Syntax conventions and notations

The notation used to define the syntax in this publication is described in the following paragraphs.

1. The set of symbols listed below is used to define the syntax, but do not specify any of them in a command or subcommand.

   hyphen

   -  

   underscore

   __

   braces

   { }

   brackets

   [ ]

   logical OR

   |

   ellipsis

   ...

   blank

   ␣

   The special uses of the foregoing symbols are explained in the following paragraphs.

2. Specify uppercase letters, numbers, and the set of symbols shown in the following list exactly as shown in the syntax.

   single quotation mark

   '

   asterisk

   *

   comma

   ,

   equal sign

   =

   parentheses

   ( )

   percent

   %

   period

   .

   question mark

   ?

   colon

   :

3. Lowercase letters, and symbols appearing in the syntax represent variables for which you substitute specific information.

   Example: If name appears in the syntax, substitute a specific value (for example, ALPHA) for the variable.

4. Hyphens join lower-case words and symbols to form a single variable

   Example: If member-name appears in the syntax, substitute a specific value (for example, BETA) for the variable.

5. A stack or the logical OR indicate related, alternative items. Select only one of the items (an exclusive OR); and specify it explicitly.
   Example: The representation

   A
   B    or    A|B|C
   C

   indicates select A or B or C and explicitly specify the selected item.
6. A stack or the logical OR also indicate related, alternative items, where one of the items is the default. An underscore indicates a default alternative. Select only one of the items (an exclusive OR). If you select an underscored alternative, you need not specify it explicitly. The absence of an explicit specification is an implicit specification of the default alternative.
   Example: The representation

   A
   B    or    A|B|C
   C

   indicates select A or B or C; however, if you select B, you need not explicitly specify it because it is the default alternative.
7. To prevent ambiguity in syntax presentation, braces are used to group related, alternative items. Select only one of the items (an exclusive OR); and specify it explicitly.

   Example: The representation

   
   indicates choose one of the items enclosed within the braces. If you select A, specify ALPHA=(A,D).
8. To prevent ambiguity in syntax presentation, braces are also used to group related alternative items, where one of the items is the default. An underscore indicates a default alternative. Select only one of the items (an exclusive OR). If you select an underscored alternative, you need not specify it explicitly. The absence of an explicit specification is an implicit specification of the default alternative.

   Example: The representation

   
   indicates choose one of the items enclosed within the braces. If you select A, specify either ALPHA=(A,D) or ALPHA=(,D). If you select A, you need not specify it explicitly because it is the default alternative.
9. To indicate optionality and to prevent ambiguity in syntax presentation, brackets also group related, alternative items; however, everything within the brackets is optional. If you do not explicitly specify one of the items, the result is a null specification.

   Example: The representation

   
   indicates choose one of the items enclosed within the brackets (an exclusive OR) or omit all of the items within the brackets. If you select only D, specify ALPHA=(,D).
10. An ellipsis indicates that you may specify the preceding item or group of items:
    • zero times
    • once, or
    • more than once in succession
    Example:

    ALPHA[,BETA]...

    indicates that ALPHA can appear alone or can be followed by ,BETA any number of times in succession.
11. Alphanumeric characters: unless otherwise indicated, an alphanumeric character is one of the following:
    • alphabetic: A-Z
    • numeric: 0-9
    • special: $ # @