Commands can produce many forms of output, including messages, display output (interactive panels), printer output (spooled files), and file output. This section focuses primarily on display, print, and file-related output. In most cases, the output information can be selectively directed to a display, a printer, or an outfile. Messages, on the other hand, are intended to provide diagnostic or status-related information, or an indication of error conditions. Messages are not intended for general output.
Several commands support display, print, output files, or some combination thereof. The Work (WRK) and Display (DSP) commands are the most common classes of commands that support various forms of output. Other classes of commands, such as Compare (CMP) and Verify (VFY), also support various forms of output in many cases. As part of an on-going effort to ensure consistent capabilities across similar classes of commands, most commands in the same class support the same output formats. For example, all Work (WRK) commands typically support display, print, and output formats. This section describes the general guidelines used throughout the product. However, there are some exceptions, which are described in the sections about specific commands.
Display support is intended primarily for Display (DSP) commands for displaying detailed information about a specific entry, or for Work (WRK) related commands that display lists of entries. Audit-based commands, such as Compare (CMP) and Verify (VFY), are often long-running requests and do not typically provide display support.
Spooled output support provides a more easily readable form of output for print or distribution purposes. Output is generated in the form of spooled output files that can easily be printed or distributed. Nearly all Display (DSP) or Work (WRK) commands support this form of output. In some cases, other command-specific options may affect the contents of the spooled output file.
Output files are intended primarily for automation purposes, providing MIMIX-related information in a manner that facilitates programming automation for various purposes—such as additional monitoring support, auditing support, automatic detection, and the correction of error conditions. Output files are also beneficial as intermediate data for advance reporting using SQL query support.