|
But Wait, There's More. . . .
One of the highlights at this week's COMMON midrange show and exposition will be an advanced
OS/400-Windows clustering project recently completed by WESCO Aircraft, based in Valencia, California.
This is also the stomping grounds of our partner, DLB
Associates, which was the IBM business partner and
designer of the integrated solution that WESCO has installed, which has cut server administration costs by
50 percent.
WESCO started out with an AS/400 S20 server supporting the OneWorld ERP suite from J.D. Edwards and 31 Windows servers of various vintages. The
company wanted to build a server infrastructure that would allow it to grow over the next couple of years as
painlessly as possible, to make its servers more reliable, and to support OneWorld on the iSeries and Microsoft SQL Server and Exchange on Windows 2000
servers, which also provide print and file capabilities for employees. In addition, the company wanted to
have a separate machine that allowed developers to have access to production environments, but allowed
them to play on a separate iSeries machine. To that end, DLB Associates advised WESCO to install a
Model 830 for development, with two logical partitions, which is clustered through OS/400's raw clustering
capabilities to a Model 840 that is used to host the OneWorld applications. (Bidwell says that you do not
need third-party high-availability clustering software to cluster two OS/400 machines.) The 31 Windows
servers were consolidated down to eight xSeries 350 servers, which attach to the iSeries through Integrated
xSeries Adapter cards. The OS/400 machines have been configured with Independent Auxiliary Storage
Pools (iASPs), which made their debut with OS/400 V5R1. Because the iSeries is in control of the storage
on all Windows servers, and because OS/400 has better and faster archiving technologies than that which is
available for Windows servers, administering those Windows servers is a lot easier.
Profound Logic Software will this week
take the wraps off a new iSeries application development Web site that helps programmers develop applets
that link their green-screen applications running on OS/400 to Windows applications and files or Web
applications. Developers create an account on the iSeriesLink Studio site, located at www.iserieslink.com, and then use that site to develop their
OS/400-Windows or OS/400-Web linking applets. The iSeriesLink site stores these applets, which are
based on Microsoft Visual Basic, and when
customers are satisfied that they work, they can compile them and create Windows executable files that
reside on Windows workstations or servers. Profound Logic says that applets created using the iSeriesLink
site do not need to load anything on their OS/400 servers for these applets to run. The site can interface
with all the popular terminal emulation programs from IBM, NetManage, Better On-line Solutions, and others. Profound Logic is looking for
early users to give it insight into how to improve the iSeriesLink development site, and it is also trying to
come up with a pricing model to charge for the service. Developers can play around with the site for free;
charges are only incurred for applications that are put into a production environment.
We told you a couple of weeks ago that IBM had
gone to rival disk maker Seagate Technology for at
least some of its 35.2 GB disk drives, which are new features to the iSeries line as of mid-February. We
have been unable to confirm if IBM is using its own UltraStar disks in these new features, but the buzz in
the industry is that IBM is, in fact, not using any of its own disk drives in these new iSeries features. We
have also recently learned that IBM is using Seagate's Cheetah drives in its 17.54 GB disk drives for iSeries
and AS/400 servers. Another tidbit: We told you a few weeks ago that IBM might be buying 73 GB
Cheetah 73LP drives from Seagate and formatting them down to 35 GB for the iSeries. We've been told
that Seagate is offering these drives in a 35 GB capacity (although its online spec sheets do not say this)
and that this is the 10K RPM drive that IBM is using in its new 35.2 GB iSeries disks.
It is still unclear if IBM has released to its own server
customers the firmware updates for UltraStar disk drives that have been available to its OEM customers of
Technology Group since the end of last year. But just so you know, according to one OEM customer that
we spoke to, the UltraStar 36LZX 10K RPM disk should be at the SA2A OEM firmware level in order to
be rock-solid. This OEM customer also says that the S5BS firmware level for the UltraStar 73LZX 10K
RPM disk and the S80C firmware level for the UltraStar 36Z15 15K RPM disk are the latest, greatest
updates Technology Group has put out. If IBM is solely using Seagate Technology drives in its iSeries 35.2 GB disk features, there
is no need to worry about these patches. IBM has not yet shipped a 73 GB disk for the iSeries.
