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→{{anchor|Consolidator}}Linkage editor: Phrase makes sentence harder to read, and belongs more in Mainframe page |
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One advantage of this is that it allows a program to be maintained without having to keep all of the intermediate object files, or without having to re-compile program sections that haven't changed. It also permits program updates to be distributed in the form of small files (originally [[card deck (computing)|card deck]]s), containing only the object module to be replaced. In such systems, object code is in the form and format of 80-byte punched-card images, so that updates can be introduced into a system using that medium. In later releases of OS/360 and in subsequent systems, load-modules contain additional data about versions of components modules, to create a traceable record of updates. It also allows one to add, change, or remove an [[overlay (programming)|overlay]] structure from an already linked load module.
The term "linkage editor" should not be construed as implying that the program operates in a user-interactive mode like a text editor. It is intended for batch-mode execution, with the editing commands being supplied by the user in sequentially organized files, such as [[punched card]]s, [[direct-access storage device|DASD]], or [[magnetic tape]]
''Linkage editing'' ([[IBM]] nomenclature) or ''consolidation'' or ''collection'' ([[International Computers Limited|ICL]] nomenclature) refers to the ''linkage editor's'' or ''consolidator's'' act of combining the various pieces into a relocatable binary, whereas the loading and relocation into an absolute binary at the target address is normally considered a separate step.<ref name="Barron_1978_Consolidator"/>
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