COBOL Tutorial

COBOL PAGE-COUNTER - Report Page Numbering

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What is PAGE-COUNTER?

PAGE-COUNTER is a special system variable in COBOL that automatically keeps track of the current page number in a report. Think of it as an automatic page number that COBOL manages for you - every time your report starts a new page, PAGE-COUNTER automatically increases by 1, so you always know which page you're currently working on.

📄 Real-World Analogy

Imagine you're writing a book:

PAGE-COUNTER: Like the automatic page numbering in a word processor
New Page: Every time you start a new page, the number increases
Header/Footer: You can put "Page 1", "Page 2", etc. automatically
No Manual Work: You don't have to count pages yourself

PAGE-COUNTER does the same thing for your COBOL reports - it automatically tracks page numbers.

Key Features

Automatic Incrementing - Increases by 1 each time a new page starts
System Variable - Provided automatically by COBOL, no declaration needed
Report Integration - Works seamlessly with COBOL report generation
Easy Display - Can be used directly in headers, footers, and output
Manual Control - Can be set or reset as needed
Formatting Support - Can be formatted for display purposes

How to Use PAGE-COUNTER

Using PAGE-COUNTER is straightforward - it's automatically available when you need it, and you can use it in various ways to display page numbers in your reports.

Basic PAGE-COUNTER Usage

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* Basic PAGE-COUNTER example
IDENTIFICATION DIVISION.
PROGRAM-ID. PAGE-COUNTER-EXAMPLE.
 
DATA DIVISION.
WORKING-STORAGE SECTION.
01  REPORT-HEADER    PIC X(80).
01  REPORT-FOOTER    PIC X(80).
01  FORMATTED-PAGE   PIC ZZZ9.
 
PROCEDURE DIVISION.
    * Initialize page counter to 1
    MOVE 1 TO PAGE-COUNTER
    
    * Display page header with page number
    MOVE PAGE-COUNTER TO FORMATTED-PAGE
    STRING "SALES REPORT" DELIMITED BY SIZE
           "                    Page " DELIMITED BY SIZE
           FORMATTED-PAGE DELIMITED BY SIZE
           INTO REPORT-HEADER
    DISPLAY REPORT-HEADER
    
    * Generate some report content
    DISPLAY "Customer data goes here..."
    DISPLAY "More report content..."
    
    * Start a new page
    DISPLAY " " UPON CONSOLE ADVANCING PAGE
    
    * PAGE-COUNTER automatically incremented to 2
    MOVE PAGE-COUNTER TO FORMATTED-PAGE
    STRING "SALES REPORT" DELIMITED BY SIZE
           "                    Page " DELIMITED BY SIZE
           FORMATTED-PAGE DELIMITED BY SIZE
           INTO REPORT-HEADER
    DISPLAY REPORT-HEADER
    
    STOP RUN.

This example shows how PAGE-COUNTER automatically tracks page numbers in a report.

PAGE-COUNTER Operations

Operation	Syntax	Example
Display page number	DISPLAY PAGE-COUNTER	DISPLAY "Page: " PAGE-COUNTER
Set page number	MOVE value TO PAGE-COUNTER	MOVE 1 TO PAGE-COUNTER
Format for display	MOVE PAGE-COUNTER TO formatted-field	MOVE PAGE-COUNTER TO FORMATTED-PAGE
Use in string	STRING ... PAGE-COUNTER ...	STRING "Page " PAGE-COUNTER INTO OUTPUT
Compare page number	IF PAGE-COUNTER = value	IF PAGE-COUNTER = 10

Practical Examples

Let's look at some real-world examples of how PAGE-COUNTER is used in COBOL applications.

Complete Report with Page Numbers

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* Complete report with PAGE-COUNTER
IDENTIFICATION DIVISION.
PROGRAM-ID. COMPLETE-REPORT.
 
DATA DIVISION.
WORKING-STORAGE SECTION.
01  REPORT-HEADER.
    05  REPORT-TITLE     PIC X(30) VALUE "CUSTOMER SALES REPORT".
    05  FILLER           PIC X(20) VALUE SPACES.
    05  PAGE-LABEL       PIC X(6) VALUE "Page: ".
    05  PAGE-NUMBER      PIC ZZZ9.
    05  FILLER           PIC X(20) VALUE SPACES.
    05  REPORT-DATE      PIC X(10).
 
01  REPORT-FOOTER.
    05  FILLER           PIC X(30) VALUE "End of Report".
    05  FILLER           PIC X(20) VALUE SPACES.
    05  TOTAL-PAGES      PIC X(10) VALUE "Total Pages: ".
    05  FINAL-PAGE       PIC ZZZ9.
 