Two former employees of PowerTech
Group have formed their own iSeries security consulting practice. Last week, Carol Woodbury and
John Vanderwall announced their immediate departure from PowerTech to found SkyView Partners, a Seattle, Washington, company that
seeks to work with IBM business partners and AS/400
and iSeries users to create OS/400 security policies and practices. Woodbury, a former IBM engineer, who
worked as the AS/400's security architect in the Rochester, Minnesota, labs for 10 years before joining
PowerTech, in September 1999, will provide the technological expertise at the fledgling firm and steer it as
president and CEO. Vanderwall, who has years of experience in sales, marketing, and business
development with a variety of midrange ISVs, including WRQ, will supply SkyView the business know-how as its COO. For
more information about SkyView Partners, visit www.skyviewpartners.com.
NetManage last week announced the
immediate availability of RUMBA 7.1, the latest release of the company's host access software for iSeries,
zSeries, and Unix servers. Chief among the new enhancements is Microsoft certification for running the NetManage connectivity
software on Windows XP and Windows 2000 PCs. Other enhancements shipped with RUMBA 7.1 include
new tools for running scripts developed for other NetManage host access products, such as Host/Unix Link
and ViewNow scripts, on RUMBA; migration wizards for upgrading other NetManage host access
products to RUMBA; an install shield wizard for customizing RUMBA installations for groups of users;
improved file transfer capabilities; and security enhancements.
|
Sponsored
By
CLIENT SERVER DEVELOPMENT |
|
LEARN SQL FROM
THE SQL EXPERT
Howard F. Arner, Jr.
Buy your copy of iSeries and AS/400 SQL at Work direct from the author, Howard F. Arner, Jr. This is THE book to teach you SQL on the iSeries and AS/400 platform.
Howard takes you from the beginning of the book to the end with information that is useful for beginners and experts alike. The book comes with a CD that has all of the sample data and queries used in the book and a FREE copy of SQLThing that you can use to work through the examples in the book, so you learn by doing.
With Howard's expert guidance, you'll learn and understand many topics, including the following:
- Relational Concepts and Terms
- SQL Select Basics
- Manipulating Data in SQL Tables
- Advanced Select Statements
- Cursors, Transactions, Journals, and Logging
- Debugging SQL Statements and Enhancing Performance
- Stored Procedures
- Embedded SQL in RPG
Howard F. Arner, Jr., is a programmer who has published extensively on integration of AS/400 legacy systems. In his book, iSeries and AS/400 SQL at Work, Howard provides detailed coverage of SQL for business environments by using practical examples--available on the CD--to be performed by the reader. More advanced chapters teach how to become proficient in industry-standard SQL to manipulate AS/400 data, use scalar functions to summarize data, and make legacy RPG and COBOL programs AS/400-compatible. This is the perfect guide for beginners and advanced SQL users.
Here's what readers are saying about iSeries and AS/400 SQL at Work by Howard F. Arner:
Anyone working with AS/400 query should look into buying this book. Now using AS/400 query seems a little odd and very cumbersome. His writing is laid out very well and is easy to read. While reading this, I felt that he was actually there explaining the chapters to me as a one-on-one instructor. -- Jonathan Tripp, Deerfield Beach, Florida
If you wondered how to call AS/400 programs from your Visual Basic program correctly, this book is your one source for how to do so. It's the first book on the market that answered all of my client/server questions when I deal with PC to AS/400 programming tasks.
Not only does Howard do a good job of explaining how stored procedures work, but he gives some great coding examples on how to get you up and running correctly. Howard goes the extra mile and talks about performance, too--one thing that normally is lacking in many other books . -- Bob Butcher, Sidney, New York
Take your knowledge and understanding of SQL to the next level. Order your copy at SQLThing.com.
|
|
|
 |
|
