Some computer memories are organized so that natural addressing boundaries exist in the computer memory (for example, word boundaries, half-word boundaries, byte boundaries). The way in which data is stored need not respect these natural boundaries.
However, certain uses of data (for example, in arithmetic operations or in subscripting) can be facilitated if the data is stored so as to be aligned on these boundaries. Specifically, additional machine operations in the run-time element can be repeated for the accessing and storage of data if portions of two or more data items appear between adjacent natural boundaries, or if certain natural boundaries divide a single data item.
Data items which are aligned on these natural boundaries in such a way as to avoid additional machine operations are defined to be synchronized. A synchronized item is assumed to be introduced and carried in that form; conversion to synchronized form occurs only during the execution of a statement (other than READ or WRITE) which stores data in the item.
Synchronization can be accomplished in two ways:
By use of the SYNCHRONIZED clause, the use of special types of alignment within a group can affect the results of statements in which the group is used as an operand. The effect of the implicit FILLER and the semantics of any statement referencing these groups is described later in this chapter.