• Article Type: General
• Product: Aleph
• Product Version: 20

Description:
It seems that some ALEPH tables need to have an exclamation mark ("!") as the comment character (to indicate that the line should be ignored) and other tables need to have a pound-sign ("#"). Which are which?

Resolution:
Tables which are source-d into scripts/procedures need to use the pound-sign as the comment character. Tables which are read by ALEPH programs need to use the exclamation mark.

The following tables are in the former category: In $alephe_root: aleph_start_505 aleph_start_505.private oclc_server_defaults pc_server_defaults prof_alephe www_server_defaults any other file ending in "_server_defaults" In the xxxnn library $data_root: prof_library

Other tables (all $alephe_tab, $data_tab, and $data_root/pc_tab/catalog) are in the latter category and need to use the exclamation mark. If in doubt, look at lines in the table which are already commented out and see what character *they* are using. (Or look at the ./a50_5 version of the table.)

The inclusion of the "!" instead of the "#" in a table which is source-d into a script can make the script fail (that is, the pc_server, www_server, etc. will fail to start).