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COBOL Tutorial

COBOL SIGNED-LONG Clause - Quick Reference

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Overview

The SIGNED-LONG clause is used to define large signed integer data types in COBOL. It provides extended range capabilities for applications requiring very large positive and negative values, enabling precise handling of large numbers in scientific, financial, and system programming applications.

Purpose and Usage

  • Large number handling - Handle very large signed integer values
  • Extended range - Provide extended range beyond standard integers
  • Scientific calculations - Support large scientific computations
  • Financial precision - Handle large financial amounts
  • System programming - Support large counters and timestamps

Syntax

The SIGNED-LONG clause is used in the DATA DIVISION for large signed integer data definition.

Basic Syntax

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* Basic SIGNED-LONG syntax
01 data-name PIC S9(n) SIGNED-LONG.
 
* Complete example with large signed integer types
IDENTIFICATION DIVISION.
PROGRAM-ID. SIGNED-LONG-EXAMPLE.
 
DATA DIVISION.
WORKING-STORAGE SECTION.
* Large signed integer for scientific calculations
01  SCIENTIFIC-VALUE     PIC S9(15) SIGNED-LONG.
* Large signed integer for financial amounts
01  FINANCIAL-AMOUNT     PIC S9(15) SIGNED-LONG.
* Large signed integer for system timestamp
01  SYSTEM-TIMESTAMP     PIC S9(15) SIGNED-LONG.
* Large signed integer for astronomical calculations
01  ASTRONOMICAL-VALUE   PIC S9(18) SIGNED-LONG.
 
PROCEDURE DIVISION.
MAIN-LOGIC.
    * Assign very large values
    MOVE 999999999999999 TO SCIENTIFIC-VALUE
    MOVE -888888888888888 TO FINANCIAL-AMOUNT
    MOVE 1640995200000000 TO SYSTEM-TIMESTAMP
    MOVE 999999999999999999 TO ASTRONOMICAL-VALUE
    
    DISPLAY "Scientific value: " SCIENTIFIC-VALUE
    DISPLAY "Financial amount: " FINANCIAL-AMOUNT
    DISPLAY "System timestamp: " SYSTEM-TIMESTAMP
    DISPLAY "Astronomical value: " ASTRONOMICAL-VALUE
    STOP RUN.

SIGNED-LONG enables handling of very large signed integer values beyond standard integer ranges.

Practical Examples

Examples of using the SIGNED-LONG clause in different scenarios with detailed explanations.

Scientific Application - Astronomical Calculations

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* Scientific application using SIGNED-LONG for astronomical calculations
DATA DIVISION.
WORKING-STORAGE SECTION.
* Distance in kilometers (very large numbers)
01  DISTANCE-KM          PIC S9(15) SIGNED-LONG.
* Light years calculation (extremely large numbers)
01  LIGHT-YEARS          PIC S9(18) SIGNED-LONG.
* Astronomical unit (distance from Earth to Sun)
01  ASTRONOMICAL-UNIT    PIC S9(15) SIGNED-LONG.
* Parsec calculation (even larger distances)
01  PARSEC-VALUE         PIC S9(18) SIGNED-LONG.
* Negative distance for calculations (relative positions)
01  RELATIVE-DISTANCE    PIC S9(15) SIGNED-LONG.
 
PROCEDURE DIVISION.
PERFORM-ASTRONOMICAL-CALCULATIONS.
    * Set distance to nearest star (Proxima Centauri)
    MOVE 40000000000000 TO DISTANCE-KM  * 40 trillion km
    DISPLAY "Distance to Proxima Centauri: " DISTANCE-KM " km"
    
    * Calculate light years (1 light year = 9.46 trillion km)
    MOVE 9460000000000 TO ASTRONOMICAL-UNIT
    DIVIDE DISTANCE-KM BY ASTRONOMICAL-UNIT GIVING LIGHT-YEARS
    DISPLAY "Distance in light years: " LIGHT-YEARS
    
    * Calculate parsec (1 parsec = 3.26 light years)
    MOVE 326 TO ASTRONOMICAL-UNIT
    DIVIDE LIGHT-YEARS BY ASTRONOMICAL-UNIT GIVING PARSEC-VALUE
    DISPLAY "Distance in parsecs: " PARSEC-VALUE
    
    * Calculate relative distance (can be negative for opposite direction)
    MOVE -20000000000000 TO RELATIVE-DISTANCE
    DISPLAY "Relative distance: " RELATIVE-DISTANCE " km"
    
    * Perform large-scale calculations
    MULTIPLY DISTANCE-KM BY 1000000 GIVING DISTANCE-KM
    DISPLAY "Scaled distance: " DISTANCE-KM " km".

