Table 15-2: Format Characters for String Fields
Character Effect on Format
Single quotation mark ( ' ) Starts the string field and reserves a place for one character.
L (upper- or lowercase) Left-justifies the string and reserves a place for one character.
R (upper- or lowercase) Right-justifies the string and reserves a place for one character.
C (upper- or lowercase) Centers the string in the field and reserves a place for one character.
E (upper- or lowercase) Left-justifies the string; expands the field, as necessary, to print the entire
string; and reserves a place for one character.
Two backslashes ( \ \ ) Reserves n +2 character positions, where n is the number of spaces between
the two backslashes. PRINT USING left-justifies the string in this field.
This formatting character is included for compatibility with BASIC-PLUS.
DIGITAL recommends that you not use this type of field for new program
development.
Exclamation point ( ! ) Creates a 1-character field. The exclamation point both starts and ends the
field. This formatting character is included for compatibility with BASIC-
PLUS. DIGITAL recommends that you not use this type of field for new
program development. Instead, use a single quotation mark to create a
1-character field.