In predict we have created a field with format AV (AlphaVar) with a length of 1000.
In the maintenance of the file this accepts no hassles.
My problem comes in when I try to generate the DDM.
It reverts the field back to format A (Alpha) with length 253. :x
On our site we are using Predict 4.5.2, Adabas 8 and Natural version 4.1.3
We do have a work around by changing the field to be a MU with a format A with length of 250 with 4 occurrences but this just seems wrong if the use of a format AV can be used.
That is correct. Natural 4.2 was enhanced to support all the Adabas 8 features, some of which were capabilities introduced with record sizes no longer being limited by block size. Unlimited alphas (CLOBs), BLOBs, outrageous MU/PE limits, etc are all part of that.
Your version of Predict supports Adabas 8 features, but your version of Natural does not.