MNOTE instruction

The MNOTE instruction generates your own error messages or displays intermediate values of variable symbols computed during conditional assembly.

The MNOTE instruction can be used inside macro definitions or in open code, and its operation code can be created by substitution. The MNOTE instruction causes the generation of a message that is given a statement number in the printed listing.


>>-+-----------------+--MNOTE--+-----------+-message-----------><
   '-sequence_symbol-'         +-severity,-+           
                               +-*,--------+           
                               '-,---------'

sequence_symbol

Is a sequence symbol.

severity

Is a severity code. The severity operand can be any decimal self-defining term, or a SETA variable symbol. The term must have a value in the range 0 through 255. The severity code is used to determine the return code issued by the assembler when it returns control to the operating system. The severity can also change the value of the system variable symbols &SYSM_HSEV and &SYSM_SEV (see &SYSM_HSEV System Variable Symbol and &SYSM_SEV System Variable Symbol).

message

Is the message text. It can be any combination of characters enclosed in apostrophes. The rules that apply to this character string are as follows:

Variable symbols are allowed. The apostrophes that enclose the message can be generated from variable symbols.
Two ampersands or two apostrophes are needed to generate an ampersand or an apostrophe. If variable symbols have ampersands or apostrophes as values, the values must be coded as two ampersands or two apostrophes.
If the number of characters in the character string plus the rest of the MNOTE operand exceeds 1024 bytes the assembler issues diagnostic message
```
ASMA062E Illegal operand format
```
Note: The maximum length of the second operand is three less than the maximum supported length of SETC character string.
Double-byte data is permissible in the operand field when the DBCS assembler option is specified. The double-byte data must be valid.
The DBCS ampersand and apostrophe are not recognized as delimiters.
A double-byte character that contains the value of an EBCDIC ampersand or apostrophe in either byte is not recognized as a delimiter when enclosed by SO and SI.