View from Development - Dave Andrews
I had the pleasure of attending the February SHARE conference in Tampa, Florida earlier this month. It was a really great event and I want to say a special thanks to the organizers and the presenters of the CICS Sessions that made the event so successful. I know that there are many similar CICS User Groups that take place in different geographies. Please consider attending these events, they provide a unique opportunity to get news and education on CICS and the chance to meet and listen to other customers and vendors explain their experiences with CICS. What made the SHARE so enjoyable and valuable for me was the chance to meet CICS customer face to face and talk not just about how to make future versions of CICS even better, but to look at how we solve broader issues such as skills shortages and vitality of the zPlatform. I plan to continue to attend CICS User Groups whenever I get the chance, the next one will be in March which is a new User Group that IBM is sponsoring in China. In addition to promoting User Groups, I'd like to remind you of the IBM Impact 2007 event that will take place in May. This is IBM's premier customer event and replaces the Transaction and Messaging (T&M) conference. My personal view is that Impact 2007 will provide same technical depth and value sessions on CICS that were provided at the T&M but also extend it to allow your management and executives new sessions to hear about the broader IBM portfolio, the benefits of SOA and how CICS fits into the overall strategy. Please attend and encourage your management to participate; it should make it easier for you to promote the values of CICS and SOA if they see how it fits into the bigger picture.
Back here in Hursley, the CICS Development team remain focussed on delivering the next releases of our products. Excellent progress is being made and we will deliver a fully functional driver to our CLOSED Beta customers later this month. We now need to concentrate all efforts on testing and defect fixing and get ready for the formal announcement. We are also planning to run an OPEN Beta for the fist time in CICS so keep your eyes out for that announcement and I would encourage your to take the opportunity to participate if you can.
Lastly I would like to draw your attention to a free service that we have pioneered in CICS called the CICS On Demand Seminars (CODS). These provide the opportunity for some of our CICS developers to come on site at your locations and work with you on how to get the best out of CICS and help modernise your systems to exploit SOA. My developers get significant benefit too as they pick up valuable understanding of how you use CICS and what your requirements are so that we can continue to deliver new capabilities that really help your business. If you are interested in hosting an On Demand Seminar please speak to your IBM Account Rep, or contact us directly be email to cicssem@uk.ibm.com. We look forward to hearing from you.
Dave Andrews,
Director, CICS Development
CICS Scene - Rick Thomas
Taking a look back at 2006, there were many important highlights.
This month, I'd like to take a brief look at the sensational growth CICS Transaction Server V3.1 has enjoyed in the marketplace since inception.
Thanks to efforts by people like Cornell, Hendrick and Peter, during the 12 months 2005 through 2006, more than 1100 CICS Transaction Server licences have been taken up by around 600 customers!
In fact, since CICS Transaction Server V3.1 became available less than two years ago, over 750 CICS customers have bought more than 1350 licenses. This makes CICS Transaction Server V3.1 the fastest growing release ever!
So what's the underlying reason for this fabulous success? Well analysts are reporting that increasing customer interest in SOA (service oriented architecture), the opportunity to reuse existing CICS assets, and the strong SOA support delivered by CICS are the main reasons for such a high rate of adoption.
The story won't stop there though: the next release of CICS Transaction Server for z/OS is coming along soon with great new enhancements in the areas of integration, application transformation, systems management and architecture. The updated CICS Tools are also arriving at the same type to complement the new version, and will deliver more efficient use of CICS resources, reduced operational costs, and improved user productivity.
With these great new CICS products in the pipeline, it looks as though the upward tendency in the CICS success graph will continue as more customers take advantage of the new enhancements.
Richard Thomas,
Program Director, CICS Marketing
Article: 'The new TCO and the value of the mainframe'
In this Mainstream article, Marlin Maddy, Executive IT Consultant for IBM Systems Technology Group makes a strong case for the mainframe in enterprises that require high availability, high I/O bandwidth, systems that can handle multiple disparate workloads, efficient disaster recovery, security-plus efficient use of facilities and power supply. Marlin argues that suddenly, size has become a mainframe strength!
