Reader Feedback on RPG Open Access Is No Panacea and As I See It: Depriving the Senses

May 3, 2010 Timothy Prickett Morgan

As you might have expected, IBM‘s decision to open up the RPG compiler and runtime to allow others to create custom data streams to other applications and devices has got a lot of people thinking and even more of them talking.

We told you all about Rational Open Access, RPG Edition two weeks ago, and then BCD Software and LANSA piped up with their opinion on ROA in last week’s issue. There’s been a lot of back and forth at the water cooler, on the newsgroups, and in the press about this, and it won’t subside any time soon is my guess.

Following is what a few readers had to say.

–TPM

I trust you will give Profound Logic, looksoftware, and VAI the opportunity to respond. This statement by BCD and LANSA is quite surprising given the fact that RPG developers have been begging IBM for years for a way to do just exactly what Open Access provides, especially when combined with the Profound Logic UI product. Full disclosure: I’m a Profound Logic RPGsp customer.

Is Open Access a panacea? Not likely, but it offers far, far more than “no practical use.” For the first time in many years my developers are excited!

I must admit, however, that I am confounded by why IBM handed the development of the GUI interface code to ISVs instead of doing it themselves. But it appears the ISV products and Rational Open Access have “reasonable” pricing. I don’t think this will be out of reach for most companies that use IBM i. This appears to be an elegant solution to the age-old problem of developing robust browser-based applications using RPG.

Time will tell what challenges this approach will present, but I can’t imagine how it could be any more challenging than the methods we have created to date.

–Gary

Nice piece. IBM i is going retro!

Too bad the product is not as nice as your article. I have no stake in the game anymore, but the game still looks the same. The IBM i All-Everything Operating System still has everything but a graphical user interface. As such it is like an huge all-powerful brain with no means of outward communications.

IBM has chosen again to pretend not to know what the small business market needs, so it justifies its reasons to not deliver. Instead of the most elegant and sophisticated operating system in the world being the most simple to use for a mom and pop shop to engage in complex computing and hardly notice, IBM keeps adding additional layers of incomprehensible intricacy. How many layers of products does it take now to send a simple application panel to the ubiquitous universal client, a.k.a., the Web browser? “Hello World” keeps getting tougher to write!

Sorry IBM, only large and/or sophisticated shops have the talent to engage your once user-friendly system for Web purposes. Perhaps some clever hacker of the future may invent a new CRT-type device in his garage that say, uses that spiffy 5250 green screen protocol. Perhaps it will catch on like the famous DEC VT 100 CRT line. Then, IBM i will have a natural place to send its information panels. In PC parlance, IBM will have to build no drivers to support the new UI device of the future.

Until then, IBM’s re-affirmed decision to have no user interface on its most sophisticated operating system assures it of one day being able to replace the mainframe in corporate America. I look forward to the days again when shops can get to close down for business for the weekend to generate a new user interface.

By then, it won’t matter. Perhaps it doesn’t matter now. I am not sure who will be around to cheer when Frank Soltis’ little marvel finally is so unintelligible that the mainframe establishment warmly accepts it. My small business clients are well on their way to Windows and most, when they get there, stop looking back!

–Brian

Industry pundit and i-vangelist Trevor Perry piped up in his Angus The IT Chap blog about the criticisms that BCD and LANSA have made about ROA outlined in our story. And as you might expect, Perry made some of his own criticisms of the criticisms.

Round Three coming up soon. I told you there would be possibilities. And one of those is that tool vendors and programmers end up bickering with each other for a while.

Victor Rozek struck another chord, rather than some nerves as he sometimes does, with his As I See It: Depriving the Senses in last week’s issue, which discussed the isolation and physical issues we face in an increasingly computerized world.

–TPM

Thanks for another insightful article. Note the correlation in the rise of digital dependence and the increase in the popularity of extreme sports, such as high-end skateboarding. It seems we have a bi-model distribution in society along this dimension, as we do along the economic, educational, and many other dimensions.

