Timothy, With all due respect, it's real easy for you to say "So what!" That is not a justification for exceeding our software budget where I work.
As for talking with my friendly IBM representative, well, I can't find one. My IBM VAR was helpful and gave it their best shot in working with IBM on extending the SVC (there was a lot of discussion at SHARE that IBM would be willing to do so) but ultimately reported that IBM would not. I had not read about CMP until now. That's interesting. If I'm reading it right, we are ineligible until we upgrade our z10. Your point about the developer trial is noted. Given our experience with this COBOL upgrade, we might look at this in the future. However, I submit that I was not incorrect nor was I complaining. Perhaps I was incomplete in my understanding of all the methods IBM uses for software billing, so I could have added more qualifications to my statement, but that still would not have turned it into a complaint. It is what it is, as they say. And, by the way, it's "Shirey". As the great Leslie Nielsen used to say "Don't call me Shirley." :-) Regards, Greg Shirey Ben E. Keith Company -----Original Message----- From: IBM Mainframe Discussion List [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Timothy Sipples Sent: Tuesday, October 20, 2015 1:21 AM To: [email protected] Subject: Re: COBOL V5.x and CSP descendants was Re: New and improved IBM migration recommendations for COBOL V5 Greg Shirley wrote: >Unfortunately, it gets a bit complicated when the changes that need to >be tested in the compiler come at a version level. Once you have >ordered a new version, you have a year to migrate off the old version, >or IBM begins charging you for running both. I'm afraid you're simply incorrect and repeating a complaint that has already been well discussed and debunked in this very forum. To revisit this topic in summary form, IBM provides at least two straightforward choices to avoid starting (or even having) the Single Version Charge (SVC) period: 1. Order the IBM Enterprise COBOL Developer Trial for z/OS. Use IBM program number 5655-TRY. You can conveniently order 5655-TRY on Shopz and get electronic delivery (in countries where Shopz is available) or order physical media (preferably DVD) elsewhere. Exactly as its name suggests it's a temporary evaluation license for non-production use of the full product. The trial license allows you to test and evaluate the value gained from Enterprise COBOL Version 5.2 before making a formal upgrade decision -- including CSP, VisualAge Generator, and/or EGL (preferably EGL) performance checks if you wish. 5655-TRY does *not* initiate a SVC period. 2. Upgrade/switch to IBM Country Multiplex Pricing (CMP), introduced earlier this year. CMP is available at least as close to worldwide as possible. There are no SVC periods under CMP at all. CMP does away with SVC periods for *all* IBM software products. There has also always been a third option: "Talk with your friendly IBM representative." No promises, but they tend to be reasonable people in my experience if you have a reasonable justification for an exception. Even if you somehow manage to get past all three of these perfectly reasonable, viable options, and if you then somehow exceed your one year SVC period, "So what!" Enterprise COBOL Version 5.2 yields performance benefits on practically every program you let it recompile and re-optimize. (How much? "It depends," but that's a fair generalization -- and see #1 above.) To the extent you can take advantage of Enterprise COBOL 5.2, even if it's not across 100% of your code portfolio, you (and your employer) are most likely a net winner in the efficiencies you pick up in your production environments. Even if you can recompile only a portion of your code portfolio that contributes to your peak utilization you still most likely win. Then there are the functional improvements, too. Once again I share John Gilmore's frustration. :-( ---------------------------------------------------------------------- For IBM-MAIN subscribe / signoff / archive access instructions, send email to [email protected] with the message: INFO IBM-MAIN
