Intro
Hey there, I’m excited to welcome you to my blog where I share my passion for open source technologies on the IBM i operating system. As a developer and architect, I’ve seen firsthand the power of using open source tools and languages to support mission-critical applications and handle large amounts of data on IBM i. That’s why I’m so excited to share how to articles, tips, and tricks with you. Through this blog, I hope to help you take your IBM i platform to the next level, reduce software costs, and collaborate with developers from around the world. So whether you’re a business owner, seasoned IT pro, or just starting out, join me as we explore the world of open source on IBM i together.
Who this Blog is For
This blog is for seasoned RPG / COBOL / CL / DB2 developers and architects, of course. It will also be geared towards people who are curious about what the IBM i can do. Perhaps there is one or more IBM Power servers running IBM i in your organization and you would like to learn more about it, and perhaps like me you want to break down walls between IBM i folks and the rest of your shop.
Posts
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How to Build a Service Program - The Right Way
Service programs are a unique feature of ILE, allowing you to combine modules and procedures, written in one of the five ILE languages, into one set of procedures that are called by reference. Unlike regular programs, service programs can have multiple entry points. Service program generally do not exist on their own - usually they are bound to an ILE program.
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Base64 Encoding and Decoding on IBM i
Base64 encoding is a method for converting binary data into ASCII text. It’s designed to prevent communication errors when transferring binary information.
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Code for IBM i - Setup
This post explains the Code for IBM i settings that I find helpful.
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LOCAL IBM i development setup
There are a few hurdles to overcome to achieve local rpgle / clle development. This blog post will help you though those hurdles. The outcome is that changes you make on your local PC pushed to an IFS directory and compiled, while also being synchronized with online source/version control, such as Github, Bitbucket, Gitlab, etc.
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ILE CiCd Pipeline with Gitlab
This will be the first of a series of blog posts about using GITLAB to build a full CICD pipeline for building, testing, linting, and deploying RPG code.
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About Me
My name is John Weirich, and I am a developer and software architect on the IBM i platform. More recently I’ve branched into other technologies in the Devops space. Most of my work history has been with a company called Nelnet, a student loan company based in Lincoln Nebraska, though they have offices in other locations such as Centennial Colorado, Madison Wisconsin, Boise Idaho, and Albany New York. While I have visited all the previously mentioned office locations, on a day-to-day basis I work remotely from my home near College Station, Texas, and have done so for over 15 years.
Nelnet has been an amazing company for me to learn and grow on the IBM i platform, as well as other technologies. If you are looking for a job, whether it be as a customer service rep, or in the technology space, please check out Nelnet’s careers page. It’s a great company to work for.
My passion is for modernization and open source technologies on the IBM i platform. Nelnet is a member of the IBM i LUG, or Large User Group. Through attending LUG meetings, or other conferences like the now defunct RPG and DB2 summit, I have learned quite a bit about modernization of the IBM i platform
My other passions include adoption and foster care, as well as playing my cello. At the time of this writing, I’ve been married to my wife Bekah for 25 years, and I am the father in a large family with 9 kids, almost all of whom are adopted, placed with us in foster care, or we have custody that stemmed from foster care. My oldest daughter Madelyn is our only natural born progeny, and she is currently living and studying abroad in Madrid, Spain. Lately I’ve been been playing my cello for The Theatre Company’s production of the broadway musical Oklahoma!.
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RIP PDM
Does this look familiar to you?
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