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Register to participate in CICS Tools BetaWorks programs!
BetaWorks is a global IBM organisation that works closely with selected customers who are given early access to new IBM products, through managed beta programs. These programs allow customers to gain early experience with new IBM products and technologies. Install, evaluate and gain early experience with CICS Tools, influence CICS Tools design, get free-of-charge CICS Tools education, become a valued CICS Tools reference site! Click the link to find out more about the BetaWorks program. To register your interest in participating in CICS Tools beta programs send an email to: BetaWorks@uk.ibm.com. Click the link to find out more about BetaWorks programs.
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SOA without coding: see this great new demo
Service Oriented Architecture (SOA) allows you to discover, create and assemble services to produce business driven solutions composed of high reusable components. Now there's a great demo on SOA solution assembly without coding featuring CICS, System z and WebSphere Integration Developer.
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Host Access Transformation Services V7 announces!
On February 27, IBM announced WebSphere Host Access Transformation Services for Multiplatforms V7.0 (HATS). This is a new deployment to the Eclipse Rich Client Platform and it offers enhanced development capabilities.
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Watch this space: WebSphere Studio Asset Analyzer
WebSphere Studio Asset Analyzer (WSAA), the tool that helps your site's application development teams better understand legacy CICS, mainframe and other applications is being updated. Look out for improved composite and web service application support, expanded metrics support, improved tool integration, additional support for other software products and finally, usability and performance enhancements. Watch this space for further information in due course.
Article: 'An overview of channels and containers'
In this z Journal article, IBM CICS Software Engineer Steve Burghard looks at the advantages of programming channels and containers in CICS. Steve discusses how channels and containers fit alongside the techniques that are used to pass data between applications running in CICS. This allows CICS to comply with emerging requirements in terms of sizing and flexibility.
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Tell IBM how you use the REXX for CICS component and claim a mystery gift!
IBM would like to understand more about how you use the REXX component for CICS Transaction Server for z/OS. If applicable, tell us how you use it and we will send you a mystery gift. Please email replies to: REXX at CICS
Video: WatchIT presents 'Service Oriented Architecture and the System z platform'
Service Oriented Architecture (SOA). Hosted by Paul DiMarzio, IBM System z On Demand Strategist, the video covers a range of SOA topics to ensure a deeper understanding of the topic, including:
- How SOA is different from earlier programming models, and the evolutionary process that has resulted in the current definition of SOA
- Determining the impact platform decisions may have on an SOA by understanding the strengths and weaknesses of distributed and mainframe systems in business situations
- Changes the organization may need to adopt, to best support an SOA across an enterprise
Read the complete story here then click the link to register.
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The IBM Transaction & Messaging (T&M) conference will be even bigger and better in 2007. This year, for the first time, the T&M event is being expanded into one new global conference - IBM Impact 2007 - to give unprecedented access to IBM developers, executives, and customers who are telling their stories. The date for your diary is May 20 - 25, in Orlando, Florida
To find out more about Impact 2007, click the link or email: impact@us.ibm.com
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Upcoming SOA events in early March
Calling all IT architects, CEOs, IT managers, and anyone else wanting to find out why SOA is THE modern business-oriented IT architecture - look out for a series of SOA events coming up in early March. Events are being held in the US in Tampa (March 6), Santa Clara (March 7) and McLean (March 8), and in Vancouver in Canada (March 6).
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First CICS China User Group Meeting, March 15-16, Xiamen!
