Control characters are used to move around the screen, but are sel- dom needed. If a mistake is made, inp beeps and the cursor returns to the error line. In update mode, the cursor moves to the first specified entry field and may be programmed to skip or duplicate fields automatically, so only the minimum of data keystrokes are necessary. The decode feature reassures operators learning new codings that they have indeed learned correctly, and is very useful in query mode to elucidate the data for people less familiar with the codes. They easily become a part of the entry sequence.
Nothing happens to the record until a command and the escape key are entered.
The whole record is validated again before it is written. Messages appear on the bottom three lines to ack- nowledge correct seeks and writes, explain errors, etc. Data validation is very extensive. There are over twenty validation types including two which are used to specify arbitrary lists or ranges of values. A decode table may also be specified as the valid value list.