RE: Using % type functions/using RPG IV

[Buck Calabro <buck.calabro@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Colin wrote:

>If you have business critical applications running at 
>multiple client sites, that work today, are you prepared 
>to risk their wrath by introducing more errors, rewriting 
>code that is proven and works. im not convinced. 
>To do something like that requires a lot of support.

I am exactly in the same situation, but I argue that "that work today" and
"introduce more errors" are somewhat irreconcilable differences!  <grin>  In
reality, there are precious few old programs that we're happy to maintain;
where we're comfortable making a change because we absolutely know that
there are no repercussions.

In my environment, it pays me big time to convert to RPG IV and re-write the
nasty, easily broken routine as a procedure.  Now, I've isolated it so it
simply CAN'T break anything else - no stupid left-over indicators, no
parameters passed by inference and glorious wonderful local variables!!!!!

It's just a guess, but I'd say that many legacy shops are in the same boat:
there are a handful of really nasty programs that NOBODY every wants to
touch.  In many other programs there are a handful of nasty routines (maybe
not even BEGSR/ENDSR) that are hideous.  Simply re-writing the handful of
nasties using new techniques brings a world of good to the entire system!
Fewer errors and more easily changed because you can be much more certain
that your changes don't cascade into something else down the line.  And
you'll be in that code soon enough that you won't even have to schedule the
"conversion."

Finally, to agree with your general sentiment, you are absolutely correct
when you say that there's no business case to be made for converting en
mass, just for the sake of conversion.  But there *is* a business case for
applying effort to improving the sticky bits, and RPG IV simply gives the
programmer a better set of tools for the job than RPG/400 does.

Buck Calabro
Spouting off again.
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