My thanks to askSam Systems staff for their quick response to my bug report
-- but perhaps it was a bit too quick. I have downloaded version 3.0 L,
and discovered that one characteristic of field length limiting is still
not quite right -- or, at least, is not as it used to be before version K
was released.

According to the askSam manual (p. 11-18 in the 3.0 User's Guide), when
you use the field length limit feature (field name followed by a series
of pluses), the output should run from the beginning of the field name to
the last "+" (plus sign). Unless I'm doing something wrong, it is my
observation that the output is truncated before it gets to the tab
position set by that last plus sign.

I'm using a non-proportional font (10 pt. Courier New), so I have been
able to measure the amount of shortening. It seems to vary from about 25%
to 33% less than what the length of the output should theoretically measure.

Here's an actual example from our database, first showing the way the
field is listed in the report layout editor, and secondly showing the
actual output. Note that the field should be 43 characters long (using a
non-proportional font), but winds up outputting only the first 32
characters. (Note also that I'm using a colon as the field delimiter.)

Log:+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Bibliography - Locate 1923 holdi

This "truncation effect" is particularly annoying when you are trying to
display several fields on each row of output. It results in wide sections
of wasted space between each field. Is there help available for this
problem? Thanks.

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Glenn Kersten, Research Librarian                       Phone 630/734-5110
Suburban Library System Reference Service               Fax 708/532-4771
17101 S. 71st Ave, Tinley Park, IL 60301                Eschew obfuscation.
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