Specifying a form definition

You can create your own form definition or use a form definition already available on your system. To create a form definition, use an AFP utility product such as IBM® Page Printer Formatting Aid (PPFA). For instructions on how to create a form definition specifying the options you require, see the publications for your utility product.

Using the forms completed with your installation’s defaults, read the descriptions of the form definitions available to you. Also see Form definitions supplied with PSF, for descriptions of form definitions provided with PSF. On the basis of this information, you can decide which form definition best meets your present printing requirements.

If your job requires special form-definition options, use the JCL for the print job to specify a form definition that contains those options. The name of the form definition, without its two-character prefix of "F1", is coded in the FORMDEF parameter of the OUTPUT statement (see FORMDEF).

Examples:

PSF provides standard form definitions, which are listed in Form definitions supplied with PSF. The form definition provided for the 3800 printer offsets the page down 0.5 inch to avoid the unprintable area of that printer. Form definitions for other AFP printers offset the page .167 inch across and down from the medium origin and provide different combinations of duplex and paper source options. These form definitions are referenced in these examples:

This example specifies a PSF-supplied form definition named F1A10111 to specify duplex printing on a cut-sheet printer. Notice that the prefix "F1" is not coded in the JCL.
```
//AFPUSERA JOB ...
//STEP1 EXEC PGM=USERA
//OUT1  OUTPUT FORMDEF=A10111
//DD1   SYSOUT=A,OUT=(*.OUT1)
```
This example specifies a user-created form definition named F1MYFDEF, as well as a page definition named P1MYPDEF. For more information about specifying page definitions, see Specifying a page definition.
```
//AFPUSERB JOB ...
//STEP1 EXEC PGM=USERB
//OUT1  OUTPUT FORMDEF=MYFDEF,PAGEDEF=MYPDEF
//DD1   SYSOUT=A,OUT=(*.OUT1)
```
The FORMDEF parameter can specify the resource name of the inline form definition or can specify the keyword DUMMY. If the name in the FORMDEF parameter does not match the name of an inline form definition, PSF uses the resource from the resource library that matches the name in the JCL. If the job does not specify the FORMDEF parameter, PSF uses the first inline form definition in the print data set.
In this example, form definition F1MYFDEF is coded inline in the print data set that is generated by program USERC. For information about coding inline resources, see Advanced Function Presentation: Programming Guide and Line Data Reference, S544-3884.
```
//AFPUSERC JOB ...
//STEP1 EXEC PGM=USERC
//OUT1  OUTPUT FORMDEF=DUMMY
//DD1   SYSOUT=A,OUT=(*.OUT1)
```

The form definition specified on the FORMDEF parameter must be stored in one of these places: