EXPORT [ VIRTUAL ] definition

The EXPORT keyword explicitly allows other definitions to import the specified definition for use. It may be IMPORTed from code in any folder, therefore its visibility scope is global.

ECL code is stored in .ecl text files which may only contain a single EXPORT or SHARED definition. This definition may be a structure that allows EXPORT or SHARED definitions within their boundaries (such as MODULE, INTERFACE, TYPE, etc.). The name of the .ecl file containing the code must exactly match the name of the single EXPORT (or SHARED) definition that it contains.

Definitions without the EXPORT or SHARED keywords are local to the file within which they reside (see Definition Visibility). A local definition's scope is limited to the next SHARED or EXPORT definition, therefore they must precede that file's EXPORT or SHARED definition.

Example:

EXPORT MyDefinition := 5;
// allows other definitions to use MyModule.MyDefinition if they import MyModule
// the filename must be MyDefinition.ecl

//and in AnotherDef.ecl we have this code:
EXPORT AnotherDef := MODULE(x)
  EXPORT INTEGER a := c * 3;
  EXPORT INTEGER b := 2;
  EXPORT VIRTUAL INTEGER c := 3; //this def is VIRTUAL
END;

See Also: IMPORT, SHARED, Definition Visibility, MODULE Structure