RE: v4 vs v5 rpg. was Prototypes, /COPY and LIKE()

-----Original Message-----
From: rpg400-l-bounces@xxxxxxxxxxxx
[mailto:rpg400-l-bounces@xxxxxxxxxxxx]On Behalf Of Hans Boldt
Sent: Wednesday, August 13, 2003 3:08 PM
To: rpg400-l@xxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: Re: v4 vs v5 rpg. was Prototypes, /COPY and LIKE()


Steve Richter wrote:
> -----Original Message-----
> From: rpg400-l-bounces@xxxxxxxxxxxx
> [mailto:rpg400-l-bounces@xxxxxxxxxxxx]On Behalf Of Buck
> Sent: Wednesday, August 13, 2003 11:49 AM
> To: rpg400-l@xxxxxxxxxxxx
> Subject: Re: Prototypes, /COPY and LIKE()
>
>
>
>>>You have to get a laugh at the hypocracy of IBM however.
>>>On the one hand they say that RPG is dead,
>
>
>>Citation, please?  I have never heard IBM say RPG is dead; exactly the
>>opposite.
>> --buck
>
>
> You cite first!  Because of the conspiracy, there will not be any IBMers
on
> the record stating that RPG is history.
>
> A proc centered rpg makes features like a static free rpg very doable.
Once
> rpg or its derivative is static free, then the language can be thread
> capable, can handle exceptions better, ...  The point being that there are
a
> lot of ways that rpg can be improved.  Yet, there are no v4 to v5 like
> improvements planned.
>
> What is the current year IBM r/d budget for rpg?  what was it 5 yrs ago?

Huh?

(rubs eyes in disbelief)

LOL!

This is hilarious! So a possible reduced rate of RPG enhancements
means RPG is dead? So we not only have to continue to enhance the
language, but do so at an *increased rate* to demonstrate that RPG
is not dead?

Thanks Steve, you really made my day!

Cheers! Hans
------------------------------------------------------------------------

To quote Woody Allen, a programming language is like a shark.  It either
continues to move forward or it dies.

The current state of the as400 is that there is no one language that is
best, that meets all the requirements of writing bug free applications that
will run on the system.  RPG does not handle exceptions well. ( exception
handling folks, is a big and important topic.  It is a key component to
writing bug free, modular/reusable code. ) Java does handle exceptions, but
it does not interface ( guessing here ) well with the as400 database, ile
and program calls.  And ILE which should stitch these different languages
together doesnt do that very well.  ( what happens when a java proc throws
and exception back to an rpg or c++ proc? )

Hans, you can belittle this all you want and IBM mgmt can think that the
as400 is safe in what looks more and more to be a niche large system market.
The bottom line is that OS400 programmers are losing jobs and IBM does not
appear to have plans for improving the platform.

-Steve Richter