What is AS400 about?

[Chengwei Lee]

Think this is gonna sound real stupid to some of you guys, but what exactly is the IBM AS400? Is it just a hardware server model number? Or there's more to it?

Could someone explain to me or direct me to some articles to read up more on it?

Tried the IBM site, doesn't seems to have it, or perhaps I couldn't find it.

Thanks

[Jeanne Boyarsky]

Cheng,
AS400 is only server number. The old site (www.as400.ibm.com) was replaced with the neweriseries site.

[Chengwei Lee]

Hi Jeanne,

Does this means that the AS400 had been retired?

Thanks

[Steve Wink]

Originally posted by Cheng Wei Lee:
Hi Jeanne,

Does this means that the AS400 had been retired?

Thanks

No, the AS400 has been rebranded or renamed the ISeries.

[Chengwei Lee]

So does that means that the various different machinese under iSeries all fall under AS400 or just a specific iSeries model maps to AS400?

[Doug Trott]

I'm suprised we haven't seen some passionate replies yet!

A few years ago IBM consolidated their servers under the eServer "brand," thus the s390 became the zSeries, RS/6000 became the pSeries, etc. The AS/400 became the iSeries. IBM marketing running amuck, adding their usual amount of value. Whoops, that was an editorial. Anyway, you can find out more at http://www-1.ibm.com/servers/eserver/iseries/

I'm a s/w guy, not a h/w guy, but still I think the iseries architecture is tops, and there are a zillion stories about customers who actually have forgotten where their server was located, due to its reliability.

[Vishal Kumar]

Its a whole new hardware (AS/400) with its OS (OS/400), supporting database (DB2/400) and languages (CLP/400, RPG/400, COBOL/400). The name 400 sticks because they machines (mid-range machines or i-series machines) were thought to be ble to support 400 concurrent users at any time.

http://www-1.ibm.com/servers/eserver/iseries/ is your best resource for this hardware-software.

[Graham VMead]

Ahhhh those were the days!!

I developed on AS400's for 10+ years before moving to the wonderful world of Java/J2EE.

It was green screen terminals and a big AS400 server, strangely similar to "thin Client" but not as pretty.

There were some differences, everything worked straight off, no classpath/configuration nightmares, what you knew last year was still worth knowing the next. Everything didn't start with a J. What there was to learn was delivered in about 30 manuals with the box and they weren't full of typos! We even had time to concentrate on the business logic and write some pretty big systems Twas awful

Only downside was being locked into IBM.

I really like Java (despite my digs) but the old proprietary stuff had some strong virtues.

Luddites rule!!

[David Ulicny]

There were some differences, everything worked straight off, no classpath/configuration nightmares

What about library list nightmares

Everything didn't start with a J.

But everything start with Q
for example QAQQINI is really terrible name

I'm really new to AS400 and I feel it very hard to learn.

Cheers

[Graham VMead]

You have a point David

Although at least with library lists it just looks in that list and if it aint there thats it. No funnies like stuff relative to context roots, classloaders inheritng from other class loaders Web App funnies depnding on whether your in out (shake it all about) of a JSP or who wrote it IBM, Oracle, JBoss my Auntie.

Now I look back on it (albeit with rose tinted specs) a lot of things did begin with Q QBatch, QUser and all the low level API's.

Bet I could still drive an AS400 though even if it is 5 years ago

I had the advantage of a long course (12 weeks) on AS400 to help.


I also used these courses which are good
ATS

Good luck with the learning!!

[Jim Buck]

Hi,
I've worked on the AS400/iSeries since 1985. Most of it in a Green Screen world programming RPG. I've recently started in the Java Arena. I'm using WDSc and the biggest problem I have is finding examples of how to use the specific IBM packages. This site http://publib.boulder.ibm.com/iseries/v5r1/ic2924/info/rzahh/javadoc/overview-summary.html
Shows the packages but where could I find some examples? Anyone have any ideas?
JIm

[David Ulicny]

I think that WebSphere Studio itself has the examples.