Re: BYPASS 2000

At 12:42 PM 12/11/97 -0500, you wrote:
>Anyone using the IBM Marketed BYPASS2000 tool on RPG code?
>
>Would like to hear comments/praises/warnings.

After some deep searching, we have chose BYPASS2000 as our tool of choice,
and we have a project starting at a client now.

Problems:

1.      Until last week, it had no data analysis tool (i.e.:  look at your data,
and find the dates, regardless of what kind of field they are in).  IBM did
announce a product last week, but it was VERY expensive.  For data analysis
we are using a tool from Charlie Massoglia, which is still in the late
stages of beta testing.  It looks like it will do the job well, and for the
right price.  (Although if I were Charlie, and I saw IBM SpaceShuttle-like
pricing for their data analysis tool, I might raise my prices.)

2.      BYPASS is CPU intensive.  This is a good news/bad news story.  It's CPU
intensive because it does a very good job.  For example, it will trace the
occurrence of any date through a program (i.e.:  was it moved, z-added,
etc.).  If it finishes program 'a', and then analyzes program 'b', and
finds 'b' had a date field that was used as a parm in calling program 'a',
it will then re-analyze program 'a'.  The bad news is that this is
frustrating.  The good news is that it's the right way to do it.

3.      Last piece of bad news, the program is written by a vendor.  The last I
heard, IBM Toronto did not have a copy of the source code.  This news may
have changed, but if this is still the case, I think it represents fiscal
irresponsibility on the part of IBM.  (This is probably not the first
fiscally irresponsible thing that IBM has done.  Look how many smart people
that have pushed out in recent years.)  I will copy this note to Toronto,
so if I am wrong, it can be refuted.  My information about this is not
necessarily current.

Bottom line, we are committed to using the product.  BTW, there are loads
of vendors with 'products of choice' out there.  Some of the products are
better than others (some really suck), although we picked BYPASS.  It would
seem that most of their marketers all went to the ethics school for used
car salesmen.

Al




Al Barsa, Jr. - Account for Midrange-L
Barsa Consulting, LLC.  
400 > 390

Phone:  914-251-9400
Fax:    914-251-9406





Private mail should be sent to barsa@ibm.net
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