After the announcement (https://www.ibm.com/common/ssi/ShowDoc.wss?docURL=/common/ssi/rep_ca/1/897/ENUS122-001/index.html) of IBM z16, the innovative platform that helps accelerate your digital transformation and unlock the potential of your hybrid cloud transformation, the latest version of IBM Enterprise COBOL for z/OS 6.4 is now generally available! Enterprise COBOL for z/OS 6.4 fully supports the IBM z16 architecture to optimize application performance and provides new features to help you modernize your business-critical applications to propel forward with your digital transformation plans.
The Enterprise COBOL for z/OS 6.4 product documentation (https://www.ibm.com/docs/en/cobol-zos/6.4) is also available in IBM Documentation now. Check the following topics to further explore those new features and enhancements provided in COBOL 6.4: -Support of the latest IBM z/Architecture to maximize your IBM z16 investment, reduce CPU usage, and improve performance of critical COBOL applications (https://www.ibm.com/docs/cobol-zos/6.4?topic=options-arch) -Improved Java/COBOL interoperability to easily extend the capabilities of your COBOL programs with Java (https://www.ibm.com/docs/cobol-zos/6.4?topic=pg-coboljava-interoperability-outside-object-oriented-oo-cobol-framework) -Interoperability between AMODE 31 (31-bit) and AMODE 64 (64-bit) COBOL programs to handle your growing COBOL program data without converting the entire application to run in AMODE 64 (https://www.ibm.com/docs/cobol-zos/6.4?topic=dcpimale-cobol-applications-mixed-amode-31-amode-64-programs) -Support for user-defined functions to enable you to write your own functions and invoke them like intrinsic functions, improving code modularity and maintainability (https://www.ibm.com/docs/cobol-zos/6.4?topic=reference-identification-division) -Improved integration with IBM Automatic Binary Optimizer for z/OS to invest in your future so that modules you compile today take advantage of future IBM zSystems hardware enhancements, without having to be recompiled (https://www.ibm.com/docs/cobol-zos/6.4?topic=options-smartbin) You can always find the latest Enterprise COBOL for z/OS documentation (both online and PDF versions) in the COBOL documentation library (https://www.ibm.com/support/pages/enterprise-cobol-zos-documentation-library). If you have any comments regarding the COBOL documentation, please send them to [email protected]. To get a quick overview of Enterprise COBOL for z/OS, its business values, and the key features, visit the IBM Enterprise COBOL for z/OS product page (https://www.ibm.com/products/cobol-compiler-zos). COBOL migration resources: Since Enterprise COBOL for z/OS 4.2 is withdrawn from service (https://community.ibm.com/community/user/ibmz-and-linuxone/blogs/nicole-trudeau1/2022/04/26/cobol-42-service-withdrawal) on April 30, 2022, if you are still on COBOL 4.2, you are encouraged to plan and start your migration to COBOL 6 as soon as possible. To ease your migration efforts, visit the COBOL Migration Portal (https://www.ibm.com/docs/SS6SG3_latest/migration-portal.html) for all the COBOL migration-related information, which includes case studies, COBOL expert interview videos, the cloud-based COBOL Migration Assistant for a navigation through the migration process, COBOL Migration and Performance Tuning Webinars, Ask an Expert for contacting COBOL experts, FAQs, other IBM products to support your migration, and many other resources. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- For IBM-MAIN subscribe / signoff / archive access instructions, send email to [email protected] with the message: INFO IBM-MAIN
