Re: General AS/400 Question

Michael,

In a message dated 98-04-13 11:11:22 EDT, you write:

> Let me start by saying that I am new to the AS/400 world.  The Bay
>  District Data Center (where I work) has been an MVS mainframe shop 
>  since 1986.  We are in the process of changing platforms to an AS/400
>  S20 model (for application dev) and a 640 series (for production).

Congratulations, and welcome!

>  My question:
>     Is there a generally accepted standard set of system tools that most
>  companies use on their machines.  By way of an MVS example, if you want
>  to do system performance monitoring, CANDLE Corp. has a widely used
>  product called OMEGAMON.  Likewise, if I want printer output control I
>  would look at a product from LEVY, RAY and SHOUP called VPS.

OMEGAMMON runs on the /400 as well, although it's probably not the most
commonly used product available.  Candle's SystemView also "works" for the
AS/400, running on top of OMEGAMMON.  We argue performance on this forum quite
frequently -- I say study the "Work Managagement" guide and do it yourself --
others say set the QPFRADJ value to auto or use PAE's "Charlie The Tuner" or
another third-party product.  Take your pick.

I haven't seen (others feel free to set me straight here) any single print
queue management package take an appreciably noticable chunk of market share
in the /400 arena over its competitors as far as _USE_ vs. _INSTALLATION_
(e.g.,  ROBOT Reports is installed at a lot of sites, but I also know of a lot
that paid for it and then didn't use it).  There are several report
distribution packages available, all have their advantages but are probably
more known for their individual _DIS_-advantages.  Pick one that fits, or
maybe your application software already handles the situation better...

>     I am assuming that there are plenty of third party software houses
>  that provide powerful/useful tools for the AS/400.  Then again, maybe
>  the AS/400 does not need the type of products I asking about.  I just
>  don't know.  

Yes there are.  Someone always looks at the areas the vendor is neglecting and
tries to do them one better.

>     This is becoming a critical budget issue for my department.  If I
>  can't find 'Value Added' tools before our budget deadline, I could be
>  forced to go without for a whole year.

ROBOT is the job scheduler of choice, although the /400 has a rudimentary one
built in and there are other equally-viable schedulers available.  CMS systems
are plentiful (you may have used ENDEAVOR or some counterpart on the
mainframe) from Aldon, SoftLanding, IBM, and others (all integrated to
Application Development Tools).  I would _highly_ recommend getting a copy of
Jim Sloan's QUSRTOOLs from Jim Sloan, Inc.  The latter is a highly-advanced
toolset that was once shipped for free with OS/400, and is now available for a
nominal fee.

>  Also, as an MVS system programmer about to embark on a long educational
>  journey, can anyone give some advice on the best way to get up to
>  speed.  After all these years my department has seen fit to provide the
>  systems/applications group with a little bit of training and money for
>  books/manuals.  Any help will be GREATLY appreciated.  MD 

Probably too late for you to attend COMMON in New Orleans, but Anaheim is just
around the corner!  Check out www.common.org.  I'd also suggest anything from
IBM or ATS regarding training.  "On the cheap", I'd say use F4 and F1 whenever
possible and use GO CMDxxx (where xxx is a subject or verb, such as CRT for
create, TCP for TCP/IP, CMN for communications, EDT for edit, or DLT for
delete).  Feel free to write the list, no matter how stupid you may feel a
given question is...

Regards!

Dean Asmussen
Enterprise Systems Consulting, Inc.
Fuquay-Varina, NC  USA
E-Mail:  DAsmussen@aol.com

"If people don't want to come out to the ball park, nobody's going to stop
them." -- Yogi Berra
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