Specifying the rectangular area

You define the rectangular area of text by specifying the row and column coordinates of opposite corners. The default values for these coordinates are (1,1) and (-1,-1), indicating the entire text area of the host terminal. For the significance of negative values such as -1,-1, see Significance of a negative value for a row or column. You can use an integer or any entity that evaluates to an integer (such as a variable, an arithmetic expression, or a call to an external Java™ method).

The rectangular area can be just large enough to contain the string, or much larger than the string. For example, suppose that the application screen that you want to match to the macro screen has the string 'Terminal and user parameters' in the rectangular area (6,20), (6,37). This rectangular area is exactly large enough to contain the string. If the application screen always has this string at this location, then you might specify the exact rectangular area.

However, suppose that the application screen that you want to match to the macro screen has the same string, 'Terminal and user parameters', located within it, but you cannot predict which row of the application screen will contain the string. In this case you could specify the rectangular area (1,1), (-1,-1), indicating that the macro runtime should search every row of the application screen for the identifying string.

For the string value you can use a string or any entity that evaluates to a string (such as a variable, an expression, or a call to an external Java method). The string must be in the form required by the macro format that you have chosen, either basic or advanced.

If the macro runtime finds the string within the rectangular block of text then the macro runtime evaluates this descriptor as true. Otherwise the macro runtime evaluates this descriptor as false.