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Claification on the differnent types of sorts


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mkk157

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Joined: 17 May 2006
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PostPosted: Sun Apr 15, 2007 12:12 pm
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I need a claification on the differnent types of sorts that we are using.
for example, SORT utility in JCL, internal sort, DFSORT, ICETOOL and some more.


Can u please explain me the purpose of these sorts with the examples. Its the common interview question. So i need a clarity.
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William Thompson

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PostPosted: Sun Apr 15, 2007 1:02 pm
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There is more to sorting than utilities....
DavidatK wrote:
Here's a site you may be interested in, when talking about sorts

Sorting Algorithms

Dave
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mkk157

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PostPosted: Mon Apr 16, 2007 10:04 am
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Hi William,

The link given by u is for the genral sorting algorithms. But I am requesting u for the different types of sorts used especially in mainframes.
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agkshirsagar

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Joined: 27 Feb 2007
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PostPosted: Mon Apr 16, 2007 10:43 am
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Were you expecting this?
Types of SORTs on mainframes-
DFSORT/ICEMAN/ICETOOL
SYNCSORT/SYNCTOOL
CASORT
Internal SORT in cobol by using SORT

Now what explanation do you need on these?
Why don't you have a look at manuals?
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mkk157

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PostPosted: Mon Apr 16, 2007 11:39 am
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Yes Sagar,

I am expecting the same. Please provide me the major difference between those sorts and in which situations they are suggested to use.
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agkshirsagar

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PostPosted: Mon Apr 16, 2007 1:01 pm
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This is from some previous topic raised a few months ago and answered by Frank. Thanks to him. icon_smile.gif
I had kept this in my personal archive.. icon_wink.gif
Quote:
DFSORT is a sort product sold by IBM.
SYNCSORT is a competing product sold by Syncsort, Inc.
CA-SORT is yet another sort product, sold by Computer Associates.

Obviously, most shops only buy one of these products.

ICEMAN is just another name (entry point) used for the sort program. It's common practice in shops for the system programmers to set up all the common names as entry points to their purchased SORT product. You will often find that PGM=SYNCSORT and PGM=DFSORT will both work in your shop, and both execute the same sort program (whichever one your shop purchased).

ICETOOL is an expansion to the basic SORT program, that allows you to use alternate (simpler) commands to do multiple sort operations in a single sort step. I think that ICETOOL doesn't do anything that you couldn't do via coding multiple DFSORT steps -- it just makes coding them a bit easier.

ICETOOL is supplied as part of the basic SORT package -- if you have DFSORT, you also have ICETOOL. Many people don't seem to realize this. And some troglydite managements don't understand this, and forbid use of ICETOOL in production, restricting programmers to only SORT steps. Such managements are fools (but, alas, not uncommon).

SYNCTOOL is Syncsort, Inc.'s version of the ICETOOL package.

All these are very similar products -- they all do basic sorting. And they use similar commands. For most basic sort operations, the same commands will work in all the products. When you get into more advanced functions, there are some differences between them -- some functions are only offered in one or the other product, and sometimes different syntax is used for the same operations.
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mkk157

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Joined: 17 May 2006
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PostPosted: Mon Apr 16, 2007 3:13 pm
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Thanks a lot Sagar for a quick reply.

Before this post I want to know just about the different sorts in mainframes and their uses. By going thru ur reply, I like to know much more about these sorts. Can u please provide me the related to links to become grip on all these sorts.
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expat

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PostPosted: Mon Apr 16, 2007 3:30 pm
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mkk157,

Have you never heard of google ???
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