The following topics describe InfoMan data sources:

• Executing AUTOIMAN
• Working With AUTOIMAN
• Master File Generation Facility in InfoMan

To access an existing table or view using the server, you must first describe it in a Master File and an Access File. The AUTOIMAN facility enables the creation and cataloging of Master Files and Access Files automatically. AUTOIMAN prompts you for Retrieval and Inquiry Information/Management Program Interface Data Table (PIDT) names, which are used to create the Master and Access Files.

The AUTOIMAN facility gives you the ability to do the following:

• Select fields to be incorporated into a Master File.
• Change the usage format, which determines the way data displays in a report, and how it is manipulated when making calculations for a report. This is useful for date fields and character fields that hold numeric data. For example, a priority field that has a usage format of A2 may be changed in AUTOIMAN to any integer format for summing or averaging purposes.
• Change the default field name to a unique and more meaningful field name. By default, AUTOIMAN suffixes a number (preceded by an underscore) to the Information/Management P-word to make it unique. AUTOIMAN makes it possible for you to overwrite this field name with a more meaningful name.

  Note: A P-word (prefix word) is a keyword used in a search argument that identifies which field in the database corresponds with the data being searched.