backwards compatibility
from the defining and using temp-tables chapter in the programming handbook
<quote>
Before you proceed, you should know that there is a variation on the temp-table supported in
Progress called a work-table. You use a DEFINE WORK-TABLE statement to define one. This is an
older feature that predates temp-tables and lacks some of their features. Most important, a
work-table is memory-bound, and you must make sure your session has enough memory to hold
all of the records you create in it. In addition, you cannot create indexes on work-tables. You
also cannot pass a work-table as a parameter between procedures. Although you could use a
work-table for an operation that needed to define a small set of temporary records that don’t
need a lot of memory and don’t need an index, it is better to think of work-tables as being fully
superseded by temp-tables. You should use the newer temp-tables for all of your temporary data
storage needs.
</quote>