...
...
...
… like Cobol files with dynamic definitions, for example.
Source stages accept source data, whether read from persistent storage or delivered in-memory, like a Kafka or MQSeries streaming source, and converts it to a 'virtual dataset': a table-based representation of the source data represented using one or more DataStage datatypes. Sometimes this virtual dataset needs more processing before its data become useful. For example, a source stage can generate a 'clob' of data in a single table cell which requires other stages (such as the pivot or hierarchical stages) to convert into a usable table of rows-and-columns which can be processed by other DataStage stages.
...