This is the most complex of the panels available. This panel will allow the programmer to define all data objects for use in the program. The panel is divided into two areas-a viewing/selection area and an editing area. The viewing selection area consists of a table with six columns. These columns correspond to the different properties of defined data objects. Each row represents a single data object. Please note that if no data objects are defined, this table will be blank. The columns are fairly straightforward in their meanings as stated below:

Icon: This is the visual identifier that encapsulates the type and structure of the data object. Below are the types of each icon:

"T" : character

"#" : integer

Flag : label

Monitor : display

Keyboard : input

Block with an "R" on one side: register

If there are small squares in two of the four corners of the icon, this means that the structure of the data object is an array. If these small squares are not present in the icon, then the structure of the data object is single value as shown above.

Name: This is the unique name for the data object. See General >> Overview for rules for naming data objects.

Type: This column represents the type of the data object. The types available for selection are Character, Integer, and Label.

Restriction: This represents the restriction of the data object that can be Constant or Variable. If the type is Label, then the restriction will automatically be set to None.

Structure: The structure of the data object is listed here. The selections available are Single Value or Array. Again, if the type is Label, then None will automatically be assigned to this data object.

Size: If the data object is not an Array, the size will automatically be set to the size of the data type. Here, Character is 1 byte, Integer is 4 bytes, and Label is 0 bytes (remember, the Label is more of a marker than a data object; data object is merely used to maintain consistency). If the structure of the data object is an Array, then the size of the Array will be multiplied by the type size to obtain the total size of the data object.

The bottom portion of the panel is the editing area. The programmer can either enter a data object definition from scratch or select a row from the table and edit the properties of the data object for that table row. The fields named Name, Type, Structure, and Restriction all correspond directly to table columns. Another field named Array Length determines the length of the array whose value will be multiplied by the type value to obtain the value in the Size column of a data object row. The Literal Value field is used when the object being entered has a constant restriction. At the bottom is a field called Description where the programmer can enter a text description of the data object.

Specifying literal values is fairly straightforward. For specifying literal values other than integer arrays, please see the section on General >> Overview for more information. If the programmer is entering values for a constant, integer array, it is necessary to precede the first array element with an opening curly brace "{", separate all valid integer values with a comma, and follow the last array element with a closing curly brace "}". For example, if the programmer wanted to define a constant, integer array with four elements, the literal value would be the following: { 1, -2, 3, -4 }. Spacing is not relevant except for negative numbers, where the negative sign must immediately precede the first digit in the number.

At the very bottom of the panel are action buttons named Add, Modify, Delete, Clear, and Help. Below is a description of the use and functionality of each button:

Add: Enter the properties in the editor part of the panel and press the Add button to add the data object defined in the editor portion of the panel to the list of defined data objects. The name of the data object must be unique.

Modify: Select a row from the table or type in the name of an existing data object and press the Modify button to modify one or more properties of the data object listed. All of the instructions where the data object is used will be modified. If the modified data object is not valid in the instruction(s) that it is used, then errors will occur in the program.

Delete: Select a row from the table and press the Delete button to remove the data object from the list of defined data objects. Once the data object is deleted, its name may be reused as another data object. All of the instructions where the data object is used will be deleted, thereby causing errors in the program.

Clear: Press the Clear button to delete the contents of all fields in the editor portion of the panel.

Help: Bring up the help information for this panel.