ProData Shares the Source with RPG IV Templates

by Alex Woodie

ProData Computer Services got its start 28 years ago migrating System/3s to System/38s. Along the way, the S/38 evolved into the iSeries, and ProData's founders learned a couple of tricks and wrote a few programs, such as Data Base Utility (DBU), that allowed them to serve their customers better. Over time, the Omaha, Nebraska, company started selling its software, always providing the source code. This month, the company has issued its latest batch of programmer productivity tools, RPGIV Templates.

RPGIV Templates is a suite of 15 programs, with accompanying source code, that provides basic functionality, such as basic file maintenance, inquiry, and error-handling, as well as more complex subfile processing programs. In addition to providing these basic functions, ProData intends the programs in RPGIV Templates to serve as a series of templates from which programmers at small development shops can to learn to write solid RPG IV code.

With the File Maintenance program in RPGIV Templates, programmers can browse through records in add, change, delete, or inquiry mode. ProData says another program, Work with Subfile, can be used as a prompt screen for returning values to a program, or as an interface to the File Maintenance and Inquiry programs. This template program allows users to set a starting position, load the subfile one page at a time, and page through the file.

With the Subfile Maintenance program, programmers can maintain records without having to call additional programs, because the records can be updated directly from the initial subfile screen, ProData says. This program actually offers two types of subfile maintenance. Multiple Entry Add allows programmers to enter an entire screen of new records, while Single Entry Add mode allows programmers to add new records from the initial subfile screen, and to view them after each entry.

RPGIV Templates is the second such compilation ProData has issued in the past year. In May, the company released ProTools, a collection of 18 utilities, including a calculator, the capability to e-mail from green screens and batch modes, and other handy programs. ProData says to expect more software suites that package the company's knowledge and tools.

Marion Wamsat, who co-founded and co-owns ProData along with Allen Hartley, says ProData has been using the programs in RPGIV Templates for years. "With RPGIV Templates, we are sharing our experience and the source code behind some of the applications we have developed over the years," Wamsat said.

RPGIV Templates is available now and can be packaged with ProData's CvtRPGIV, for companies that want to convert older RPG programs to the latest version. A license for RPGIV Templates costs $750. For more information, go to www.prodatacomputer.com.

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