McKown, John wrote:
Is there some document which does a "compare and contrast" between WebSphere Developer and ISPF? Is is possible to totally replace ISPF with WebSphere Developer? I mean for programmers. I realize that there are ISPF applications which are not accessable via WebSphere Developer at this time (such as a CA-1 interface, CA-7 interface, perhaps others). Can WebSphere Developer, or an add-on or ??, be positioned as an eventual replacement for ISPF entirely? Just curious.
John, Well, I don't know of such a document, but having completed an introductory course in the product (at the request of IBM) I'm reasonably aware of how the product shapes up against ISPF. First, it is not a total replacement - in a sense. That is, there are things you cannot do using the WD/z main interface, such as run ISPF dialogs. That being said, the product does include a TN3270 emulator, so you can connect to ISPF in one pane of all the windows available under the WD/z image. You can actually be logged on to two sessions then (one is a true TSO/ISPF session, the other is an APPC session). Second, you can do many things you do under ISPF under WD/z and some things you can actually do better (I like having multiple windows open on a single file, for example). Although you can get compilers for COBOL and PL/I for the workstation (re-vamps of the Visual Age products, I'm sure), the WD/z people don't promote using the product just for that purpose. In fact, all my early work was focused on using the product to do the standard ISPF type work I normally do: so I would edit on the workstation but compile and test on the mainframe. Third, it is a great tool for developing applications looking to the newer directions, since it is built on Eclipse and RAD, you can do UML, Java, EJB, Web Services, and so on, all from this single interface. So I think of it as a tool to complement and ultimately replace ISPF and as one that provides a single platform for classic development and Web / Internet development. For information on our class: http://www.trainersfriend.com/UNIX_and_Web_courses/w510descr.htm Hope this helps. Kind regards, -Steve Comstock The Trainer's Friend, Inc. http://www.trainersfriend.com ---------------------------------------------------------------------- For IBM-MAIN subscribe / signoff / archive access instructions, send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the message: GET IBM-MAIN INFO Search the archives at http://bama.ua.edu/archives/ibm-main.html
