OS/400 V5R2 Is Ready, But Are You?
by Timothy Prickett Morgan

If you asked system administrators, MIS managers, and application programmers if they would rather upgrade their production server's operating system or be shot, the odds are that the next question many of these people would ask would be "Will the bullet hit vital organs, or will it just be a flesh wound?" Upgrading to the latest release, as many customers should be doing with OS/400 V5R2, is an emotional event even if it does not turn out to be a disaster like so many OS upgrades do. READ MORE >

Eclipse Consolidates Developer Tools
by David Morris

Historically, most developers on the iSeries have shunned full-featured integrated development environments (IDEs) in favor of PDM, SEU, and SDA. Quite a few of those developers are now considering or are actively developing Web-based applications. Web-based applications mix combinations of HTML, stylesheets, Java, JavaScript, and XML with RPG IV. For developers building those iSeries Web applications, SEU doesn't cut it and the hodgepodge of tools delivered with WebSphere Development Tools for iSeries (WDT) forced developers to move between tools such as CODE/400, WebSphere Studio, and VisualAge for Java. WebSphere Development Studio Client (WDSc) replaces WDT and all of its tools with a new IDE that is consistent, flexible, and fun-to-use. READ MORE >

V5R2 Integrates OS/400 More Tightly with Domino
by Kim Greene

We are accustomed to having enhancements to Domino come primarily from new releases of the Lotus Domino and Notes products. While this is the main vehicle for new functionality, there are times when changes in the operating system also benefit Domino. V5R2 provides more new options for Domino on iSeries than most new operating system releases. The enhancements range from changes in the Integrated File System (IFS) to tighter integration with OS/400 Web serving. The effect of these changes in OS/400 V5R2 is that Domino can now run better on OS/400 than it has in the past. READ MORE >

DB2 UDB Enhancements Will Impress iSeries Users
by David Morris

Database enhancements provide some of the most compelling reasons for iSeries shops to consider a V5R2 upgrade. Those enhancements touch on most areas of DB2 UDB for iSeries. For developers who use SQL to access data, V5R2 is a very exciting release with new functionality such as user-defined table functions (UDTFs), identity columns, and unions in a view. The performance-related changes include a new query optimizer, improved encoded vector index (EVI) builds, and a new index advisor that is part of iSeries Navigator. Beyond SQL and performance, other enhancements target journaling, independent Auxiliary Storage Pools (iASP) support, and data replication to other versions of DB2. READ MORE >

iSeries Apache Kicks It Up a Notch in V5R2
by Joe Hertvik

OS/400 V5R2 is the third OS/400 release to feature IBM's iSeries version of the open-source Apache Web server. IBM calls it the HTTP Server for iSeries (Powered by Apache), but it's also known as iSeries Apache. First released in December 2000 and currently at Apache V2.0.18 for V5R1, iSeries Apache is a rapidly maturing server that IBM has designated as its strategic HTTP Server. The new V5R2 release will add a variety of new features to the server. READ MORE >

iSeries Navigator: It's More Than Just a Name
by Chris Wilson

If V5R1 was a watershed for Operations Navigator, V5R2 can be considered icing on the cake. IBM continues to evolve the system GUI to make it a robust, easy-to-use interface for managing OS/400. To make it official, IBM renamed the product iSeries Navigator, reflecting its goal to perform all system functions compared to what you might historically categorize as systems administration. It's difficult to properly frame these improvements without comparing them to V5R1, which much of the iSeries market has yet to implement. So while I cover these improvements, you should consider moving to either client in order to fully realize the scope of the changes IBM has included in iSeries Navigator. Just remember that, like its V5R1 predecessor, some of these features require V5R2 of OS/400 as well. READ MORE >

Reader Feedback and Insights

We value your feedback and your insights into the OS/400 market. Feel free to drop us a letter to the editor and we will post them in a reader feedback column associated with this newsletter. READ MORE >