sort_text_array_characters

The function sort_text_array_characters sorts the elements of a text array and stores the sorted elements in a second array.

sort_text_array_characters ( input;output;number of elements to sort )

The function sort_text_array_characters is of type BOOL, and has three parameters:

1. input; ARRAY of type TEXT. This array contains the elements that must be sorted.
2. output; ARRAY of type TEXT. This array will receive the sorted elements.
3. number of elements to sort; NUMBER. This is the number of elements in the array, which must be sorted starting from the first element. This can either be a number or a NUMBER variable or expression.

Return values

The function sort_text_array_characters will return TRUE if the array was sorted successfully, and FALSE in one of the following cases:

• If 'number of elements to sort' is negative or 0.
• If the function sort_text_array_characters fails the output array is unmodified.
  The input array is not modified by the function. The output array will receive the sorted values from the input array.
• If the output array is larger than the number of sorted elements, those elements outside the sorted range are left unmodified.
  The function sort_text_array_characters will perform a culture-neutral alphabetical sort on the text elements using Unicode codepoints.

Any word processor instructions in the text elements are included in the sort, and sort before regular characters.

Example

ARRAY TEXT input [4]
ARRAY TEXT output[4]
NUMBER i

ASSIGN input[1] := "c"		 
ASSIGN input[2] := "d"
ASSIGN input[3] := "a"
ASSIGN input[4] := "b"

IF sort_text_array_characters (input; output; 4) THEN
  FOR i FROM 1 UPTO 4
DO
#
@(i) @(output[i])
#
OD
ELSE
#
Failed to sort the input.
#
  STOP
FI

Here the fact that the sort_text_array_characters is a function of type BOOL is used to implement error handling. If the sort succeeds the return value of the function will be TRUE, the IF statement becomes TRUE, and the THEN part is executed. If the return is FALSE the ELSE part of the IF statement is executed.