From: arne@vajhoej.dk   
      
   On 11/20/2025 6:07 PM, Lawrence D’Oliveiro wrote:   
   > On Tue, 18 Nov 2025 09:19:35 -0500, Arne Vajhøj wrote:   
   >   
   >> On 11/18/2025 2:25 AM, Lawrence D’Oliveiro wrote:   
   >>>   
   >> The language compiler does not see any embedded SQL - the embedded SQL   
   >> pre-processor outputs plain Cobol (or C or whatever).   
   >>   
   >>>         So your code ends up being non-portable   
   >>   
   >> If the SQL used is database specific, then it only works with that   
   >> database.   
   >   
   > It’s quite common to have applications in a range of languages   
   > all accessing the same database.   
   >   
   > It’s not so common to have different compilers for what is supposed to   
   > be the same language, require different syntax for embedding that SQL.   
      
   Sounds true.   
      
   But does not have anything to do with the fact that one the most   
   common ways to make embedded SQL non-portable between databases   
   is to use database specific SQL.   
      
   >> Then you just need to wrap it.   
   >>   
   >> Cobol: EXEC SQL ... END-EXEC   
   >   
   > But there is no standard in COBOL for how to do this wrapping.   
      
   As explain two times, the the Cobol compiler does not see those.   
      
   But people does not have any problems putting EXEC SQL in front   
   of their SQL and END-EXEC after.   
      
   >>> And iterators, so you don’t have to retrieve the entire query   
   >>> result set into memory at once, you can pull in just as much as you   
   >>> can deal with at once.   
   >>   
   >> That works fine in old languages as well.   
   >   
   > Those old languages don’t have iterators.   
      
   They still fetch rows conceptually one at a time (on the wire   
   likely in small bundles).   
      
   That does not require an iterator.   
      
   In fact many database API's does not even have the option   
   of fetching all rows into memory.   
      
   Arne   
      
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