01  CUSTOMER-RECORD.
    05  CUSTOMER-ID      PIC 9(6).
    05  CUSTOMER-NAME    PIC X(30).
    05  SALES-AMOUNT     PIC 9(8)V99.
 
01  LINE-COUNT          PIC 9(2) VALUE 0.
01  MAX-LINES-PER-PAGE  PIC 9(2) VALUE 20.
 
PROCEDURE DIVISION.
    * Initialize report
    MOVE 1 TO PAGE-COUNTER
    MOVE FUNCTION CURRENT-DATE(1:10) TO REPORT-DATE
    
    * Display first page header
    PERFORM DISPLAY-PAGE-HEADER
    
    * Process customer records
    PERFORM UNTIL NO-MORE-RECORDS
        * Check if we need a new page
        IF LINE-COUNT >= MAX-LINES-PER-PAGE
            PERFORM DISPLAY-PAGE-FOOTER
            DISPLAY " " UPON CONSOLE ADVANCING PAGE
            PERFORM DISPLAY-PAGE-HEADER
        END-IF
        
        * Display customer record
        DISPLAY CUSTOMER-ID " " CUSTOMER-NAME " " SALES-AMOUNT
        ADD 1 TO LINE-COUNT
        
        * Read next record (simulated)
        PERFORM READ-NEXT-RECORD
    END-PERFORM
    
    * Display final page footer
    MOVE PAGE-COUNTER TO FINAL-PAGE
    PERFORM DISPLAY-PAGE-FOOTER
    
    STOP RUN.
 
DISPLAY-PAGE-HEADER.
    MOVE PAGE-COUNTER TO PAGE-NUMBER
    DISPLAY REPORT-HEADER
    DISPLAY "Customer ID  Customer Name          Sales Amount"
    DISPLAY "----------  ----------------------  ------------"
    MOVE 0 TO LINE-COUNT.
 
DISPLAY-PAGE-FOOTER.
    DISPLAY " "
    DISPLAY "----------------------------------------"
    DISPLAY "Page " PAGE-COUNTER " completed"
    DISPLAY "----------------------------------------".
 
READ-NEXT-RECORD.
    * Simulate reading next record
    * In real program, this would read from a file
    EXIT.

This example shows a complete report with automatic page numbering and page breaks.

Multi-Section Report

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* Multi-section report with different page numbering
IDENTIFICATION DIVISION.
PROGRAM-ID. MULTI-SECTION-REPORT.
 
DATA DIVISION.
WORKING-STORAGE SECTION.
01  SECTION-HEADER.
    05  SECTION-TITLE    PIC X(40).
    05  FILLER           PIC X(10) VALUE SPACES.
    05  PAGE-LABEL       PIC X(6) VALUE "Page: ".
    05  PAGE-NUMBER      PIC ZZZ9.
 
01  CURRENT-SECTION     PIC X(20).
01  SECTION-PAGE-START  PIC 9(3).
 
PROCEDURE DIVISION.
    * Generate Executive Summary Section
    MOVE "EXECUTIVE SUMMARY" TO CURRENT-SECTION
    MOVE 1 TO PAGE-COUNTER
    MOVE PAGE-COUNTER TO SECTION-PAGE-START
    
    PERFORM GENERATE-SECTION
    
    * Generate Detailed Analysis Section
    MOVE "DETAILED ANALYSIS" TO CURRENT-SECTION
    * Don't reset PAGE-COUNTER - continue numbering
    PERFORM GENERATE-SECTION
    
    * Generate Recommendations Section
    MOVE "RECOMMENDATIONS" TO CURRENT-SECTION
    PERFORM GENERATE-SECTION
    
    * Display final summary
    DISPLAY " "
    DISPLAY "Report Summary:"
    DISPLAY "Total Pages: " PAGE-COUNTER
    DISPLAY "Executive Summary: Pages " SECTION-PAGE-START " - " 
            FUNCTION MIN(PAGE-COUNTER, 5)
    
    STOP RUN.
 
GENERATE-SECTION.
    * Display section header
    MOVE CURRENT-SECTION TO SECTION-TITLE
    MOVE PAGE-COUNTER TO PAGE-NUMBER
    DISPLAY SECTION-HEADER
    DISPLAY " "
    
    * Generate section content (simulated)
    DISPLAY "Section content goes here..."
    DISPLAY "More content..."
    
    * Simulate multiple pages for this section
    PERFORM VARYING PAGE-COUNTER FROM PAGE-COUNTER BY 1
        UNTIL PAGE-COUNTER > PAGE-COUNTER + 2
        DISPLAY " " UPON CONSOLE ADVANCING PAGE
        MOVE PAGE-COUNTER TO PAGE-NUMBER
        DISPLAY SECTION-HEADER
        DISPLAY "Continued content..."
    END-PERFORM.

This example shows how to use PAGE-COUNTER across multiple report sections.

