Re: open source IBM i. was Re: From RGP to ?Java ?

Chuck,

True, when connected to a DB2 host, it did support RLA. I had a "perfect" project to use VARPG, but it required keyed random file access and printer file output, as a standalone PC application. It would have been deployed to numerous clients.

Another possible issue: All the code, besides the DDM aspect, ran on the PC. That is not the same as a fully integrated GUI being driven by a host application.

-mark


At 5/12/09 01:37 AM, you wrote:

M. Lazarus wrote:
> Since the PC doesn't contain an RDBS and no indexing,
> VARPG didn't support local ISAM access, which greatly
> slowed its adoption, IMHO. It also didn't support
> printer files, IIRC.
>

I supported DB2 for i5/OS [OS/400] access from a PC-based RPG,
via DDM as I recall, which was ISAM. IIRC that was VARPG; its
intent as I understood, was to access the RDBMS and other
objects\data on the server. Long ago [pre MS OLE DB?] that was the
only way I was aware of anyone accessing database files via RLA
while asking for an ASCII CCSID; i.e. not using a CCSID for the job,
since those are only EBCDIC CCSIDs. Only once did I ever have an
actual dll to run; of the few issues, we would create internal tests
which mimicked the incoming requests [to recreate any apparent
problem] so as never to require a client for automated tests. As
such I never used the product, thus why its name was unimportant and
forgotten to me. I know incoming requests supported both keyed and
sequential access methods; presumably also direct\RRN access method;
as I recall the DDM architecture provides for all three of those
[and blocking?].

Regards, Chuck