RE: MIDRANGE-L Digest, Vol 14, Issue 827 -- MIDRANGE-L

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Richard Schoen | Director of Document Management Technologies, HelpSystems
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Sent: Monday, June 08, 2015 2:53 PM
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Subject: MIDRANGE-L Digest, Vol 14, Issue 827

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Today's Topics:

1. Re: 'green screen' not sellable (Nathan Andelin)
2. Re: 'green screen' not sellable --> WE(?) are the problem (Mark D)
3. Re: CALLPRC/tmpname/Null Filename (Scott Klement)
4. Re: CALLPRC/tmpname/Null Filename (Michael Ryan)
5. RE: 'green screen' not sellable --> WE(?) are the problem
(Pete Massiello - ML)
6. RE: 'green screen' not sellable (Monnier, Gary)
7. Re: 'green screen' not sellable --> WE(?) are the problem
(DrFranken)

----------------------------------------------------------------------

message: 1
date: Mon, 8 Jun 2015 13:03:25 -0600
from: Nathan Andelin <nandelin@xxxxxxxxx>
subject: Re: 'green screen' not sellable

I think you would be surprised if you looked into it. You can make
robust mobile apps with pascal these days. not that I would ;)

Thanks for the tip. I was enthralled with Delphi in the mid 90's, but lost track of it after the year 2000. It's evidently still alive.

------------------------------

message: 2
date: Mon, 08 Jun 2015 15:06:25 -0400
from: Mark D <mdlkml@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
subject: Re: 'green screen' not sellable --> WE(?) are the problem

On 06/08/2015 02:55 PM, DrFranken wrote:

<vendor>
Stop whining, It's YOUR Career. For $50 a month you can have access.
For
$100 you can have your own private partition. Many of you spend more
than that on your Cable or Satellite service!
If your passion is:
Hiking you buy good shoes, yes?
Biking you buy good wheels, tires, and bikes, yes?
Cooking you buy good knives and pans, yes?
Fishing you buy good lures and poles and a BOAT, yes?
IBM i you get access to the new stuff, right?????
So shut up and invest in yourself already!! (Sorry I'm cranky today.)
</vendor>

That would be cool Scott. I do it in RPG, but I need it in a CL, and
didn't want to have to switch languages. Thanks!

On Mon, Jun 8, 2015 at 2:48 PM, Scott Klement
<midrange-l@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
wrote:

This API returns a pointer, not a character field...

Would recommend doing this in RPG where it's simpler, but if you need
to do it in CL, I could whip up an example...

On 6/8/2015 12:15 PM, Michael Ryan wrote:

So my code looks like this:

PGM PARM(&FILENAME)

DCLPRCOPT DFTACTGRP(*NO) ACTGRP(*CALLER) BNDDIR(QC2LE)
DCL VAR(&FILENAME) TYPE(*CHAR) LEN(40)

CALLPRC PRC('_C_IFS_tmpnam') PARM((*OMIT *BYVAL)) +
RTNVAL(&FILENAME)

ENDPGM

Seems pretty straightforward, but it's returning NULL (all hex
zeroes anyway).

Anyone see a problem?

Thanks!

--

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------------------------------

message: 4
date: Mon, 8 Jun 2015 15:20:43 -0400
from: Michael Ryan <michaelrtr@xxxxxxxxx>
subject: Re: CALLPRC/tmpname/Null Filename

Thanks Scott!

On Mon, Jun 8, 2015 at 3:16 PM, Scott Klement <midrange-l@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
wrote:

Okay, here's a quick CL version... If tmpnam is successful, the
return value (&PTR, below) will point to the same memory as &STORAGE.
Storage will be a C-style (zero-terminated) string... to turn it back
into a fixed-length CL char field, I use the C strlen() function to
get the length, and then just substring it out...

PGM PARM(&FILENAME)

DCL VAR(&FILENAME) TYPE(*CHAR) LEN(40)
DCL VAR(&STORAGE) TYPE(*CHAR) LEN(40)
DCL VAR(&PTR) TYPE(*PTR)
DCL VAR(&NULLPTR) TYPE(*PTR)
DCL VAR(&LEN) TYPE(*INT) LEN(4)

CALLPRC PRC('_C_IFS_tmpnam') +
PARM((&STORAGE *BYREF)) +
RTNVAL(&PTR)
IF (&PTR *NE &NULLPTR) DO
CALLPRC PRC('strlen') PARM((&PTR *BYVAL)) +
RTNVAL(&LEN)
IF (&LEN *GT 0) DO
CHGVAR VAR(&FILENAME) VALUE(%SST(&STORAGE 1 &LEN))
ENDDO
ENDDO

ENDPGM

On 6/8/2015 1:52 PM, Michael Ryan wrote:

That would be cool Scott. I do it in RPG, but I need it in a CL, and
didn't want to have to switch languages. Thanks!

On Mon, Jun 8, 2015 at 2:48 PM, Scott Klement <
midrange-l@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
wrote:

This API returns a pointer, not a character field...

Would recommend doing this in RPG where it's simpler, but if you
need to do it in CL, I could whip up an example...

