Binding

The benefit of binding is that it helps reduce the overhead associated with call operations. Binding the modules together speeds up the call. The previous call mechanism is still available, but there is also a faster alternative. To differentiate between the two types of calls, the previous method is referred to as a dynamic or external program call, and the ILE method is referred to as a static or bound procedure call.

The binding capability, together with the resulting improvement in call performance, makes it far more practical to develop applications in a highly modular fashion. An ILE compiler does not produce a program that can be run. Rather, it produces a module object (*MODULE) that can be combined (bound) with other modules to form a single runnable unit; that is, a program object (*PGM).

Just as you can call an RPG program from a COBOL program, ILE allows you to bind modules written in different languages. Therefore, it is possible to create a single runnable program that consists of modules written separately in RPG, COBOL, C, C++, and CL.