Advanced PAGE-COUNTER Features

PAGE-COUNTER supports advanced features for complex reporting scenarios.

Conditional Page Numbering

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* Conditional page numbering based on content
IDENTIFICATION DIVISION.
PROGRAM-ID. CONDITIONAL-PAGING.
 
DATA DIVISION.
WORKING-STORAGE SECTION.
01  PAGE-HEADER.
    05  REPORT-TITLE     PIC X(30) VALUE "CONDITIONAL REPORT".
    05  FILLER           PIC X(20) VALUE SPACES.
    05  PAGE-NUMBER      PIC ZZZ9.
 
01  CONTENT-TYPE        PIC X(10).
01  LINE-COUNT          PIC 9(2) VALUE 0.
01  MAX-LINES           PIC 9(2) VALUE 15.
 
PROCEDURE DIVISION.
    MOVE 1 TO PAGE-COUNTER
    
    * Process different content types
    PERFORM PROCESS-CONTENT UNTIL NO-MORE-CONTENT
    
    STOP RUN.
 
PROCESS-CONTENT.
    * Read content type (simulated)
    MOVE "SUMMARY" TO CONTENT-TYPE
    
    * Different page numbering based on content type
    EVALUATE CONTENT-TYPE
        WHEN "SUMMARY"
            * Summary pages use "S-" prefix
            PERFORM DISPLAY-SUMMARY-PAGE
        WHEN "DETAIL"
            * Detail pages use "D-" prefix
            PERFORM DISPLAY-DETAIL-PAGE
        WHEN "APPENDIX"
            * Appendix pages use "A-" prefix
            PERFORM DISPLAY-APPENDIX-PAGE
    END-EVALUATE.
 
DISPLAY-SUMMARY-PAGE.
    MOVE PAGE-COUNTER TO PAGE-NUMBER
    DISPLAY "S-" PAGE-NUMBER " - " REPORT-TITLE
    DISPLAY "Summary content..."
    DISPLAY " " UPON CONSOLE ADVANCING PAGE.
 
DISPLAY-DETAIL-PAGE.
    MOVE PAGE-COUNTER TO PAGE-NUMBER
    DISPLAY "D-" PAGE-NUMBER " - " REPORT-TITLE
    DISPLAY "Detailed content..."
    DISPLAY " " UPON CONSOLE ADVANCING PAGE.
 
DISPLAY-APPENDIX-PAGE.
    MOVE PAGE-COUNTER TO PAGE-NUMBER
    DISPLAY "A-" PAGE-NUMBER " - " REPORT-TITLE
    DISPLAY "Appendix content..."
    DISPLAY " " UPON CONSOLE ADVANCING PAGE.

This example shows how to use different page numbering schemes based on content type.

Page Number Formatting

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* Advanced page number formatting
IDENTIFICATION DIVISION.
PROGRAM-ID. FORMATTED-PAGING.
 
DATA DIVISION.
WORKING-STORAGE SECTION.
01  FORMATTED-PAGE-INFO.
    05  PAGE-PREFIX      PIC X(5).
    05  PAGE-NUMBER      PIC ZZZ9.
    05  PAGE-SUFFIX      PIC X(5).
    05  TOTAL-PAGES      PIC X(10) VALUE " of ".
    05  FINAL-PAGE       PIC ZZZ9.
 
01  PAGE-STYLE          PIC X(10).
01  TOTAL-PAGE-COUNT    PIC 9(3) VALUE 25.
 
PROCEDURE DIVISION.
    MOVE 1 TO PAGE-COUNTER
    
    * Different page number styles
    PERFORM VARYING PAGE-COUNTER FROM 1 BY 1
        UNTIL PAGE-COUNTER > 5
        
        * Style 1: Simple numbering
        MOVE "Page " TO PAGE-PREFIX
        MOVE PAGE-COUNTER TO PAGE-NUMBER
        MOVE "" TO PAGE-SUFFIX
        DISPLAY FORMATTED-PAGE-INFO
        
        * Style 2: With total pages
        MOVE "Page " TO PAGE-PREFIX
        MOVE PAGE-COUNTER TO PAGE-NUMBER
        MOVE TOTAL-PAGES TO PAGE-SUFFIX
        MOVE TOTAL-PAGE-COUNT TO FINAL-PAGE
        DISPLAY FORMATTED-PAGE-INFO
        
        * Style 3: Roman numerals (simulated)
        MOVE "Page " TO PAGE-PREFIX
        MOVE PAGE-COUNTER TO PAGE-NUMBER
        MOVE " (I)" TO PAGE-SUFFIX
        DISPLAY FORMATTED-PAGE-INFO
        
        DISPLAY " " UPON CONSOLE ADVANCING PAGE
    END-PERFORM
    
    STOP RUN.

