IBM S544-5285-01 Indexing Documents

using a page-definition (PAGEDEF) resource, in the same way as does PSF. For

more information about line data, refer to

Advanced Function Presentation:

Programming Guide and Line Data Reference

Mixed-Mode Data:

Mixed-mode data is a mixture of line-mode data, with the

inclusion of some AFP structured fields, composed-text pages, and resource

objects such as image, graphics, bar code, and text. For more information about

this data stream, refer to

Advanced Function Presentation: Programming Guide and

Line Data Reference

Unformatted ASCII Data:

Unformatted ASCII data is data that is generated in the

workstation environment and has not been formatted for printing. Unformatted

ASCII data is formatted by ACIF using a page definition resource. Unformatted

ASCII data is contrasted with the type of ASCII data that contains control

characters (or, escape sequences) for the IBM Proprinter and Quietwriter, and does

not need to be formatted by ACIF before printing with PSF for AIX. Unformatted

ASCII can also be submitted for printing with PSF for AIX without being converted

by ACIF, but the output format is predetermined (using a Proprinter emulation font

and 60 lines per page, for example).

A page definition can be created for use in an unformatted ASCII file to allow the

use of AFP functions such as varied print directions, multiple-up printing, and

different fonts in the output format. You can use IBM Page Printer Formatting Aid

for AIX (PPFA for AIX) to create your own page definitions. PPFA for AIX is a

separate feature of PSF for AIX that you can order. For information on how to

create page definitions using PPFA for AIX, refer to

IBM Page Printer Formatting

Aid: User's Guide

Indexing Documents

One of the principal tasks you can do with ACIF is indexing print files, which are

also known as documents. When indexing with ACIF, you can divide (segment) a

large print file into smaller, uniquely identifiable units, called

groups

, as defined by

the MO:DCA-named group structured fields. Using ACIF, you can divide the large

bank-statement application into the individual groups by inserting in the file

structured fields that define the group boundaries. A group is a named collection of

sequential pages, which, in this application, consists of the pages describing a

single customer's account. For example, when you print a bank-statement

application, you probably produce a large printout consisting of thousands of

individual customer statements. You can think of each of these statements as a

smaller, separate unit, each of which is uniquely identified by an account number or

other attributes such as date and Social Security number.

Using ACIF, you can also create an index object file, which enables you to:

Retrieve individual statements from storage, based on an account number or

any other attribute

More rapidly access the statements for viewing by, for example, the Workbench

Viewer.

Archive individual statements or the entire indexed print file for long-term

storage and subsequent data management and reprinting, even years after its

creation

In addition to building an index-information file containing structured fields (the

index object file

), ACIF also inserts strings of character data called