–Ed Poyer

Very good, agree 100-plus percent. My wife was just discussing her concern for this very type of thing yesterday, lack of personal contact in specific.

–Don

Victor, in the spirit of your article, I would much rather talk to you face to face over a refreshing beverage.

You’ve hit the nail on the proverbial head with this one. While ALL of your articles are excellent, insightful, and thought-provoking, this one has particular meaning for me.

In addition to my day/night job as an IT consultant with IBM, I also do a lot of mentoring/coaching on work and life, as well study/teach Tai Chi Chuan.

Sensing is everything.

Relaxation, alignment, and balance are the keys to success.

Thank you once again for a very useful article, and for the reminder.

–Mike

Woe be to me who works with computers on a daily basis AT A BANK!! Luckily, I have a whole yard full of physical distractions to deter me from spending too much time inside during my off-work hours. However, I still find myself in a constant battle with the “belly beast.” Thanks for the article(s).

–Kevin

RPG Gets Custom Data Streams with Open Access

The Possibilities for Open Access for RPG

Profound Delivers First RPG Open Access ‘Handler’

RPG Open Access Spurs Development for looksoftware

IBM Officially Announces i/OS 7.1

As I See It: Depriving the Senses

                     Post this story to del.icio.us
               Post this story to Digg
    Post this story to Slashdot

Tags: Tags: mtfh_rc, Volume 19, Number 17 -- May 3, 2010

Best Practices for Doing IBM i Cloud Backup & DRaaS Right

In the technology business for 30+ years including more than a decade in cloud backup and disaster recovery, we’ve learned a few things along the way. Here are best practices to follow – and land mines to avoid.

RELIABILITY. Up to 71% of restores from tape contain failures.

BEST PRACTICE: Use disk-to-disk technology for backups.

With disk-to-disk technology, your backup data resides on disk drives, proven to be far more reliable than tapes. When your backup completes, you know the data is secure and accessible on the disk drive. With tapes you never really know if your data is usable until you try to restore it, at which point it’s too late.

BREADTH OF OFFERING. Choice in product and service offerings meet your business’ needs.

BEST PRACTICE: Don’t settle for less than what you need.

Vendor offerings vary widely. Some are designed primarily for consumers and others for enterprise data centers. Choose a solution that scales and offers the features you need to provide the level of service you expect. De-duplication and delta-block technologies will improve performance, reduce your data footprint and save you money. Find out if their de-duplication offering is at the file level or the block level. Make sure the solution can back up servers, PCs, and laptops as well your applications.

SECURITY. 60% of organizations using tapes don’t encrypt their backups.

BEST PRACTICE: End-to-end encryption with no “back door.”

Using encryption with tape makes backups run slowly and often takes too long to fit within a backup window. As a result, most people simply turn encryption off, creating a security risk. Even with the physical safety of disk-to-disk backup, encryption is essential. Look for 256-bit AES. Find a solution that encrypts your data during transmission and storage. Make certain there isn’t a “back door” that would let someone else view your data.

ACCESSIBILITY. Companies waste thousands of hours waiting on tapes.

BEST PRACTICE: Ensure that you can get your data back with minimal delay.

You should have direct access to your backups, with no time spent on physical transport (no trucks, no warehouses). Restores should take minutes, not hours or days. Set yourself up to work with your data, not wait for it. Make sure your solution provider can meet your Return-to-Operations (RTO) and Recovery Point Objectives (RPO) which determine how quickly you can recover your data and maintain business continuity. Inquire about onsite and offsite replication that provide both improved performance and a solid disaster recovery strategy.

CYBER SECURITY. More than 80 percent of U.S. companies have been successfully hacked, according to a Duke University/CFO Magazine Global Business Outlook Survey.

BEST PRACTICE: Regular cyber security training and phishing tests for all employees using company email are essential to your organization.

Your end-users are the weak link in your network security. Today, your employees are frequently exposed to advanced phishing attacks. Trend Micro reported that 91% of successful data breaches started with a spear-phishing attack. Be sure your vendor of choice includes cyber security training as part of their backup and DR package.

