extensibility

Importing COBOL Copybooks


XML Authority allows you to import COBOL copybooks , representing the COBOL data declarations as XML element types.

To import information from a copybook, select the COBOL copybook option from the Import submenu of the File menu . The dialog box shown below in Figure A will ask you to locate the copybook.  Select the appropriate copybook and click the open button.

 

Figure A - Importing COBOL copybook - selecting the source

 

Once you've selected a copybook, XML Authority will analyze the file and its data declarations and build an XML schema representation of the copybook, including occurrence and data types.

 

Figure B

 

XML Authority will create an element type hierarchy that matches the nesting structure of the data declarations contained in the copybook.

Notes about the import process:

The importer in XML Authority will examine PICTURE (PIC) strings and represent numeric data as XML data type number and non-numeric data as XML data type string.

When the importer encounters an OCCURS clause it will represent the associated element reference as repeatable within the content model of its parent element.

The importer will ignore data declarations that have a level number greater than 49, and will also ignore FILLER items, and VALUE and REDEFINES clauses.

The importer will accept but not act on all other legal COBOL data declarations.

 

Copyright 2000 Extensibility, Inc.

Suite 250, 200 Franklin Street, Chapel Hill, North Carolina 27516