Subfields in Custom Variant

[Greg Tataryn]

A question I have been meaning to ask for a long time but have not, when creating a custom segment and fields in a variant, is there a way to denote that a field has subfields? As of yet I have not found a way but it has also been a while since I have tried. Currently on version 6.1.1 of the engine.

Topic

[Jim Kosloskey]

You can select an existing Data Type which has components if you like. However that may not assure the number or name of the components will match what you want when looking in an Xlate.

If a vendor specifies a Z segment for me, for example, and has ‘User Field’ defined in that segment and the structure of the User Field is given, I can frequently find a HL/7 Data Type which matches structure and sometimes even component names (but less likely field name).

At this point, you cannot define your own Data Types (that has been requested but if you were to add an enhancement request that would not hurt).

You can also use component/sub-component notation in an Xlate on any Data Type – so a lot of people make all of thir user fields ST.

If you would like to discuss in more detail, feel free to email me.

email: jim.kosloskey@jim-kosloskey.com 30+ years Cloverleaf, 60 years IT – old fart.

[Greg Tataryn]

Thanks Jim.

In my translates I do typically just use the component/sub-component notation even if a given field is not broken down. I am new to 6.1.1 since the last version I worked with was 5.8. I was hoping maybe some additional enhancements had been made but I will definitely look into adding an enhancement request.

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