ALLOCATE fspec, blks

ALLOCATE creates a random file.

Parameters

fspec is file specification in native or AMOS format. If no extension is given, the default is .DAT. To create a file with no extension, terminate the filespec with a single period (".").

blks specifies the size of the file in 512 byte "blocks". Modern disks typically have much larger physical blocks sizes, so the 512 byte unit used here is just a historical hold-over from AMOS.

Comments

Random files must be created before they can be opened. In contrast, a sequential file is created automatically when it is opened for output.