Scripting Guide - JMP

Chapter 2
JSL Building Blocks
Learn the Basic Components of JSL
JMP is scripted by a very simple language called JMP Scripting Language, or JSL. You might not need
to ever learn JSL, because almost every feature in the product is accessible through a direct user
interface, as well as through the scripting language. Even if you use JSL, you can usually get JMP to
write the scripts for you rather than typing them in yourself. JSL will be most useful to the power user
that wants to extend JMP past its normal operating realm, or for the production user who wants to
automate a regularly scheduled analysis.
JSL is used in many places in JMP internally.
• Column Formulas are implemented internally in JSL.
• Platforms are launched using JSL internally.
• Platforms are interactively modified using JSL internally.
• Some graphics are performed through JSL.
This chapter shows how to recognize valid JSL in terms of how the language is written in text. It covers
syntax. The next chapter, “JSL Operators,” p. 59, details many of the basic functions of JSL. The
chapter “Programming Functions,” p. 91, discusses how to write meaningful scripts that do something
useful. It covers semantics. First you have to learn how to write words and position commas and
operators. Then you learn what the words mean and how to use them.
Confusion alert! As you will learn in the section on logical operators, a single pipe
symbol (|) represents a logical OR. In the interests of brevity, programming and
scripting manuals commonly use a | to represent the word or when discussing
alternative values.
For example, a filepath can be either absolute or relative. So when we show an
argument to a filepath function as absolute|relative, this means that you enter
either absolute to indicate an absolute filepath, or relative to indicate a relative
filepath. More than two options can be strung together with an or pipe in this way.
So, when you see words separated with a |, read it as or.