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Alex Woodie

Alex Woodie is Senior Editor at IT Jungle. He was previously editor of two of IT Jungle's main newsletters, Four Hundred Stuff and The Windows Observer. Prior to joining Midrange Server (as Guild Companies was formerly called) in October 2001, Alex was a products editor at now defunct publisher Midrange Computing, where he was first introduced to the AS/400 and covered hardware, software, and services for Midrange Technology SHOWCASE magazine. Before joining Midrange Computing, Alex was a staff writer for The Insurance Journal and a reporter and columnist with The Paradise Post newspaper. Woodie obtained his Bachelors of Arts degree in journalism from Humboldt State University in 1997. Upon graduation, Alex intended to make his way onto a major daily newspaper, but in 1999 he found himself drawn to the high-technology industry, where his background in science and engineering has suited him well. He lives in Northern San Diego County. When he is not writing next week's newsletters, Alex can be found in his favorite chair reading the day's paper, in the kitchen, or at the beach.

  • Beware The Hype Of Modern Tech

    April 25, 2022 Alex Woodie

    Many IBM i shops are under the gun to modernize their applications as part of a digital transformation initiative. If the app is more than 10 or 15 years old and doesn’t use the latest technology and techniques, it’s considered a legacy system that must be torn down and rebuilt according to current code. But there are substantial risks associated with these efforts – not the least of which that the modern method is essentially incompatible with the IBM i architecture as it currently exists. IBM i shops should be careful when evaluating these new directions.

    Amy Anderson, a modernization …

    Read more
  • ALL400s Survey Paints a Picture of IBM i Community

    April 20, 2022 Alex Woodie

    It’s been three years since John Rockwell ran an ALL400s survey, which he periodically ran several times before. At the urging of members of the IBM i community, Rockwell recently ran another survey, and he shared his conclusions with IT Jungle.

    At first glance, the results of the latest ALL400s survey, which includes responses from more than 600 people, shows what you might expect. For starters, we all know the IBM i community is getting older, with retirements looming for some. That shouldn’t come as a surprise. But as one drills down into the results themselves, a more nuanced …

    Read more
  • REPL Tool Gives RPG Developers Immediate Feedback

    April 20, 2022 Alex Woodie

    If you’ve ever wanted to quickly know what a small snippet of RPG code does but do not want to take the time to compile a test program and go through the debugging process, then you might be interested in rpgle-repl, a new open source Read-Evaluate-Print-Loop (REPL) utility that was recently shared with the IBM i community.

    Tom Sharp, a senior developer at a financial software provider in the UK, says he created rpgle-repl after receiving numerous requests from his colleagues about what particular pieces of RPG code actually did.

    “The first place to check would always be the IBM …

    Read more
  • Infor CM3 to Provide On-Prem Alternative to Cloudy M3

    April 20, 2022 Alex Woodie

    For years, Infor has been leading with the cloud when it comes to M3, the ERP system formerly known as Movex. But now, the software giant is readying a new hybrid deployment option called CM3 that will run in a Linux or Windows container and IBM i.

    Long before Infor completed its Lawson acquisition in April 2012 — even before Lawson finished its acquisition of Intentia in 2006 — plans were solidly in place to migrate the core RPG code underpinning the Movex suite to Java, thereby opening the software to run on platforms besides just IBM i, its historical …

    Read more
  • Top Five Failures In State of IBM i Security For 2022

    April 18, 2022 Alex Woodie

    HelpSystems last week officially unveiled its annual State of IBM i Security report, the 18th straight year for the series. Like with past reports, the 2022 version highlights some of the continuing challenges that IBM i customers face when trying to secure their systems. A few key areas stand out above the rest.

    The IBM i server is a bit of an enigma when it comes to security. While it is widely perceived to be one of the most secure computing platforms on the planet – and “virus-proof” to boot – the reality is that a good number of IBM …

    Read more
  • Connectria, Now A Top AWS Partner, Primed For Hybrid Push

    April 13, 2022 Alex Woodie

    Amazon Web Services has lots and lots of servers and storage — enough to supply the IT needs of more than 1 million customers around the world, including one rather large e-commerce site. The cloud giant also has more than 125,000 business partners helping it to scale out to meet those customer needs. Now, thanks to a recent promotion, IBM i hosting specialist Connectria won’t get lost in the AWS partnership jungle.

    Last week, Connectria announced that AWS has named it a Premier Consulting Partner, the highest echelon in the AWS Partner Network. With just 120 members, the move into …

    Read more
  • IBM Ships ACS Version 1.1.9.0

    April 13, 2022 Alex Woodie

    IBM this week delivered an update to Access Client Solutions (ACS), the popular Java-based utility that many IBM i professionals use to interact with the platform. IBM is delivering several enhancements with ACS version 1.1.9.0, some of which came through the request for enhancement (RFE) process. It also defaults to opening IBM’s new Navigator for i, rather than the old one, which is susceptible to the Log4j security vulnerability.

    ACS is the universal Java-based utility that IBM unveiled 10 years ago this August to replace older Client Access products, including the ones for Windows, Linux, and Mac. The software, which …

    Read more
  • Springing Anew: IBM i Tech Refresh Expected Soon

    April 13, 2022 Alex Woodie

    If you’ve been waiting for the spring IBM i Technology Refreshes, you’re not alone. We’re nearly a month into spring, but IBM has yet to embark upon the bi-annual pilgrimage of operating system enhancements. The good news is that the good news is nearly here.

    “Big IBM i Announcements Coming Soon,” Steve Will, the chief architect of IBM i, wrote in 22.5 point font on his “You and i” blog, which was recently resurrected on TechChannel, the online successor to the now-defunct IBM Systems Magazine, where his column ran for years.

    “It’s time to hint at things that …

    Read more
  • Cloud-Based Stock Optimization Solution Integrates With IBM i

    April 11, 2022 Alex Woodie

    Since COVID-19 struck two years ago, we have seemingly jumped from one supply chain problem to another. First, it was toilet paper and cleaning supplies that were flying off the shelves, then it was shortages of anything with a microchip. The shortage du jour: baby formula. Now a Georgia company called Thrive Technologies is using machine learning technology to help distributors stay on top of supply chain disruptions.

    Thrive Technologies has been developing inventory planning solutions since it was founded in 2001 by CEO Rick Morris. The company says it picks up the inventory slack where ERP solutions typically …

    Read more
  • Glimpsing Hope in the IBM i Security Situation

    April 6, 2022 Alex Woodie

    These are dark days in the security business, thanks to the boom in ransomware, the looming threat of cyberwar with Russia, and the poor security of IBM i servers. But just as it’s darkest before the dawn, there could be some preliminary indications that the IBM i community is finally starting to wake up when it comes to securing their most important applications, systems, and data.

    It’s hard to be optimistic in the face of repeated failures. When it comes to IBM i security, those failures have been well-documented in annual State of Security reports for nearly two decades by …

    Read more

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