This example demonstrates how SIGNED-LONG handles extremely large numbers in astronomical calculations. The system can work with distances measured in trillions of kilometers, light years, and parsecs. Negative values represent relative positions in opposite directions, and the system can perform large-scale calculations without overflow.

Financial Application - Global Banking System

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* Global banking system using SIGNED-LONG for large financial amounts
DATA DIVISION.
WORKING-STORAGE SECTION.
* National debt amount (very large numbers)
01  NATIONAL-DEBT        PIC S9(15) SIGNED-LONG.
* GDP calculation (gross domestic product)
01  GDP-VALUE            PIC S9(15) SIGNED-LONG.
* International trade balance (can be negative)
01  TRADE-BALANCE        PIC S9(15) SIGNED-LONG.
* Currency exchange rate (large multiplier)
01  EXCHANGE-RATE        PIC S9(12) SIGNED-LONG.
* Final calculation result (extremely large)
01  CALCULATION-RESULT   PIC S9(18) SIGNED-LONG.
 
PROCEDURE DIVISION.
PROCESS-GLOBAL-FINANCIAL-DATA.
    * Set national debt (in billions, converted to smallest unit)
    MOVE 280000000000000 TO NATIONAL-DEBT  * $28 trillion
    DISPLAY "National debt: " NATIONAL-DEBT " (in smallest units)"
    
    * Set GDP value
    MOVE 220000000000000 TO GDP-VALUE  * $22 trillion
    DISPLAY "GDP value: " GDP-VALUE " (in smallest units)"
    
    * Set trade balance (negative for trade deficit)
    MOVE -80000000000000 TO TRADE-BALANCE  * -$800 billion
    DISPLAY "Trade balance: " TRADE-BALANCE " (in smallest units)"
    
    * Set exchange rate (large multiplier for precision)
    MOVE 115000000 TO EXCHANGE-RATE  * 1.15 as integer (multiplied by 100,000,000)
    DISPLAY "Exchange rate: " EXCHANGE-RATE
    
    * Calculate debt-to-GDP ratio
    MULTIPLY NATIONAL-DEBT BY 100000000 GIVING CALCULATION-RESULT
    DIVIDE CALCULATION-RESULT BY GDP-VALUE GIVING CALCULATION-RESULT
    DISPLAY "Debt-to-GDP ratio: " CALCULATION-RESULT " (scaled by 100,000,000)"
    
    * Calculate adjusted balance
    ADD TRADE-BALANCE TO GDP-VALUE GIVING CALCULATION-RESULT
    DISPLAY "Adjusted balance: " CALCULATION-RESULT " (in smallest units)"
    
    * Validate calculations are within acceptable range
    IF CALCULATION-RESULT > 999999999999999999 OR CALCULATION-RESULT < -999999999999999999
        DISPLAY "WARNING: Calculation result exceeds system limits"
    END-IF.

This example shows how SIGNED-LONG handles extremely large financial amounts in a global banking system. The system can work with national debt, GDP, and trade balances measured in trillions of dollars. Negative values represent deficits or losses. The system performs complex calculations with large numbers while maintaining precision through scaling factors.

System Programming - Large Counter and Timestamp Management

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* System programming using SIGNED-LONG for large counters and timestamps
DATA DIVISION.
WORKING-STORAGE SECTION.
* System uptime counter (in milliseconds)
01  SYSTEM-UPTIME        PIC S9(15) SIGNED-LONG.
* Process counter (very large number of processes)
01  PROCESS-COUNTER      PIC S9(15) SIGNED-LONG.
* Memory allocation counter (in bytes)
01  MEMORY-ALLOCATED     PIC S9(15) SIGNED-LONG.
* Network packet counter (large number of packets)
01  PACKET-COUNTER       PIC S9(15) SIGNED-LONG.
* Timestamp for future calculations (can be negative for past dates)
01  FUTURE-TIMESTAMP     PIC S9(15) SIGNED-LONG.
 
