List File Attributes

Custom-Tailored Data Dictionary

The Custom-Tailored format allows you to select attributes of the fields for your report. You decide what information will be displayed, and you determine the printed format of the output. The techniques used to control the format of output are described in detail in the "Print: How to Print Reports from Files" chapter of the "VA FileMan Getting Started Manual." For this simple example we accept the default settings:

Select DATA DICTIONARY UTILITY OPTION: LIST FILE ATTRIBUTES  
 START WITH WHAT FILE: PATIENT // 
      GO TO WHAT FILE: PATIENT // 
      Select SUB-FILE: 
Select LISTING FORMAT: STANDARD// CUSTOM-TAILORED
SORT BY: LABEL// ?
 ANSWER WITH ATTRIBUTE NUMBER, OR LABEL
 DO YOU WANT THE ENTIRE ATTRIBUTE LIST? Y   (YES)

The "SORT BY:" prompt allows you to specify the order in which the data dictionary information will be displayed.

Here, we are asking for the entire list of possible attributes about a field that can be stored in the data dictionary. Typically, no field would have a value for every one of these attributes:

CHOOSE FROM:
   .001        NUMBER
   .01         LABEL
   .1          TITLE
   .12         VARIABLE POINTER  (multiple)
   .2          SPECIFIER
   .23         LENGTH
   .24         DECIMAL DEFAULT
   .25         TYPE
   .26         COMPUTE ALGORITHM
   .27         SUB-FIELDS
   .28         MULTIPLE-VALUED
   .29         DEPTH OF SUB-FIELD
   .3          POINTER
   .4          GLOBAL SUBSCRIPT LOCATION
   .5          INPUT TRANSFORM
   1           CROSS-REFERENCE  (multiple)
   1.1         AUDIT
   1.2         AUDIT CONDITION
   2           OUTPUT TRANSFORM
   3           'HELP'-PROMPT
   4           XECUTABLE 'HELP'
   8           READ ACCESS (OPTIONAL)
   8.5         DELETE ACCESS (OPTIONAL)
   9           WRITE ACCESS (OPTIONAL)
   9.01        COMPUTED FIELDS USED
   10          SOURCE
   11          DESTINATION  (multiple)
   12          POINTER SCREEN
   12.1        CODE TO SET POINTER SCREEN
   12.2        EXPRESSION FOR POINTER SCREEN
   20          GROUP  (multiple)
   50          DATE FIELD LAST EDITED
   999         TRIGGERED-BY POINTER  (multiple)
 TYPE '-' IN FRONT OF NUMERIC-VALUED FIELD TO SORT FROM HI TO LO
 TYPE '+' IN FRONT OF FIELD NAME TO GET SUBTOTALS BY THAT FIELD,
  '#' TO PAGE-FEED ON EACH FIELD VALUE,  '!' TO GET RANKING NUMBER,
  '@' TO SUPPRESS SUB-HEADER,   ']' TO FORCE SAVING SORT TEMPLATE TYPE [TEMPLATE NAME] IN BRACKETS TO SORT BY PREVIOUS SEARCH RESULTS

SORT BY: LABEL// 
START WITH LABEL: FIRST// 
FIRST PRINT ATTRIBUTE: ?
 ANSWER WITH ATTRIBUTE NUMBER, OR LABEL
 DO YOU WANT THE ENTIRE 36-ENTRY ATTRIBUTE LIST? N   (NO)

At this point, you indicate the specific attributes of the fields that you want displayed.

Here, help regarding the print formatting options will be displayed:

TYPE '&' IN FRONT OF FIELD NAME TO GET TOTAL FOR THAT FIELD,
  '!' TO GET COUNT, '+' TO GET TOTAL & COUNT, '#' TO GET MAX & MIN,
  ']' TO FORCE SAVING PRINT TEMPLATE
TYPE '[TEMPLATE NAME]' IN BRACKETS TO USE AN EXISTING PRINT TEMPLATE
YOU CAN FOLLOW FIELD NAME WITH ';' AND FORMAT SPECIFICATION(S)

Now, by using either the label or the corresponding number of the attribute you want, you select the information you want in your customized data dictionary listing:

FIRST PRINT ATTRIBUTE: LABEL    
THEN PRINT ATTRIBUTE: TYPE   
THEN PRINT ATTRIBUTE: DATE FIELD LAST EDITED    
THEN PRINT ATTRIBUTE: 
HEADING: FIELD SEARCH// CUSTOM-TAILORED OUTPUT
DEVICE: 

You can save the selected attributes in a PRINT template. (See the "Saving Print Criteria (PRINT Templates)" topic in the "Print: How to Print Reports from Files" chapter of the "VA FileMan Getting Started Manual" for details.)

The output will look like this:

PATIENT FILE CUSTOM-TAILORED OUTPUT       MAY 31,1991  11:10    PAGE 1
                                                 DATE FIELD
LABEL                           TYPE             LAST EDITED
-------------------------------------------------------------------------

DATE OF BIRTH                   DATE/TIME        MAR 22,1991
DIAGNOSIS                       FREE TEXT        
NAME                            FREE TEXT        MAR 29,1991
PROVIDER                        VARIABLE-POINTER MAR 22,1991
RELIGION                        POINTER          MAR 22,1991
SEX                             SET              MAR 22,1991
SSN                             FREE TEXT        MAR 22,1991

NOTE: With the Custom-Tailored format, in order to get information about fields in a Multiple, you must specifically ask for that Multiple by entering its name at the "Select SUB-FILE:" prompt.

Reviewed/Updated: March 4, 2007