Wow ... you started a hot topic, Steve. Fun stuff!
On 03/26/16 11:59, Steve Beaver wrote:
First of all I am first and foremost an zOS Systems programmer that only
writes in HLASM and REXX as needed.
My goal is to learn Linux and then develop in Linux and then as needed port
it to zSeries box. ...
Learning Linux is broad and vague.
Sounds like you're less interested in (the learning of) Linux as a
desktop environment.
"Linux is Linux" (sort of), so if you already grok endian and word size
issues, that's a big step. Do you know C?
"Unix is Unix" (sort of, and less so than with Linux), so how well do
you know USS?
A lot of FLOSS packages got ported to USS before Linux was a serious
force in the enterprise. Depending on the details of "goal is to learn
Linux" you might also benefit from such things as CYGWIN or the MKS
Toolkit. Both give you a Unix face on your Windoze system just like USS
is a Unix face on MVS. The latter (MKS TK) is a core foundation of USS.
Really. (Joe Bob sez, check it out.)
Assembler will of course be different from HW to HW.
I try to keep up with Linux on: S390, PPC, I386, and ARM. I also have
SPARC and am on the hunt for MIPS. Assembler on each of these will be
quite different, sometimes extremely so.
Two popular flavors of REXX: Regina and OORexx. I use *Regina*. It is a
sibling to THE (The Hessling Editor), which is as close to ISPF as
you're likely to get. (Personally more of a fan of XEDIT, and have a
compatible THE/XEDIT profile.) But REXX on Linux or any Unix or on
Windows is a lot different from REXX on TSO or MVS or CMS.
Some people are really fond of IDEs. You might have a hard time finding
an IDE in Linux land that gives you a full ISPF feel. Like Tom said, use
the editor of your choice, use the compiler, and use 'make'. GCC is most
well known. David Crayford mentioned 'clang' which is pretty slick and
gaining in popularity, but not as broadly ported yet. (There's also
Dignus Systems C, but might not serve what it sounds like you're looking
for.) Where possible, "compilers are compilers"; avoid compiler features
which lock you in. And don't get me started about source code manglers.
Keep it simple. No matter what I or anyone else on this list tells you:
KEEP IT SIMPLE.
- I am going to build a 64 Bit a box with 16 gig of memory and 8 Tb of
Storage and a DVD/RW. That is the easy
Part.
Does anyone have any input on which version of Linux to purchase? I Know
SUSE has an enterprise 64 bit product?
So maybe you *do* have a bit of interest in Linux as a desktop system.
Cool!
Having started with Slackware and then bounced between SUSE and RedHat,
I'm using *OpenSUSE* heavily these days. (TL;DR) Devuan (that's not a
typo) also has substantial value. And I must mention CentOS, even though
it is a decendent of Redhat (now even fallen under RH umbrella). CentOS
is quite popular in the enterprise.
Most Linux distros strongly support either GNOME or KDE. I find both of
those unbearably "heavy" and have been using XFCE for several years. Heh
... then just last week I learned that *XFCE* is less encumbered by
SystemD. (oooooopppsss... now I've gone and opened *that* can-o-worms!)
Seriously, XFCE is lighter than the other two, and there are yet more
window managers and desktop environments to choose from. Pick one and
run with it, and know that it has little to do with your distro
selection, per se.
My present desktop system is a decent home brew that I inherited from my
son. He gave it up for a laptop for college and I needed a workstation.
With OpenSUSE I get *KVM* and can run any X86 guest I need: Windows,
Linux, FreeBSD, OpenBSD, NetBSD, Minix. (Even tried Plan 9 but didn't
have time enough to run out that runway.) Sorry to stray a bit, seeing
as how you didn't ask for virtualization.
Yes, Mark Post *is* being objective.
Can anyone suggest an Editor besides VI, and which language to develop in on
a Linux Platform?
In the Unix world, the religious war continues between the VI crowd and
the EMACS crowd. Historically, VI established the first beachhead. Just
sayin. I don't really care for either, but was told "learn VI" years
ago, so I did, and that minimal knowledge has served me well.
I make a point to have *THE* on hand, though I find that I more often
use Pico because it's quick. (The replacement for Pico is *Nano*,
another GNU-ism but works.)
I see that Java was mentioned. I have it on good authority "nobody does
Java on z/OS". Not meaning to start a flame war: yes it works, yes some
people use it, yes in production, but the guy who said that was simply
stating what he sees with his own customers. Perl works too. I would be
interested to learn if Python has been ported to z/OS. Python is the new
hotness in the Linux world. (For varying values of "new".)
/Summary/: for editors, _learn VI_, but also learn Pico/Nano. And know
that THE is available. (Someone will probably chime in that they have
THE macros to make it work somewhat like ISPF.)
/Summary/: for languages, _learn C_. Also learn Perl. (It runs on USS
for those who care.) And know that REXX is available with the caveats
that REXX on Linux will not have the system services of MVS or CMS.
And I see that David Craig gave me a nice shout out w/r/t NORD. (Thank
you, sir.) More on that later.
-- R; <><
PS
On 03/26/16 14:45, Tom Marchant wrote:
First of all, it is GNU/Linux.
That is, it is the GNU operating system with a Linux kernel.
Seehttp://www.gnu.org/gnu/linux-and-gnu.html
It is a distinction that many ignore and many others are tired of hearing, ...
Including moi. Stop it. It's religious.
Stallman's Free Software Foundation is a pillar in the FLOSS world. But
if the freedom they have fought for means anything, then other groups
also should get credit. So the real name of the system would be
Linux/GNU/*BSD/SourceForce/github/IBM/HPE/Oracle/onandonandonandon.
Stallman's insistence on snagging credit for Linux runs counter to his
supposed altruism.
-- R; <><
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