On 6/8/2015 12:15 PM, Michael Ryan wrote:

So my code looks like this:

PGM PARM(&FILENAME)

DCLPRCOPT DFTACTGRP(*NO) ACTGRP(*CALLER) BNDDIR(QC2LE)
DCL VAR(&FILENAME) TYPE(*CHAR) LEN(40)

CALLPRC PRC('_C_IFS_tmpnam') PARM((*OMIT *BYVAL)) +
RTNVAL(&FILENAME)

ENDPGM

Seems pretty straightforward, but it's returning NULL (all hex
zeroes anyway).

Anyone see a problem?

Thanks!

--

This is the Midrange Systems Technical Discussion (MIDRANGE-L)
mailing list To post a message email: MIDRANGE-L@xxxxxxxxxxxx To
subscribe, unsubscribe, or change list options,
visit: http://lists.midrange.com/mailman/listinfo/midrange-l
or email: MIDRANGE-L-request@xxxxxxxxxxxx Before posting, please
take a moment to review the archives at
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--

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------------------------------

message: 5
date: Mon, 8 Jun 2015 19:39:52 +0000
from: Pete Massiello - ML <pmassiello-ml@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
subject: RE: 'green screen' not sellable --> WE(?) are the problem

There are many costs for every profession. You don't have to invest in yourself, you don't have to invest in your skills....if you eventual wish to be forced into retirement.

Let's say 15 years ago, you were the best S/36 RPG II programmer in the world, and you said "$50 a month, are you crazy. I am not going to invest that in my career". Guess what, you are probably STILL the best S36 RPG II programmer in the world, except now you are unemployed and out of a job. No one wants to hire someone with outdated skills. Secondly, do you know what is even worse? Being hired by someone who is looking for outdated skills.

Fast forward, 15 years to 2015. Don't learn Linux, don't learn Free form RPG, don't learn SQL (because DDS works fine), don't learn mobile development, don't learn web development, etc, etc, etc. Well, I hope you plan to retire by 2016, because it's the same pattern. As IT professionals, we have to constantly invest in ourselves, because the world is constantly moving. $600 a year is pretty small dollars to keep having a paycheck over the next 10 to 20 years. In addition, it's going to conferences like COMMON, local user groups, System i Developer, IBM, or being on this list that continue to expose you new ideas and concepts.

Yes, the examples may be extreme just to point out that investment in yourself is necessary.

Pete

Pete Massiello
iTech Solutions
http://www.itechsol.com
http://www.iInTheCloud.com

Office: 203-744-7854

-----Original Message-----
From: MIDRANGE-L [mailto:midrange-l-bounces@xxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Mark D
Sent: Monday, June 08, 2015 3:06 PM
To: midrange-l@xxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: Re: 'green screen' not sellable --> WE(?) are the problem

On 06/08/2015 02:55 PM, DrFranken wrote:

<vendor>
Stop whining, It's YOUR Career. For $50 a month you can have access.
For
$100 you can have your own private partition. Many of you spend more
than that on your Cable or Satellite service!
If your passion is:
Hiking you buy good shoes, yes?
Biking you buy good wheels, tires, and bikes, yes?
Cooking you buy good knives and pans, yes?
Fishing you buy good lures and poles and a BOAT, yes?
IBM i you get access to the new stuff, right?????
So shut up and invest in yourself already!! (Sorry I'm cranky today.)
</vendor>

Whiiiiile I'm inclined to agree with this, it's just one of many costs for an independent consultant. I have to deal with replacing my laptop every year or two because it either is too slow to run 6 vm's or can't handle being moved so much (though my current MSI GS70 is pretty much awesome except the screen), visual studio licenses, insurance and other bits.

Spending $50/mo for experimentation is where I draw the line. And I only spend $30/mo on satellite tv :-P

So where I'm at is that $50 well could be worth it... or not. But that
$700 visual studio license will *definitely* be worth it to me.

If I can tinker on a Linux/Windows VPS for for $8/mo... or do it on EC2 on demand for cents... to play with things I am 100% sure will pay off... Versus $50/mo for something that mayyyyybe will pay off if I encounter an i shop who forces me to work on the i rather than with the i.

Kind of puts you in a crappy position as a hoster who no doubt charges what you need to charge but that is the reality for the little guys. If I was a career RPG dev I'm sure the equation would be a LOT different.

Thanks,
Mark

--
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------------------------------

message: 6
date: Mon, 8 Jun 2015 19:44:40 +0000
from: "Monnier, Gary" <Gary.Monnier@xxxxxxxxx>
subject: RE: 'green screen' not sellable

Scott,

Thanks for the thoughts. As always they are interesting.

In my experience browsers also take some care and feeding. Personally, I categorize web browsers as thick clients (just look at the size of one's folder) with all the issues of any other thick client.

