Re: New RPG programmers -- RPG400-L


Well, if IBM doesn't get their act together on getting OS/400 (i5 or
whatever) INTO THE SCHOOLS, the only folks that will be teaching RPG will
be user groups, private classes and a few classes at ILS...

Once again, people bring to the workplace the tools they learn in
school...  I have to really wonder why IBM's not pushing OS/400 in the
school places...(other than telling them they can run linux on
iSeries...which really doesn't do anything for OS/400 centric arenas!)

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

On Tue, 9 Nov 2004, Jonathan Mason wrote:

> I hat to say it, but there are a few grey hairs coming through (although I 
> put them down to my wife and kids rather than the 19 years RPG and System 36, 
> /38 and AS/400 use).
>
> The only "educational" establishments I've ever come across over here in the 
> UK that do RPG are commercial training companies, or places like IBM with a 
> vested interest.  Back in the late 80's and early 90's there used to be a 
> company called Nova that would provide AS/400 and RPG training and then the 
> students would be placed at a company and work there for 6 months or a year 
> without pay.  They would still get their social security and the only 
> obligation from the company they were placed at was that if they performed 
> well they had to be considered for a position at the end of the placement.
>
> I have noticed, though, that it's not so much the programmers over here that 
> don't want to learn new techniques, it's the employers who don't want to 
> invest in the "new technology".  There tends to be a lot of "if it's not 
> broken, don't fix it" and in one shop I worked at the move to RPG IV was only 
> for a handful of programs in a specific project that needed to bypass the 
> RPG/400 field size restrictions.
>
> I don't think that even IBM would be crazy enough to kill off RPG, there are 
> just too many legacy systems out there with their major customers that need 
> support.  I've still got 25 years left before I officially retire, and I'm 
> confident I'll still be working in RPG something or other on whatever IBM's 
> latest rebranding comes up with.
>
> All the best
>
> Jonathan
>
>
>
> Jonathan Mason
> www.astradyne-uk.com
>
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