TFH Volume: 27 Issue: 72 Archives

Functionality Trumps Glitz in ERP Decision

November 1, 2017 Alex Woodie

What do you look for in a new ERP system? For the folks at Veterinary Purchasing Company, which is transitioning away from its homegrown S/36-era ERP system, the decision came down to a preference for proven substance over hollow glamor.

Veterinary Purchasing Company is a member-owned company that was founded in 1972 by a group of veterinarians who wanted to increase their purchasing power by buying in bulk on the wholesale market. The company, which employs about 210 people at its headquarters in St Mary, Ontario, also sells to non-shareholder vets and animal hospitals across Canada.

In the mid-1970s, VP …
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IBM i Vendor Breaks Into Gartner Magic Quadrant

November 1, 2017 Dan Burger

Finding an IBM i software vendor in the Gartner Magic Quadrant is sort of like finding a four-leaf clover. It doesn’t happen very often and it feels like a lucky day when you do. Last week, ARCAD Software made it into the coveted quad in the Application Release Automation category.

ARCAD, which considers DevOps the centerpiece of its software business, has expanded from what was once a more narrowly defined application change management software developer servicing the IBM midrange market. The IBM i customer base still represents 95 percent of ARCAD’s business; however, its software support has expanded to include …
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Indian Firm Takes Over Notes/Domino Development

November 1, 2017 Alex Woodie

The Indian IT services company HCL Technologies will have a big say in the future of IBM’s Notes/Domino and be relied upon to develop the next major release of the collaboration software due in 2018, Big Blue announced last week.

IBM announced the “strategic partnership” with the $7 billion New Delhi firm October 25 in a blog post on its website. The deal to outsource development work to HCL Technologies shows IBM’s “level of commitment to stakeholders,” writes Inhi Cho Suh, the general manager of IBM Collaboration Solutions. “The goal of the partnership is to drive future development of the …
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Four Hundred Monitor, November 1

November 1, 2017 Dan Burger

Most IBM i shops are comfortable being one or two releases behind the latest IBM i operating system. But for those on i 7.1, it’s time to plan your next move. If you are on something older than 7.1, you should be drinking stronger coffee. You may have your reasons for staying where you are, but in this issue of Monitor we’re pointing you to some reasons to upgrade.

We also have an article that will get under the skin of relational database advocates, plus some Watson integration with IBM i insights, and a link to an IBM i video …
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IBM i PTF Guide, Volume 19, Number 43

November 1, 2017 Doug Bidwell

Hold onto your Halloween candy, there are new cumes on IBM i 7.2 and 7.3! You are going to need some sugar. And there is a formal announcement of the new Tech Refreshes, which we announced last week. The corresponding group (SF99717 for V7R2 and SF99727 for V7R3) can now be ordered. Yeah, those numbers are correct, one off for ease of remembering.

This week we also have:
- New Backup and Recovery and Performance Tools groups for all three supported releases
- New DB2 groups for 7.2 and 7.3
- New WAS V8.0 groups for 7.2 and 7.1.
Also, keep an eye …
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Functionality Trumps Glitz in ERP Decision

IBM i Vendor Breaks Into Gartner Magic Quadrant

Indian Firm Takes Over Notes/Domino Development

Four Hundred Monitor, November 1

IBM i PTF Guide, Volume 19, Number 43

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