The SORT command produces a sorted and formatted report which can be displayed on the screen or sent to the printer. SORT produces a display almost identical to that of the LIST command, except in sorted order.
Format
SORT [DICT] filename [item-list] [selection] [sort-keys] [output] [print] [modifiers] [(options)] |
Parameter(s)
DICT |
Specifies the file dictionary. |
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filename |
Name of the file. |
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item-list |
List of individual item-IDs. Enclose each item-ID in single quotes. The system sorts these items in the order that you specify with sort-keys. |
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selection |
Specifies one or more conditions that an item must meet to be included in the report. For a complete description of selection expression syntax, see the LIST Command. |
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sort-keys |
Specify which attributes to sort and whether to sort them in ascending or descending order. You can use the following modifiers with sort-keys: |
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BY |
Sorts items in ascending order by the specified attribute. |
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BY-DSND |
Sorts items in descending order by the specified attribute. |
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BY-EXP |
Sorts a MultiValued attribute in ascending order and produces a separate line for each value. |
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BY-EXP-DSND |
Sorts a MultiValued attribute in descending order and produces a separate line for each value. |
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If more than one sort-key is specified in a SORT command line, the system sorts these attributes from left to right (the leftmost sort-key is the most significant). |
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output |
Those attributes to be included in the report. By default, the SORT command displays only item-IDs. output can also be a user-defined phrase that contains any INFO/ACCESS parameters except a command or file name. |
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Specifies which values from MultiValued attributes are to be included in the report. Use relational operators and values (enclosed in double quotes or backslashes) immediately following the name of the MultiValued attribute. |
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modifiers |
Include one or more keywords that specify the format of the report. These parameters affect headers, footers, spacing, totalling column figures, control breaks, and more. For complete information about using these keywords, see the section, Connectives, Modifiers, and Options in the INFO/ACCESS User Reference Guide. |
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options |
Include one or more single-character codes that specify the report format and direct or modify output. They must be enclosed in parentheses, can be entered in any order, and need not be separated by spaces or any delimiters such as commas. For complete information about using these parenthetical options, see the section, Connectives, Modifiers, and Options in the INFO/ACCESS User Reference Guide. |
Sorting File Items
The following example sorts all items in the INVENTORY file by book number and also displays the price of each book:
>SORT INVENTORY BY BOOK# WITH PRICE > “5.00” BOOK# PRICE |
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PAGE 1 |
13:39:09 dd mmm yyyy |
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INVENTORY |
BOOK# |
PRICE... |
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QR02 |
1 |
$10.75 |
N01 |
2 |
$12.50 |
QR01 |
3 |
$7.00 |
N02 |
4 |
$13.35 |
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4 ITEMS LISTED. |
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> |
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Sorting By Multiple Attributes
The following example sorts the ORDERS file by customers’ last names and then by first names:
>SORT ORDERS BY LAST-NAME BY FIRST-NAME LAST-NAME FIRST-NAME |
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PAGE 1 |
12:47:08 dd mmm yyyy |
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ORDERS.... |
LAST NAME... |
FIRST NAME... |
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10104 |
ASH |
MARY |
10109 |
ASH |
MARY |
10122 |
BUCKLER |
JULIE |
10105 |
EDGECOMB |
DAVID |
10115 |
EDGECOMB |
DAVID |
10113 |
JENKINS |
HAROLD |
10101 |
JOHNSON |
ALICE |
10111 |
JOHNSON |
ALICE |
10107 |
JOHNSON |
HENRY |
10102 |
LEARY |
BILL |
10108 |
LEARY |
BILL |
10112 |
LEARY |
BILL |
10114 |
LEARY |
BILL |
10106 |
ORLANDO |
AMY |
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14 ITEMS LISTED. |
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> |
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Excluding Item-IDs from a Report
The following example displays the preceding report without listing item-IDs:
>SORT ORDERS BY LAST-NAME BY FIRST-NAME LAST-NAME FIRST-NAME ID-SUPP |
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PAGE 1 |
13:03:12 dd mmm yyyy |
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LAST NAME... |
FIRST NAME... |
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ASH |
MARY |
ASH |
MARY |
BUCKLER |
JULIE |
EDGECOMB |
DAVID |
EDGECOMB |
DAVID |
JENKINS |
HAROLD |
JOHNSON |
ALICE |
JOHNSON |
ALICE |
JOHNSON |
HENRY |
LEARY |
BILL |
LEARY |
BILL |
LEARY |
BILL |
LEARY |
BILL |
ORLANDO |
AMY |
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14 ITEMS LISTED. |
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> |
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Sorting MultiValued Items
In the following example, the ORDERS file contains a MultiValued attribute, TITLE, for the titles of books sold. The example sorts TITLE and displays ORDERS by the title of the book, the number of books sold, and the date they were sold.
>SORT ORDERS BY-EXP TITLE TITLE QTY DATE |
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PAGE 1 |
15:16:17 dd mmm yyyy |
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ORDERS. |
TITLE.................... |
QTY |
DATE OF ORDER |
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10101 |
DATABASE MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS |
2 |
06 SEP 1994 |
10102 |
DATABASE MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS |
1 |
21 OCT 1994 |
10104 |
DATABASE MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS |
3 |
27 MAR 1994 |
10105 |
DATABASE MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS |
1 |
17 MAR 1994 |
10107 |
DATABASE MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS |
9 |
17 MAR 1994 |
10110 |
DATABASE MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS |
12 |
25 DEC 1993 |
10114 |
DATABASE MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS |
5 |
13 DEC 1993 |
10115 |
DATABASE MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS |
1 |
11 JUL 1994 |
10102 |
OPERATING SYSTEM CONCEPTS |
3 |
21 OCT 1994 |
10104 |
OPERATING SYSTEM CONCEPTS |
5 |
27 MAR 1994 |
10106 |
OPERATING SYSTEM CONCEPTS |
3 |
16 APR 1994 |
10107 |
OPERATING SYSTEM CONCEPTS |
34 |
17 MAR 1994 |
10108 |
OPERATING SYSTEM CONCEPTS |
10 |
30 MAR 1994 |
10110 |
OPERATING SYSTEM CONCEPTS |
3 |
25 DEC 1993 |
10111 |
OPERATING SYSTEM CONCEPTS |
6 |
29 SEP 1994 |
10112 |
OPERATING SYSTEM CONCEPTS |
7 |
22 MAR 1994 |
10113 |
OPERATING SYSTEM CONCEPTS |
4 |
02 JUN 1994 |
10115 |
OPERATING SYSTEM CONCEPTS |
5 |
11 JUL 1994 |
10119 |
OPERATING SYSTEM CONCEPTS |
2 |
23 JUN 1993 |
10124 |
OPERATING SYSTEM CONCEPTS |
2 |
24 JUN 1993 |