BASIC PRCXiRAMMING
SECTION 4.9
PROGRAMMING TECHNIQUES
4. 9 To the programmer, most of HUNTER's features are likely to seem
familiar and quite comparable with many other, less portable,
microcomputers.
4.9.1
VER.V09F
To the operator, HUNTER is likely to be quite different from
anything he's encountered before. This fundamental divergence
in experience can present a major challenge to the skill of the
programmer.
Because HUNTER operators tend to be newcomers to computer
techniques, and worse, tend to capitalise on HUNTER's unique
physical characteristics by using
it far away from the comfort
of the computer room, considerable demands are placed on the
quality of the programming. These demands are met by making
programs as error-free and 'bullet-proof' as possible, together
with careful program structures. A HUNTER that interrupts a
data entry sequence in the field with "Magnitude Error in
Line •••••.
11
is not likely to be appreciated by the user, or
worse, by his customers.
Knowing that field operators would have difficulty in recovering
from programming failures on the spot, HUNTER's designers have
provided a number of facilities that help overcome these
difficulties. But because HUNTER's programming has to have
greater integrity than is ever required at the desk-top, there
is no substitute for methodical discipline in programming.
The contents of this section explain some techniques that are
successfully used to provide reliable and ergonomically friendly
user programmes.
DATA CAPTURE TECHNIQUES
A typical HUNTER application program consists of 3 segments:
A 'Data Capture' segment
An 'Inspection' segment
A 'Transmission' segment
All three segments are contained in a common program although
treated as independent modules. All share a common database,
the 'captured' information, generally stored in array
structures.
The operator (as opposed to the programmer) is given a limited
range of options within this framework and
never has access to
the Basic interpreter.
On power-up, HUNTER will typically
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