REXX Tips & Tricks:Additional Software for REXX

Development & Debugging Tools

This sections contains information about additional usefuls tools for developing REXX programs.

Samples & skeletons

Skeleton - a REXX program skeleton

Name SKELETON
Version 1.0, 03.08.1995
Author Bob Rice
Empirical Heuristics
P.O. Box 189
West Hurley, NY 12491
(see EMail Addresses)
Distrib. Shareware, $0 fee
Type REXX programs
Price -
Source Internet
Name: SKELETON.*

Description from the author:

"Extremely simple to use, the REXX Skeleton provides: display or extraction of embedded help code, automatic external function registration, automatic initialization of useful "global" variables, automatic trapping of REXX execution time events and errors with dump file generation containing variables and queues, and debug assistance. Needs only the standard OS/2 REXX but has more function with REXXLIB. Great for beginning REXX programmers as well as more advanced programmers. This is Zero-cost Shareware uploaded by the author, Bob Rice."

Note: see also Template for a REXX program

Preprocessors & Formating tools

PPWIZARD - a pre-processor

Name PPWIZARD - a generic pre-processor
Version 03.059
Author Dennis Bareis
(see EMail Addresses)
Distrib. Freeware
Type EXE
Price -
Source The home page of the author
(see Internet - Web Pages)
Name: ppwos2.*

Description from the author:

"This is a generic processor (for any text files) with specific support built in for rexx and html files.

When used with the "/rexx" switch it will by default remove comments and pack rexx code and then perform a syntax check.

You have access to instructions such as #define, #evaluate, #include, #if and #ifdef. You can develop macros that take both optional and manditory parameters and the macros can conditionally generate output.

The program is extendable through rexx. Commands such as #if tests can be very complex, for example it would be relatively simple to compare environment variables or contents of files etc.

The html capability of this program is the basis of a series of e-Zine! articles (3 so far). Its use for rexx development would have to be at least as important. AWE def files are being developed using PPWIZARD macros and I generate PPWIZARD itself plus the extensive PPWIZARD INF and HTML documentation using PPWIZARD macros."

MakeREXX - a pre-processor for REXX

Name MAKEREXX - pre-processor for REXX
Version 10/92
Author Tony Thigpen
115 West York Court
Longwood, FL 32779
Distrib. Freeware
Type REXX program
Price -
Source Internet
Name: MAKEREXX.*

Description from the author:

"MAKEREXX is a utility that allows a REXX programmer to create a library of generic routines. Those routines are maintained in a subdirectory named 'XXX' and must have a file suffix of '.XXX'. The REXX code produced by MAKEREXX is placed in a subdirectory of '.CMD' and will have a suffix of either '.CMD' or '.ERX'. '.CMD' files are OS/2 REXX routines while the '.ERX' files are EPM editor REXX routines. Mainline REXX routines are maintained in a subdirectory named 'REX' and must have a file suffix of either '.REX' or '.EPM'. '.REX' routines will be expanded into '.CMD' routines while '.EPM' routines will be expanded into '.ERX' routines."

PrepProc - pre-processor for REXX

Name PREPPROC - pre-processor for REXX
Version v2.00
Author Hilbert Computing
Gary Murphy
Distrib. Freeware
Type REXX program
Price -
Source Internet
Name: PREPRC.*

PrepProc is a simple pre-processor for REXX programs written in REXX. Supported directives in this version are #define, #ifdef, #ifndef and #include.

RxPrep - REXX pre-processor

Name RXPREP
Version 1.8, 24.11.1993
Author Richard Moore
Distrib. Freeware, DAP Software
Type REXX program
Price -
Source Internet
Name: RxPREP.*

This is another pre-processor for REXX programs written in REXX.

RXPREP is only available for DAP members.

REXX Toolbox and pre-processor ($)

Name REXX Toolbox and Preprozessor
Version V1.1 1995
Author Joerg Burdorf
Im Leuters 12
53567 Asbach Germscheid
Germany
Distrib. Shareware
Type REXX DLL
Price 20,- DM
Source Internet
Name: FASTREXX.*
Note All docs are in German!

FASTREXX is mainly a pre-processor for REXX programs. Also included are various REXX procedures.

RCF - REXX Code Formatter/2 ($)

Name RCF - REXX Code Formatter/2
Version Release 1.2.9
Author RKE Consulting, Inc.
P.O. Box 11569
Spring, TX 77391-1569
USA
Distrib. Shareware
Type VisPro REXX Executable
Price $15
Source Internet
Name: rcf2102j.*

Description from the author:

REXX Code Formatter/2 Description

The REXX Code Formatter/2 (RCF/2) is an OS/2(*) REXX application written using VisPro/REXX(**) and VisPro/Reports(**). It is designed to allow a REXX programmer to format a program in a particular style, insuring that the format of each element of the REXX program conforms to that style.

