RE: Alternate Platform for COBOL -- COBOL400-L

> The difference between RPG and COBOL is that about 70%
> of AS/400 shops use RPG and about 8% of shops use
> COBOL. If there were ever a time for IBM to be tempted
> to drop COBOL, the merger of the AS/400 and RS600 into
> a new platform would be the time.

First of all your %ages are way off.  In the days when the compilers were
sold separately, then for every 6 RPG compilers sold IBM also sold a COBOL
compiler.    However, most COBOL shops _also_ have an RPG compiler, due to
most packages being written in RPG.  The number of pure COBOL only shops is
probably about 2%.

Second - IBM is still selling 400s as replacement systems for mainframes
(particularly VSE systems) and they are mostly COBOL.  Also many of the
existing COBOL shops are _huge_ customers such as AllState.  I doubt that
IBM wants to tick them off.

Third - unless things have changed recently, COBOL is required to be
available on the box before you can even bid on many government contracts.
To drop the compiler would be to abandon those business opportunities.

> RPG, on the other hand, will almost certainly migrate
> to the new platform. There's no reason why IBM can't
> make an RPG compiler for *nix. RPG will likely be the
> language IBM prefers to support on the new platform.

IBM (with the exception of a few dedicated types in Toronto) would much
rather that RPG curl up and die.  Besides - while the compiler will port
easily (it is written in C and has already been ported to Windows for CODE
and VARPG) the _functionality_ of RPG is heavily dependent upon OS/400
features.  Think display files, subfiles, printer files, a database that can
be accessed via "flat file" I/O OR SQL, etc. etc. etc.  You can't port RPG
without those features.  VARPG only works because it connects to a 400 to be
able to use them!

> The merger of the AS/400 and RS6000 into single
> midrange platform will indeed be slow and somewhat
> unpredictable.  But today I see *nix on the AS/400 and
> on the RS6000.  I don't see OS/400 on the RS6000.  I
> think IBM has already set a bias in the direction of
> the operating system merger.

I'm not convinced.  While I don't take everything that Dr. Frank says as
gospel, LPAR, Linux and PACE demonstrate that OS/400 is capable of managing
multiple environments in the same box.  I would say that the absence of
OS/400 under AIX is a good sign and not the negative that you have painted.

> It's a good idea for any midrange programmer to learn
> Java and RPG in addition to COBOL.  I am.  These three
> languages seem to be the powerhouses of the midrange
> world.


At last a sentiment I can agree with!!  Hey - you did say you wanted
dissent!  <grin>

Jon Paris
Partner400