PROCEDURE DIVISION.
MANAGE-SYSTEM-COUNTERS.
    * Initialize system uptime (in milliseconds since epoch)
    MOVE 1640995200000000 TO SYSTEM-UPTIME
    DISPLAY "System uptime: " SYSTEM-UPTIME " milliseconds"
    
    * Set process counter (large number of processes handled)
    MOVE 999999999999999 TO PROCESS-COUNTER
    DISPLAY "Process counter: " PROCESS-COUNTER " processes"
    
    * Set memory allocation (in bytes)
    MOVE 500000000000000 TO MEMORY-ALLOCATED  * 500 TB
    DISPLAY "Memory allocated: " MEMORY-ALLOCATED " bytes"
    
    * Set network packet counter
    MOVE 888888888888888 TO PACKET-COUNTER
    DISPLAY "Packet counter: " PACKET-COUNTER " packets"
    
    * Calculate future timestamp (can be negative for past)
    MOVE -86400000 TO FUTURE-TIMESTAMP  * -1 day in milliseconds
    ADD FUTURE-TIMESTAMP TO SYSTEM-UPTIME GIVING FUTURE-TIMESTAMP
    DISPLAY "Past timestamp: " FUTURE-TIMESTAMP " milliseconds"
    
    * Increment counters
    ADD 1 TO PROCESS-COUNTER
    ADD 1000000 TO MEMORY-ALLOCATED
    ADD 1000 TO PACKET-COUNTER
    
    DISPLAY "Updated process counter: " PROCESS-COUNTER
    DISPLAY "Updated memory allocated: " MEMORY-ALLOCATED
    DISPLAY "Updated packet counter: " PACKET-COUNTER
    
    * Check for counter overflow
    IF PROCESS-COUNTER > 999999999999999999
        DISPLAY "WARNING: Process counter overflow detected"
    END-IF.

This example demonstrates SIGNED-LONG usage in system programming for managing large counters and timestamps. The system tracks uptime in milliseconds, process counts, memory allocation in bytes, and network packet counts. Negative timestamps represent past dates. The system can increment large counters and detect potential overflow conditions.

Best Practices

Understanding best practices ensures effective use of the SIGNED-LONG clause.

Best Practices

  • Use only when needed - Use SIGNED-LONG only for very large values
  • Consider memory usage - Be aware of increased memory consumption
  • Validate value ranges - Check that values fit within SIGNED-LONG limits
  • Monitor performance - Monitor performance impact of large integer operations
  • Document usage - Document why SIGNED-LONG is required

Test Your Knowledge

1. What is the primary purpose of the SIGNED-LONG clause in COBOL?

  • To sign documents
  • To define large signed integer data types
  • To sign programs
  • To sign files

2. In which COBOL division is the SIGNED-LONG clause typically used?

  • IDENTIFICATION DIVISION
  • ENVIRONMENT DIVISION
  • DATA DIVISION
  • PROCEDURE DIVISION

3. What is the difference between SIGNED-LONG and SIGNED-INT?

  • They are the same thing
  • SIGNED-LONG handles larger values than SIGNED-INT
  • SIGNED-LONG is faster than SIGNED-INT
  • SIGNED-LONG is obsolete, SIGNED-INT is modern

4. Can SIGNED-LONG be used with all numeric data types?

  • Yes, with all numeric types
  • No, only with large integer types
  • No, only with decimal types
  • Only with specific data types

5. What is the relationship between SIGNED-LONG and memory usage?

  • They are unrelated
  • SIGNED-LONG uses more memory than smaller integer types
  • SIGNED-LONG uses less memory than smaller integer types
  • SIGNED-LONG has no impact on memory

Frequently Asked Questions

Related Concepts

Data Types

Understanding data types in COBOL.

Memory Management

Memory management techniques in COBOL.

Performance Optimization

Performance optimization in COBOL.

SIGNED-INT ClauseSIGNED-SHORT Clause