will default the start byte based on the number of previous fields in the dictionary and their lengths/types.

Internal length: The number of bytes required to contain the maximum length of the data field. For Character (alpha-numeric) fields one byte is required per character. For Packed (numeric only) fields one byte is required for every two digits. The value here can only be expressed to the nearest byte, so for a six-integer, two-decimal place value with the capacity for negative, a total of 9 characters would be required, or five bytes. For Julian date fields the system will assume the correct length of three bytes.

Pack/input image: This will only require entry for Packed or Binary number fields and should show the input image. As per the previous definition, for a six-integer, two-decimal place value with the capacity for negative, the value entered here would be -######.## (where the # denotes a position for a number).

Display image: This will only require entry for Packed or Binary number fields and should show the input image. As per the previous definition, for a six-integer, two-decimal place value with the capacity for negative, the value entered here would be -######.## (where the # denotes a position for a number).

Totalisable: If the value of any numeric fields should be totalled in an Ad-hoc enquiry on that data then a tick in the check box for Yes should be entered here, otherwise the box should be left blank. For the record number field known as Sequence, this field should be either 'N' or blank. Also, it would be illogical to total, say, company numbers.

Sequence number: This will be allocated by the system and must not be changed.

Update flag: This field can be used to control the minimum user access level necessary to be able to create or amend this item of data in the marketing record maintenance program. Blank determines no priority control is required. For the record number or Sequence field, this should be left as blank.

Display flag: This field can be used to control the minimum user access level necessary to be able to display this item of data in the marketing record maintenance program. For the record number or Sequence field, this should be left as blank.

Report flag: This field can be used to control the minimum user access level necessary to be able to report on this item of data in either Ad-hoc enquiries or Report Generator. For the record number or Sequence field, this should be left as blank.

Long name: The full description of this item of data. This will be offered as the default screen prompt when applying this field to a user-defined screen in the next section.

Note: All other fields should be left with their default entry of blank or zero.

Keys

Once all of the data fields have been defined, the key should be defined using the Keys option from the dictionary edit menu. This will prompt for up to nine key paths to be defined although, for these user-defined files, only the first key is required. The Type should be specified as P for Prime and the Field-1 value should be specified as SEQUENCE (the field holding the sequence number). When prompted for Field-2 just Return.

Key 2: Must be a duplicate key and filled with the BDATE FIELD, INCLUSION FIELD and SEQUENCE.

Key 1: Must be a Prime Key. It must have the Field name SEQUENCE from within the data dictionary in Field-1.

Key 2: A Unique or Duplicate Key. It must have the following Field names from the data dictionary in Field-1, Field-2 and Field-3.

Field-1	Field-2	Field-3
INCLUSION FIELD	DATE FIELD	SEQUENCE

Where INCLUSION FIELD is the same field as the Inclusion field in the Advanced Analysis (Profile => Includes).

After this, the Exit option can be taken from the menu to go back to the dictionary selection screen, and from here the Esc key used to go back to you-defined dictionaries/screens menu. The next stage will be to proceed with the next step as per the list.

BUTTONS

Exit: Returns you to the TOPIC DEVELOPMENT STEPS.

Help: Displays help on the current application using the default browser.