SCALABILITY. Some backup systems can’t scale readily.

BEST PRACTICE: Invest in a data protection architecture that can grow with your business.

You should be able to back up your data no matter how large it grows. Starting small? Look for an option that handles your backups automatically. Then, as you grow, gives you tools to manage complex environments. Look for “changes-only” and compression technologies to speed backups and save space. And insist on bandwidth throttling to balance traffic and ensure network availability for your other business applications. Make sure that their solution offerings rely on common technology to scale easily as your business––and data––grow.

COST-EFFECTIVENESS

BEST PRACTICE: Calculate the true total cost of tape-based back up.

A 2019 Server OS Reliability Survey found that one hour of downtime costs at least $100K for 98% of companies to over $5 million for 34% of surveyed companies. When you do the math, the dollars make sense: Go with disk-to-disk. Unlike tape, there are close to zero handling costs—no rush deliveries, loading, accessing, locating, or repeated steps. And there’s one benefit you can’t factor directly: Reputation. Reliability and security can make an incalculable difference with just one avoided breach or failure.

COMPLIANCE. Most companies have problems satisfying privacy, security, and data retention regulations.

BEST PRACTICE: Choose a data protection partner who has deep know-how about compliance, and the technology to ensure it.

Disaster Recovery. Most companies lack a comprehensive, tested plan for disasters.

BEST PRACTICE: Find a vendor that delivers a complete DR solution.

You can’t say your data protection is complete until you have a disaster recovery plan that is itself complete and tested. Your backup vendor should have both the product mix and professional services team to help you prepare for a worst-case scenario. Make sure they can help configure your backups so you rebound quickly. Best bet: A vendor who can train you to deal with disasters confidently, based on your company’s actual configuration.

EASE OF USE. Some companies don’t —or can’t—manage their backups from one place.

BEST PRACTICE: Get control and reporting you can use anywhere, with ease. Managing your backup environment should be simple, and the software you use should eliminate any guesswork that could lead to lost data. You should know at all times if your data is protected across your entire network—including remote offices—by simply looking at a dashboard. The software should be simple to configure using wizards, yet powerful enough to meet your specific needs with customizable views, job propagation, and roles-based security.

OPERATING SYSTEM AND PLATFORM SUPPORT. Most backup vendors support a limited range of OS, server types, and applications.

BEST PRACTICE: Look for broad and deep technology that supports your complete environment. Your backup solution should accommodate your environment, not vice versa.

CUSTOMER SUPPORT. Backup vendors’ product support varies widely.

BEST PRACTICE: Find a vendor whose support is passionate, maybe even slightly obsessed. Customer support should be one of your vendor’s main selling points. You shouldn’t have to wonder if they’ll be there to help when you need them most. Do they offer phone support or email only, and who exactly are you talking to when you call that 800 number? Find a vendor that will treat your data as if it were their own.

REPUTATION. Does your backup vendor have a quality reputation and the financial resources to stay in business for the long haul?

BEST PRACTICE: Find a vendor with strong financial backing and customer references. There are a lot of vendors that have come and gone. When you consider a service provider, look for one that has strong financial backing, a solid business plan and the ability to be in business as long as your data needs to be stored. Ask for customer references and case studies as their customers are the best validation you can get.

Visit VAULT400.com/proposal to receive a FREE analysis and proposal

DOWNLOAD SOLUTIONS BRIEF:
Best Practices for IBM i Cloud Backup & Recovery

DURING THIS UNPRECEDENTED TIME, DON’T WAIT FOR YOUR BUSINESS
TO SUFFER A DISASTER TO TAKE ACTION.

Serving the US, Canada, & Latin America

VAULT400 Cloud Backup & DRaaS is an IBM Server Proven Solution.

800.211.8798 | info@ucgtechnologies.com| ucgtechnologies.com/cloud

To the First Responders serving on the front-lines during the COVID-19 pandemic,
we extend our heartfelt gratitude.