The first-ever CICS User Group Meeting in China takes place in the beautiful coastal city of Xiamen in South China in March. Come and meet CICS experts from the IBM UK Hursley Laboratory, and local IBM CICS experts. Get the latest news on CICS transaction servers, connectors and tools. Attend sessions on CICS, SOA (service oriented architecture), technical best-practices, and demonstrations of CICS capabilities (for example the Web services feature of CICS Transaction Server for z/OS). Also listen to a former Vice President of Enterprise Technology and Architecture at the Bank of America who will be sharing his experience and insight of CICS. In addition, meet CICS customers from China who will be taking this great opportunity to share their experiences, and meet other IBM experts from around the world. For more information please email Wen Lu, TXSeries (distributed CICS) Worldwide Marketing Manager: WENLU1@uk.ibm.com
Events worldwide in 2007
- March 15-16 China User Group Meeting, Xiamen, China
- February 11-16, SHARE User Group Event, Tampa, US
More... - April 15-18, IBM Technical Leadership Exchange, Anaheim, California US
April 23-27, WebSphere Services Technical Conference, Las Vegas, Nevada - May 20-25, IBM Impact 2007, Orlando, Florida, US
More... - May 21-23, GSE Nordics User Group Event, Helsinki, Finland
- May 21-24, IBM Technical Leadership Exchange, Marne la Vallee, Paris
- August 12-17, SHARE User Group Events, San Diego, California
- October, TPF Users Group, Washington
- October, zSeries Expo, Orlando, Florida
- October, IBM Academy Annual Meeting, Austin, Texas
- November, Japan TPF Users Group, Tokyo
Read upcoming issues of this newsletter, and follow the link below to the CICS Events page for more information as it becomes available.
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Webcasts
To see previously given Webcasts for all IBM products, click the link below to go to the IBM Technical Exchange Webcasts page, then click the Previous Webcasts tab,
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To see previously given Webcasts for CICS products, click the link below to go to the IBM Technical Exchange Webcasts page, click Support, click All IBM Software (A-Z), scroll down to category 'C' and look for the CICS products in the list.
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- February 21 webcast: 'How to ease the move to SOA'
More... - February 21 webcast: 'Unleash the power of your existing mainframe assets into the SOA world'
More... - The webcasts on IBM developerWorks also give you access to a wide range of information about CICS, System z and SOA.
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Teleconferences
- 'Webify your mainframe applications with WebSphere Host Access Transformation Services V7.0'
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Podcasts
- The podcasts on developerWorks cover a wide range of CICS, mainframe, System z and other subjects and have been a great success. You don't need an iPod to listen to them - simply download to your computer and play on your default media player. You can also subscribe and receive the podcasts as RSS feeds.
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Redbooks
- 'Architecting Access to CICS within an SOA'
Download... - 'Application Development for CICS Web Services'
Download... - 'CICS Transaction Server V3R1 Channels and Containers Revealed'
Download... - 'Implementing CICS Web Services'
Download...
Book: 'SOA for Dummies'
SOA is the most important IT initiative for a long time and is an IT architectural concept that can be difficult to explain and understand. This great little book cuts through the jargon and explains SOA and its business benefits in terms that can be understood by technical and non-technical readers (ISBN: 978-0-470-05435-2 SOA).
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Workshops
- CICS and Web Services workshops. Through a combination of lectures and labs, learn how to use the Web services support provided in CICS Transaction Server for z/OS V3.1 to expose CICS application programs as Web services and to invoke other Web services.
More... - IBM business partner workshops: 'Process Integration for Service Oriented Architecture': Learn how to jumpstart your software development of open standards and cross platform applications using IBM business process integration middleware and tools.
More... - Training: Application Development for e-business. Gain the skills you need to build e-business applications. Take on board the core technologies, processes and tools skills that you need to improve your productivity.
More... - Training: CICS Skills workshops. Work alongside CICS Redbook authors to develop useful new CICS skills. These courses are delivered in partnership with IBM IT Education Services.
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IBM training News brings you the latest information on technical training. Get late-breaking news on technical training offerings tailored to the interest areas you select in the subscription form.
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CCR2 is for the IBM System z and software community and is the leading source of information on best practices, tips for exploiting features in the latest IBM releases and trends.
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Mainstream is for the IBM System z and S390 software community. Read the latest System z and S390 news, events, success stories and related information.
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SOA Newsletter brings you the latest news on the exciting world of SOA.
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