Gary

-----Original Message-----
From: MIDRANGE-L [mailto:midrange-l-bounces@xxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Scott Klement
Sent: Monday, June 08, 2015 11:48 AM
To: Midrange Systems Technical Discussion
Subject: Re: 'green screen' not sellable

Gary,

Open Access is just a tool to help integrate stuff into your RPG code.
Existing programs don't have to be rewritten, you can just pop a HANDLER onto the F-spec, so your EXFMT, READ, WRITE et al will call the handler, and the handler can communicate with a web framework. (Or anything else you've written a handler to communicate with -- web framework is what most everyone uses, though.)

I certainly have NOT found browsers to be vulnerable at all. But, you could potentially write an OA handler that did something different than web if you wanted to try to start a new trend...

The only other alternative that I'm aware of vs. a browser would be something like a thick-client GUI. These aren't the best because they have to be installed/maintained/updated on every PC. And, the default for a thick-client like this is that it has authority to everything the local user has authority to on the PC. Browsers, on the other hand, default to not having authority to anything on the PC aside from a few areas of the browser itself (Javascript variables, local storage,
cookies, and the display... very stricted by comparison to
thick-client having access to the hard drive.)

-SK

On 6/8/2015 12:14 PM, Monnier, Gary wrote:

So Scott,

How does OAR play into this mix? I'm not playing devil's advocate
here but seriously think browsers are becoming way too vulnerable and
could use some competition.

Thanks,

Gary

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------------------------------

message: 7
date: Mon, 08 Jun 2015 15:52:31 -0400
from: DrFranken <midrange@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
subject: Re: 'green screen' not sellable --> WE(?) are the problem

And if you think Pete and I and Jim and ... have invested ONLY $50 a month in the stuff we play with you would be off by 'a significant margin' :-) :-)

I spend Waaaaay more than that per month just POWERING the stuff!

This is all above and beyond the stuff we use for our commercial ventures.

- Larry "DrFranken" Bolhuis

www.frankeni.com
www.iDevCloud.com
www.iInTheCloud.com

On 6/8/2015 3:39 PM, Pete Massiello - ML wrote:

There are many costs for every profession. You don't have to invest in yourself, you don't have to invest in your skills....if you eventual wish to be forced into retirement.

Let's say 15 years ago, you were the best S/36 RPG II programmer in the world, and you said "$50 a month, are you crazy. I am not going to invest that in my career". Guess what, you are probably STILL the best S36 RPG II programmer in the world, except now you are unemployed and out of a job. No one wants to hire someone with outdated skills. Secondly, do you know what is even worse? Being hired by someone who is looking for outdated skills.

Fast forward, 15 years to 2015. Don't learn Linux, don't learn Free form RPG, don't learn SQL (because DDS works fine), don't learn mobile development, don't learn web development, etc, etc, etc. Well, I hope you plan to retire by 2016, because it's the same pattern. As IT professionals, we have to constantly invest in ourselves, because the world is constantly moving. $600 a year is pretty small dollars to keep having a paycheck over the next 10 to 20 years. In addition, it's going to conferences like COMMON, local user groups, System i Developer, IBM, or being on this list that continue to expose you new ideas and concepts.

Yes, the examples may be extreme just to point out that investment in yourself is necessary.

Pete

Pete Massiello
iTech Solutions
http://www.itechsol.com
http://www.iInTheCloud.com

Office: 203-744-7854

-----Original Message-----
From: MIDRANGE-L [mailto:midrange-l-bounces@xxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of
Mark D
Sent: Monday, June 08, 2015 3:06 PM
To: midrange-l@xxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: Re: 'green screen' not sellable --> WE(?) are the problem

On 06/08/2015 02:55 PM, DrFranken wrote:

<vendor>
Stop whining, It's YOUR Career. For $50 a month you can have access.
For
$100 you can have your own private partition. Many of you spend more
than that on your Cable or Satellite service!
If your passion is:
Hiking you buy good shoes, yes?
Biking you buy good wheels, tires, and bikes, yes?
Cooking you buy good knives and pans, yes?
Fishing you buy good lures and poles and a BOAT, yes?
IBM i you get access to the new stuff, right?????
So shut up and invest in yourself already!! (Sorry I'm cranky today.)
</vendor>

Whiiiiile I'm inclined to agree with this, it's just one of many costs for an independent consultant. I have to deal with replacing my laptop every year or two because it either is too slow to run 6 vm's or can't handle being moved so much (though my current MSI GS70 is pretty much awesome except the screen), visual studio licenses, insurance and other bits.

Spending $50/mo for experimentation is where I draw the line. And I
only spend $30/mo on satellite tv :-P

So where I'm at is that $50 well could be worth it... or not. But
that
$700 visual studio license will *definitely* be worth it to me.

If I can tinker on a Linux/Windows VPS for for $8/mo... or do it on EC2 on demand for cents... to play with things I am 100% sure will pay off... Versus $50/mo for something that mayyyyybe will pay off if I encounter an i shop who forces me to work on the i rather than with the i.

Kind of puts you in a crappy position as a hoster who no doubt charges what you need to charge but that is the reality for the little guys. If I was a career RPG dev I'm sure the equation would be a LOT different.

Thanks,
Mark

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------------------------------

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End of MIDRANGE-L Digest, Vol 14, Issue 827
*******************************************