This example demonstrates different ways to format page numbers for display.

Best Practices and Tips

Following these best practices will help you use PAGE-COUNTER effectively in your COBOL applications.

PAGE-COUNTER Best Practices

Initialize at the start - Set PAGE-COUNTER to 1 at the beginning of your report
Use consistent formatting - Format page numbers consistently throughout your report
Check page limits - Use PAGE-COUNTER to check if you're approaching page limits
Include in headers/footers - Always include page numbers in report headers or footers
Handle page breaks properly - Use ADVANCING PAGE to ensure proper page breaks
Consider total pages - Display both current page and total pages when possible
Test with different page counts - Test your reports with various page counts

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Mistake	Problem	Solution
Not initializing PAGE-COUNTER	Page numbers may start from unexpected values	Always set PAGE-COUNTER to 1 at report start
Forgetting page breaks	Content runs together without proper pagination	Use ADVANCING PAGE when starting new pages
Inconsistent formatting	Report looks unprofessional	Use consistent page number formatting
Not checking page limits	Reports may exceed printer limits	Monitor PAGE-COUNTER for page limits
Missing page numbers	Users can't navigate multi-page reports	Always include page numbers in headers/footers

PAGE-COUNTER Quick Reference

Action	Syntax	Example
Initialize page counter	MOVE 1 TO PAGE-COUNTER	MOVE 1 TO PAGE-COUNTER
Display page number	DISPLAY PAGE-COUNTER	DISPLAY "Page: " PAGE-COUNTER
Format page number	MOVE PAGE-COUNTER TO formatted-field	MOVE PAGE-COUNTER TO PAGE-NUMBER
Start new page	DISPLAY " " ADVANCING PAGE	DISPLAY " " UPON CONSOLE ADVANCING PAGE
Check page number	IF PAGE-COUNTER = value	IF PAGE-COUNTER = 10
Reset page counter	MOVE value TO PAGE-COUNTER	MOVE 1 TO PAGE-COUNTER

Test Your Knowledge

1. What is PAGE-COUNTER in COBOL?

A data field that counts program executions
A system variable that automatically tracks page numbers in reports
A counter for database records
A variable that counts file records

2. How do you declare PAGE-COUNTER in a COBOL program?

01 PAGE-COUNTER PIC 9(3)
You don't declare it - it's automatically available
01 PAGE-COUNTER COMP
01 PAGE-COUNTER USAGE IS INDEX

3. When does PAGE-COUNTER automatically increment?

Every time you write a record
Every time you start a new page
Every time you read a record
Every time you perform a calculation

4. How do you display the current page number using PAGE-COUNTER?

DISPLAY PAGE-COUNTER
DISPLAY "Page: " PAGE-COUNTER
MOVE PAGE-COUNTER TO DISPLAY-FIELD
All of the above

5. In which COBOL division is PAGE-COUNTER typically used?

IDENTIFICATION DIVISION
ENVIRONMENT DIVISION
DATA DIVISION
PROCEDURE DIVISION

COBOL Tutorial

COBOL PAGE-COUNTER - Report Page Numbering

What is PAGE-COUNTER?

📄 Real-World Analogy

Key Features

How to Use PAGE-COUNTER

Basic PAGE-COUNTER Usage

PAGE-COUNTER Operations

Practical Examples

Complete Report with Page Numbers

Multi-Section Report

Advanced PAGE-COUNTER Features

Conditional Page Numbering

Page Number Formatting

Best Practices and Tips

PAGE-COUNTER Best Practices

Common Mistakes to Avoid

PAGE-COUNTER Quick Reference

Test Your Knowledge

Frequently Asked Questions

Related Concepts

Report Generation in COBOL

Print Formatting

LINE-COUNTER

ADVANCING

Report Headers and Footers

Related Pages

COBOL Tutorial

COBOL PAGE-COUNTER - Report Page Numbering

What is PAGE-COUNTER?

📄 Real-World Analogy

Key Features

How to Use PAGE-COUNTER

Basic PAGE-COUNTER Usage

PAGE-COUNTER Operations

Practical Examples

Complete Report with Page Numbers

Multi-Section Report

Advanced PAGE-COUNTER Features

Conditional Page Numbering

Page Number Formatting

Best Practices and Tips

PAGE-COUNTER Best Practices

Common Mistakes to Avoid

PAGE-COUNTER Quick Reference

Test Your Knowledge

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between PAGE-COUNTER and LINE-COUNTER?

Can I manually set the value of PAGE-COUNTER?

How do I format PAGE-COUNTER for display?

Does PAGE-COUNTER work with all types of output?

How do I reset PAGE-COUNTER to start over?

Related Concepts

Report Generation in COBOL

Print Formatting

LINE-COUNTER

ADVANCING

Report Headers and Footers

Related Pages