Why RPG is important for mission critical applications?

 

RPG for modern day software applications may sound a bit off the track to those who are not aware of its advancements and extravagant features. But yes, this is true that today RPG is used for several ERP’s and mission critical business applications, based on RPG IV. This transformation is not a result of a day or two efforts but because RPG IV is enabled to provide an interactive programming environment to RPGLE or RPG Programmers. It is integrated with the state-of-the-art security features has seamless association with IoT and Watson AI. IBMi today is the platform of choice for secure and data loaded business applications. The language has gained wide acceptance because it is a fully functional high level language and is run on leading IBMi or AS400 series


 

The transformation of RPG

The transformation of RPG from a report generation tool to a highly proficient language has been adventurous.  RPG was upgraded to RPG II fin 1960’s following the development of the IBM System/3. RPGII was noteworthy because of its fixed format. This meant code was written in fixed format that would standardize the software creation process and generate the desired output.

Then came RPGIII which was mainly developed for System38 and its following versions. RPGIII is an enhanced version over RPG II and incorporated features to support new software development structures. RPGIII also allowed programmers to code in with or without the logic cycle, using indicators or IF statements. The RPG III compiler is used till date in AS400 and iSeries as the RPG/400 compiler. IBM announced the launch of the AS/400 system, IBM changed the names of most of its software tools and compilers to identify the product with the AS/400, differentiating it from the System/38 or System/36 hardware platforms.

RPGIV/RPGLE was launched in 1994. It was launched with competitive features to meet modern software requirements. Therefore RPGLE has many functional, performance, maintenance, and productivity benefits. Its ability to integrate multiple language, free-format expressions and definition specifications provides many of the benefits of object-oriented languages.

Feature of RPGIV which have made it valid till today:

·         Longer field names

·         Source level debugging

·         Date and time support

·         Additional data types (floating point, boolean, pointers)

·         Free-format expressions

·         Built in functions

·         Case tolerance

·         ILE competency

Advantages of RPG Programmers

·         The RPG programmers provide designing, improvement, AS400 migration and development of pre-written IBMi software program in various languages like RPG, RPG ILE, RPG-FREE and SQL

·         Are you worried about technical documentation and project planning? RPGLE programmers who will develop your software know all the technicalities and will design the document for you

·         No matter it is building from the scratch or enhancing or modernizing the existing application, RPG programmers hired from trustworthy organizations are professional and experienced in both

·         RPG programmers can also troubleshoot your business processing to diagnose the issue

·         Another important procedure where IBM i programmers provide help is of AS400 migration from legacy platform to modern platform.

Recruiting RPG developers

Companies should be looking for candidates with application development experience, particularly business application development. Their capabilities should not be only development but also basic capabilities like good written and verbal communications skills, and the ability to work as a team as well as independently. Today’s RPG is just another modern language. And the developers must have a practical knowledge about the language and application development. The hard part is finding a good developer who understands business applications and the importance of working with the business users to meet their needs.

Besides hiring make sure you have proper training department where they can sharpen their skills and explore more.

Any type of training is more effective if the new programmers have additional guidance. The contact between mentor and mentee benefits both. After hiring suitable IBM I developers the development task becomes way easier and productive. RPG applications have always been more secure and data protective when it comes to mission critical applications. Therefore, hire expert AS400 developers for your ERP and hard core business applications and build a robust foundation.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Trending Up Together: Vue.js and PWAs

Image
While you may be drowning in the jargon and acronyms of the tech world’s rapid evolution, one term you should know is PWA, which stands for progressive web app. Why? PWA’s may represent over half of all web development, overtaking mobile and native apps in the next year. Info World, Smashing Magazine and tech bloggers predicted the trends as early as 2017, not long after Vue.js gained momentum in the development world. The two might have a synergy worth investigating for web app development. What is a PWA? A progressive web app generally has the following characteristics: A web-based page design that operates and responds like an app on any device. Development with API’s such as Service Workers, JSON, Web App Manifest, and Trusted Web Activities. In other words, a PWA is a web page that behaves like an app for users. It presents a frontend as slick and interactive as any native app, but it can work offline, push notifications, and track users’ locations. Furt...
Read more

How to be a productive IBM i/AS400 Developer

Image
  IBM i or AS400 programmers are hard to find in this world where modern technology, languages and platforms are venturing everyday. New programmers are running to learn the latest technologies but they do not know what IBM i has in its treasure box. Big tech giants, enterprises, industries rely on IBM power systems even today because there is no such OS like IBM i that can handle mission critical tasks securely and professionally. RPG developers have a lot of scope in their career as these organizations are always on a hunt for productive IBM i/AS400 developers.   Here are a few things that IBM I programmers can keep in mind to enhance their productivity and value: 1.Learning new skills Knowledge of RPG is the greatest strength and if it is added with new skills it can make your career shine bright. So, its time that the developers look into learning some new advancements, allow for improved productivity, agility and the development of high performance  applicati...
Read more

Magento 2.4- Making this Ecommerce Platform even Better

Image
The release of Magento 2.4 has created immense excitement among the users, developers and also the ecommerce store owners. The Corona virus pandemic has no doubt shaken the economy of many countries and many shop owners have shifted their shops online. Amidst this situation the launch of Magento 2.4 on 28 th   July 2020 opened doors to many new features that can be integrated in the ecommerce stores making those more user friendly and secure. Magento has already been the winner when it comes to  Magento 2 Ecommerce Development . To know more about Magneto read this blog   here . This new version has a lot for both the developers and the online merchants who are using Magento as their platform. New features in Magento 2.4 Security Security side of Magneto 2.4 is many times robust than its older versions. Magento 2.4 version offers 30+ security improvements. It addresses remote code execution and cross-site scripting vulnerabilities and a lot more: The Magento admin area no...
Read more