Programming Guide

About This Document

Programming Guide is a reference tool for Panther users who already have a general understanding about Panther concepts and design techniques. This book offers general and specific information on how to use Panther language resources to code back-end processing for your application. The sections on JPL assume that you already have general programming experience; while the library function and Java descriptions assume specific experience with C and Java programming.

This manual is divided into the following sections:

Documentation Website

The Panther documentation website includes manuals in HTML and PDF formats and the Java API documentation in Javadoc format. The website enables you to search the HTML files for both the manuals and the Java API.

Panther product documentation is available on the Prolifics corporate website at http://docs.prolifics.com/panther/.

How to Print the Document

You can print a copy of this document from a web browser, one file at a time, by using the FilePrint option on your web browser.

A PDF version of this document is available from the Panther library page of the documentation website. You can open the PDF in Adobe Acrobat Reader and print the entire document (or a portion of it) in book format.

If you do not have the Adobe Acrobat Reader, you can get it for free from the Adobe website at https://get.adobe.com/reader/otherversions/.

Documentation Conventions

The following documentation conventions are used throughout this document.

Convention Item

Ctrl+Tab

Indicates that you must press two or more keys simultaneously. Initial capitalization indicates a physical key.

italics

Indicates emphasis or book titles.

UPPERCASE TEXT

Indicates Panther logical keys.

Example:

XMIT

boldface text

Indicates terms defined in the glossary.

monospace text

Indicates code samples, commands and their options, directories, and file names and their extensions. Monospace text also indicates text that you must enter from the keyboard.

Examples:

#include <smdefs.h>

chmod u+w *

/usr/prolifics

prolifics.ini

monospace italic text

Identifies variables in code representing the information you supply.

Example:

String expr

MONOSPACE UPPERCASE TEXT

Indicates environment variables, logical operators, SQL keywords, mnemonics, or Panther constants.

Examples:

CLASSPATH

OR

{ }

Indicates a set of choices in a syntax line. One of the items should be selected. The braces themselves should never be typed.

|

Separates mutually exclusive choices in a syntax line. The symbol itself should never be typed.

[ ]

Indicates optional items in a syntax line. The brackets themselves should never be typed.

Example:

formlib [-v] library-name [file-list]...

...

Indicates one of the following in a command line:

.
.
.

Indicates the omission of items from a code example or from a syntax line. The vertical ellipsis itself should never be typed.

Contact Us!

Your feedback on the Panther documentation is important to us. Send us e-mail at support@prolifics.com if you have questions or comments. In your e-mail message, please indicate that you are using the documentation for Panther 5.50.

If you have any questions about this version of Panther, or if you have problems installing and running Panther, contact Customer Support via:

When contacting Customer Support, be prepared to provide the following information: