RE: Green screen to GUI

Hi Jeff,

        I have felt the same for a long time.  It is
annoying/embarrassing/exasperating to be talking to someone outside the
company about a project,  explaining that we are running on the
As/400-iSeries-i5, only to be met with the 'Oh, that's one of those old
legacy machines isn't it?' or something similar.  There is nothing I can
say.  I've tried all the possibilities - 'Dear, the AS/400 was a 64 bit
powerhouse while Windows was only...' and so forth.  Anything I say has no
effect - for the most part - they don't have the knowledge or experience to
comprehend.  The only thing that would make a dent in their smug dismissal
would be a true graphical interface and the tools to make easy use of it.

        We had better admit it - we live in a graphical world.  All the
integration/stability/security in the world will not win over the
uneducated/inexperienced, but one simple graphical interface can start the
process. (a picture is worth more than a thousand words)

        I have been an c/rpg programmer since 1988 - mostly rpg.  I use
subprocedures and ILE and make use of the various API's available when
needed.  I have taken classes and read about java - we even use it
extensively in xml processing.  But I have just spent the previous week or
so blundering through trying to get a web service to run on WAS Express 5.0.
I finally succeeded,  but my point is the Microsoft guys I have worked with
would jeeringly state - 'I could have had that done in two hours on a
microsoft platform with microsoft tools.'  AND THEY ARE RIGHT!  I've seen
it. DAMMIT!

        I don't know what the answer is - I was interviewing a guy the other 
day -
bright guy - late 20's with a masters degree in cs - a real hot dog.  He
asked what kind of server we ran and I replied with the 'IBM iSeries'
string.  He replied yeah, but what does it run, Windows 2003 server?  He had
no idea what I was talking about.

        I don't know where I am going with this - I guess I'm just blowing off
steam.  But I am getting tired of everybody else (non-iSeries) blowing
through projects that I have to sweat blood to perform.  I need some tools
that are on a par with Micro$oft's.  I need wizards that ACTUALLY WORK!
Everything has to be ARCANE!  Even the simplest things have some little part
of it obfuscated in the manuals that make it a major effort to implement.

        Oh well, like Jeff said - Back to work...

Regards and apologies for ranting

Rick DuVall
Systems Manager
Dealer's Auto Auction of Okc
405 947-2886 Ext:143
rick@xxxxxxxxxx


-----Original Message-----
From: midrange-l-bounces@xxxxxxxxxxxx
[mailto:midrange-l-bounces@xxxxxxxxxxxx]On Behalf Of Jeff Crosby
Sent: Wednesday, September 21, 2005 7:19 AM
To: 'Midrange Systems Technical Discussion'
Subject: Green screen to GUI


There's an interesting discussion on iSeries Network about the perception of
the AS400/iSeries/i5.  In the area of green screen vs GUI, a poster makes
the following observation (pay particular attention to the second
paragraph):

<thepost>

IBM's Developer's Road Map is IBM's way of recusing itself from dealing with
the reality of the green-screen dilemma. Even if you accept the WebSphere
value proposition, there's a chasm between the green-screen environment and
the full-tilt Java/RPG/WebSphere environment IBM wants for its customers.
IBM proposes HATS and WebFacing: HATS is limited use; WebFacing is not much
different than being invited to tie the noose at your own hanging. CGIDEV
won't die, in spite of IBM's bumbling efforts to treat it like an old Eskimo
(push it out on an ice floe and let it die).

Since the early 70's, IBM has, generally speaking, provided an integrated
solution for midrange customers. Consider IBM's investment in the
S/36-to-AS/400 conversion and the AS/400 S/36 environment, and you have to
wonder how IBM could miss the strategic importance of having a Blue Roadmap
for the moving to browser-based applications instead of throwing the
responsibility out to 3rd parties. I believe moving off green-screen
applications is the most signficant change the iSeries community has ever
faced, and IBM's response has been to stand on the other side of the river,
waving, and saying the water's not too cold.

</thepost>

Until I read the above, I (in the words of the caller to Mr Obvious on Bob &
Tom) had "never made the connection".  It suddenly dawned on me how well IBM
handled things for us S/36 customers going to an AS/400.  It was a complete
solution, end-to-end, at your company's pace, one step at a time, everything
covered to the nth degree.  That's what IBM did, "provide a complete
integrated solution for midrange customers" which is how IBM cultivated such
loyalty, while at the same time, we, as customers, could concentrate on
business solutions.

Contrast that with burger flipping ads.  IBM completely missed what was
needed when it came to green screen to GUI.

Oh well.  Back to work.

--
Jeff Crosby
Dilgard Frozen Foods, Inc.
P.O. Box 13369
Ft. Wayne, IN 46868-3369
260-422-7531