Clem: Good morning. So, how many customers use this product? Does it interface with the various change management tools? What about keyword and subparameter substitution for various site/environment requirements? What about format/structure changes so that the JCL is consistent across all members? What does it do to ensure that programs that are called are in fact in synch with the JCL? What about comparisons in the production environment to ensure that the maximum efficiency of the batch window can be reached? Is there a way to verify that a batch flow will not abend with some obscure error? What about verifying that a GDG base is built and correctly used? Can it add entire steps, such as backup/recovery to a flow/JOBstream to improve rerun/restart?
Obviously, there are hundreds of other issues surrounding the generation/creation of JCL objects, management through the change lifecycle, controlling JCL objects that are going into or are already in a production environments, etc. Just some food for thought. Respectfully, Mitch McCluhan, Legacy Modernization Consultant www.lcmg.us -----Original Message----- From: Clem Clarke <[email protected]> To: IBM-MAIN <[email protected]> Sent: Wed, Nov 13, 2013 7:58 pm Subject: Jol - Next Generation JCL- was JCL - What is it and what could it be ? There has been much discussion about JCL and how enhance it. There is a rogram that does much of what you require in an enhanced or next eneration JCL. And it can be enhanced to add other facilities elatively easily. It is available NOW, and is called Jol. You can read about it here: http://www.Oscar-Jol.com Not only does it run on Z/OS - there is a version that runs on Windows, nd the Linux version is in Beta Test. The non-Z/OS versions can either un jobs on the mainframe, or act as a "Shell" to run jobs on their own perating Systems. * It uses a free format language similar to PL/I. It uses Upper and Lower Case and automatically converts text to upper ase where necessary. It has Symbolic Variable Test and Replacement with functions such as UBSTR. It has Pre-initialised variables such as the current DAY, MONTH and so on. It has a simple PANEL instruction that allows the EASY creation of ull Screen Data Entry Panels such as you see on the main page of the ol Website above. This has Menu Bars and Pulldowns on a standard 3270 creen. It allows Symbolic Parameters or Variables to replaced in CARD files o that control cards can be generated. It can handle Parameters up to 3,000 characters. It has a Job Network Facility built in. It has a Job Scheduling Facility built in. It can run jobs directly under TSO using Dynamic Allocation, or in ackground. It contains an open-ended Macro Language so that the language can be xtended and new commands added. It has builtin READ and WRITE instructions to Standard OS Data Sets. It has a builtin Data Base of Data Set Attributes so that all Data Set efinitions can be controlled centrally. * and much more. You can read about it at the main website: http://www.Oscar-Jol.com. You ee the Concepts and Facilities Manual, the Instruction Manual, and even ownload the Z/OS version of Jol. ncidentally, IBM has been aware of this program for years, and nearly ncluded it in Z/OS until contractual problems occurred with our merican Distributors. So, perhaps asking IBM to rethink their position ould be something to do so that you can enjoy an Open Ended, fully xtensible, easy to use language - one that makes Z/OS about as easy to se as Windows, and may even help IBM sell more mainframe machines. Clement Victor Clarke uthor of the next generation JCL - Jol. el +61401 054 155 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- or IBM-MAIN subscribe / signoff / archive access instructions, end email to [email protected] with the message: INFO IBM-MAIN ---------------------------------------------------------------------- For IBM-MAIN subscribe / signoff / archive access instructions, send email to [email protected] with the message: INFO IBM-MAIN
