![]() An iPhone today has at least 1 GB of memory. The $230,000 top-end AS/400 in 1988 had 96 MB of memory (that’s not a typo – 96 megabytes of memory). The imagination, the computer power, and the tools didn’t exist to design and develop the kinds of applications we needed today. The core demand back then was to automate decades-old paper-driven systems. In those days, security, cross-platform integration, a sophisticated user interface, and many features so common and necessary today simply weren’t even on the nice-to-have list, let alone the need-to-have list. Without much formal training, budding RPG programmers created very effective RPG applications. Back then, business applications were relatively simple (especially when compared to today’s networked applications that need to offer deep integration with customers and business partners). This made the AS/400 a good platform for creating business applications in the 1990s. Like the System/38, the AS/400 offered an operating system tightly integrated with its database and its computer languages. We needed to take steps to ensure unimpeded business continuity.” Delivering Core Business Value Several years ago, a forward-thinking customer of ours said it better than we can: “While our RPG application had served us well for more than 20 years, we realized that it represented a deep investment and dependency in an application that would be unmaintainable by next-generation programmers. The IBM i/RPG reckoning isn’t here yet, but it’s coming. Don’t be in the same boat as New Jersey and the US federal government. In the coming years, many IBM i shops will be without RPG programmers. COBOL and RPG both appeared in their first rudimentary forms in 1959. This business challenge is not COBOL-specific. The report cited five examples of successful federal modernization initiatives that included transforming legacy code into a modern programming language and moving that transformed code to the cloud. The report concludes that the government’s legacy systems need substantial upgrades and replacements and until they do that they risk higher costs, delays, and project failure. This June 2019 report from the United States Government Accountability Office shows that of the federal government’s $90 billion budget, about 80 percent of it is aimed at keeping its legacy systems running. New Jersey’s COBOL shortage is solid evidence that dependence on legacy languages is a critical issue. There’ll be lots of post mortems and one of them on our list will be how the heck did we get here when we literally needed COBALT programmers.” (See him say this in the last minute of this video.) It’s Not Just New Jersey But literally, we have systems that are 40-plus years old. Oklahoma also had a similar issue.ĭuring a press conference (saying “COBALT” but meaning “COBOL”) Murphy said, “but given the legacy systems we should add a page for COBALT (sic) computer skills, because that’s what we’re dealing with in these legacy. This caused New Jersey governor Phil Murphy to put out an urgent plea for COBOL programmers. A 1,600 percent increase in unemployment claims during the 2020 COVID-19 crisis overwhelmed New Jersey’s 40-year-old COBOL system. The Risk Is RealĬonsider the plight of New Jersey and its recent search for COBOL programmers. IBM i-based businesses that ignore or fail to understand the impact of losing their RPG programming teams put the business persistence in direct risk. And without RPG programmers, businesses that depend on RPG applications will be in jeopardy. We are saying that by 2030 programmers with RPG programming skills will be very hard to find. Don’t be mistaken: We are not saying the IBM i will be obsolete in 2030. RPG programming talent and the skills it takes to maintain and enhance RPG applications will be nearly obsolete in 2030. ![]() Can your business survive without its RPG programmers? The decade between 20 is the decade of crisis for many IBM i shops. Despite IBM’s best efforts to extend the life and capabilities of the IBM i platform, the fact remains that RPG applications need RPG programmers to persist. There aren’t younger RPG programmers in the pipeline. Alas, the teams that built these applications are rapidly nearing retirement. These businesses can’t get along without them. ![]() The IBM i runs many businesses today and its RPG applications perform unique and mission-critical processes. Your RPG-dependent business is at risk with the disappearance of RPG programming talent. RPG programming is a disappearing skill by 2030 the typical RPG programmer will be 80 years old. Your business desperately needs your IBM i RPG applications to deliver your unique business value to your customers and business partners.
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