Re: Looking for the perfect 5250 client...

[Vernon Hamberg <vhamberg@xxxxxxxxx>]

Recent versions of Client Access Express seem to support the VPN, at least
there was a recent post to that effect.

I've been using Personal Communications v5. It was about $150. No license
counts on the 400. Same features as CA. You can still run any version of
CA, just don't install its emulator. Or don't install CA at all.

I still think PCOMM (& CA) have the best macro facility. If youdon't need
this, it's not so important.

At 10:59 AM 3/28/02 -0500, you wrote:
>O.k., this is it.  I am looking for the "perfect" 5250 emulator client.  In
>short, I can say that the good features of Client Access (v3r2 is what I
>currently use) make it an ideal client for me.  But CA carries a lot of
>baggage, and sometimes I am forced to use other 5250 clients because of
>limitations.  The one that I am currently forced to use as some clients'
>AS/400s don't have CA installed, is a dud called ViewNow currently marketed
>by NetManage (more on that below).
>
>The good that keeps me coming back to CA:
>Primarily, when using the green screen, I don't even know the mouse exists;
>I am definitely a keyboardist in this mode.  I also use a *lot* of MS
>Word-type of copying/pasting and cursor navigating in the course of my daily
>work:
>- Ctrl-C: Copy selected text into clipboard
>- Ctrl-V: Paste clipboard
>- Shift-Cursor: Select text in the direction of the cursor key being used.
>
>When editing source, I colorize comments quite a bit.  I need an easy way to
>do this.  CA has a macro function available for this that I assign to a
>popup keypad and to a few keyboard key combinations.  I will *not* succumb
>to copying attributes from a "color" source member set up for this purpose.
>
>The 27x132 mode is very readable.  I do all my editing in this mode.
>
>Frankly, I don't think these features would be all that difficult to
>achieve.  However, my (admittedly limited) experience with other vendors'
>5250 clients has left me unfulfilled.  I have yet to find one that will let
>me do the customization I described above.  (If any of you know of one,
>please let me know!)  The aforementioned ViewNow is a piece of cr*p, you
>need a support contract to report bugs (!!!), and, anyways, NetManage isn't
>enhancing or fixing it anymore (but they'll be glad to sell you Rumba).  Woe
>be to you if you type a non-numeric in a numeric-only field, or try to type
>past the end of a mandatory field-exit field with this client; the Reset key
>doesn't fix it, and we (finally) discovered that you have to SysReq and
>return to get the keyboard to unlock.  Bleaahhh.
>
>The other "new" thing I've encounted is connecting to remote AS/400s thru
>VPN.  I discussed this in a previous thread.  The IP address points to our
>server, and then a pre-defined port on that server "VPNs" to the remote
>AS/400.  CA v3r2 does not seem to support this.  ViewNow does.  Do other
>clients support this?
>
>I am wondering if the open-source 5250 client I've seen discussed here would
>allow me to do the customization I require "out-of-the-box".  I would be
>willing to develop something for it, if it is possible, and is within my
>skillset.
>
>Comments would be most certainly appreciated.
>
>- Dan Bale
>(I am *NOT* "Dale"
>http://archive.midrange.com/midrange-l/200105/msg00281.html )
>SAMSA, Inc.
>989-790-0507
>DBale@SAMSA.com
>   Quiquid latine dictum sit altum viditur.
>   (Whatever is said in Latin seems profound.)
>
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