Features of REXX Code Formatter/2

Using this product, users may, for example:

• Define the indentation to be used in general plus the amount for:
  • Program statements subordinate to DO and SELECT,
  • Statements that begin with THEN/ELSE, and
  • Continued statements.

Specify whether:

• Lines are to be split at semicolons,
• Redundant spaces are to be removed from program statements,
• New lines are to start before or after THEN/ELSE keywords, and
• END statements are to be indented to align with the corresponding DO/SELECT subordinate statements.

       �

Specify the formatting for:

• REXX keyword Instructions,
• REXX keywords besides those that begin a REXX keyword instruction,
• Variables names,
• Function names, and
• Labels.
• Define special formatting for selected function names.
• Check for duplicate labels and insure all labels start on a new line.
• Have RCF/2 create a file of label names as they appear in the program
• so that all references to them in the program (and even other programs) will reflect this same format.
• Align full-line, left-hand, and right-hand comments.
• Generate a listing of the formatted program.

In addition, while RCF/2 is not a syntax-checker or code debugger, it does provide some assistance in program development. It can, for example:

• Identify DO and SELECT instructions missing a corresponding END clause,
• Flag comments that are not started but not closed, and
• Highlight literal strings with a missing quote.

New features in Release 1.2.0 are:

• A cross reference facility for labels, variables, and function names.
• Optional formatting notes if undefined function names are found.
• The ability to add "Commented line numbers" to statements.
• Landscape printing formats.
• Right-hand alignment of full-line comments with extension and truncation to allow for "boxing" of comments.
• Specification of file name and directory for generated associated label files.
• Maintenance of multiple generated associated label file data in a single file.
• Separate formatting specification for the standard REXX built-in functions.
• The specification of the file to be edited as a parameter at RCF invocation.
• The extension of the allowable indentation values to be up to 999.
• Placement of the print specification in a separate page to facilitate changing of printer specifications.
• Use of WARP 4 notebook format for configuration settings when using OS/2 WARP 4.

RexxComm

Name RexxComm - Formats comments in REXX program files Version 2000-07-16 Author Marcus C. de Geus (see EMail Addresses) Distrib. Freeware Type REXX program Price - Source Internet Name: rexxcomm.*

This program formats comments in REXX program files according to a user-defined option and reports any uncommented program lines.

Syntax check programs

RXCALLLST - show the CALL structure of a program

Name RXCALLST
Version 05/01/2003
Author Wilfried Eike
Distrib. Freeware
Type VisPro REXX EXE
Price -
Source Internet
Name: RXCALLST.*

RXCALLST is a tool to show the CALL structure of REXX programs.

RXCALLLST shows the call structure of a REXX program in a TOP-DOWN-view and a BOTTOM-UP view. It can also detect rescursive code and dead code.

(see also Checkfunc - Function analysis of a REXX program and Codeanalizer)

Checkfunc - Function analysis of a REXX program

Name CheckFunc
Version 1.02
Author Toby Thurston
(see EMail Addresses)
Distrib. Freeware
Type REXX CMD
Price -
Source Internet
Name: checkfunc102.*

Checkfunc is a handy routine to help you develop correct and portable REXX code. It contains a mini-parser for REXX that finds all the function calls in a program and lists them out for you to see. The output listing shows

• BIFs Used
• Internal functions
• Duplicate (and therefore unreachable) labels
• Rexxutil common functions
• Rexxutil OS/2 only functions
• Rexxutil Windows only functions
• Rexxutil Version 2 functions
• External functions
• External commands

(see also RXCALLLST - show the CALL structure of a program and Codeanalizer)

Codeanalizer

Name CheckFunc
Version 1.02
Author Doug Rickman
Distrib. Freeware
Type REXX CMD
Price -
Source Internet
Name: codeanalyzer###.*
### is the version number, e.g. 005

Description from the author:

"CodeAnalyzer is a generic engine for analyzing and formatting REXX code. This is a tool for the REXX programmer who works with large complex programs."

(see also Checkfunc - Function analysis of a REXX program and RXCALLLST - show the CALL structure of a program)

Debugger

RXD - Rexx Debugger

Name RXD
Version V1.4
Author Patrick J. Mueller
IBM
Distrib. Freeware, IBM EWS
Type REXX Debugger (PM)
Price -
Source Internet
Name: RXD.*

RxD is a very useful debugger for OS/2 REXX programs. RxD supports Breakpoints, single stepping and watch variables. RxD is a PM program.

Note that RXD is an older 16-bit app and, according to the author, there may be some errors or unexpected conditions using it on 32-bit OS/2 (like WARP).