The Information Center Facility is the foundation for building an MVS-based information center (IC). An IC increases user productivity and the computer effectiveness by providing easy-to-use computing tools, data access, education, and other assistance for users who have little or no data processing experience. The Information Center Facility eases users into the data processing environment by providing a series of conversational panels. These panels eliminate numerous command-driven interactions between the user and the system.

In addition to end user services, the Information Center Facility provides panels that enable an administrator to maintain the facility, enroll users, and add, modify, and delete products. TSO/E provides several new functions that help an administrator to easily install, maintain, and upgrade products in the Information Center Facility.

TSO/E also provides support for tailoring Information Center Facility panels, functions, and environments to the needs of different departments or user groups and individual users. This enhancement eliminates the requirement to make all products in the Information Center Facility available to all users.

The Enhanced Connectivity Facility contains the MVS™ support for the IBM® System/370 to IBM Personal Computer Enhanced Connectivity Facilities. Those facilities allow a person using an IBM Personal Computer (PC), an IBM 3270 PC (also referred to as a PC), or an IBM Personal System/2 to use services, data, and resources available on an IBM System/370 host processor using MVS or VM. IBM products or customer-written programs can supply the services. The PC user does not have to leave the PC environment to access host services and data. Using the MVSSERV command, PC users can access MVS services and data available through TSO/E.

The TSO/E Session Manager is an interface to line mode TSO/E. It saves the commands that you enter and the responses that you receive and allows you to redisplay or print them. You can correct or change a command that is displayed on the screen without having to retype the entire command. By allowing you to redisplay, change, and reuse your input, the Session Manager makes TSO/E easier to use.

TSO/E provides numerous commands for both end users and programmers that allow them to interact with TSO/E and the MVS system. The ALLOCATE, FREE, and EDIT commands are examples of commands that allow users to manage their data sets. The TEST and TESTAUTH commands let programmers test assembler language programs, including command processors, APPC/MVS transaction programs, and other programs written in assembler language. The CONSOLE command lets users with CONSOLE command authority perform MVS operator activities from a TSO/E session.

Table 1 provides brief descriptions of the TSO/E commands for end users. Descriptions of other commands are provided in the individual chapters that discuss the related tasks.

Terminal users can obtain online help for most TSO/E commands. Information Center Facility users can obtain help for each panel and message. TSO/E Enhanced Connectivity Facility users can also obtain online help for terminal messages. In addition, the HELP facility is enhanced to allow installations greater flexibility in adding help information.

Installations can also provide online help information to users in different languages.

TSO/E simplifies the way in which data and notices are sent and received. For example, the TRANSMIT and RECEIVE commands let users send data and messages to other users in a network.

TSO/E improves the LISTBC command so that it requires fewer I/O operations to list the contents of the broadcast data set. The broadcast data set or individual user logs contain messages that either the system or another user sends using the SEND command. In addition, a recovery routine prevents broken mail chains that could occur when message handling is interrupted.

Notices are also handled more efficiently during logon processing. TSO/E keeps a copy of notices in storage, thereby reducing the I/O operations needed to inform users of waiting messages when they logon.

In addition to the full-screen enhancements, a user can request an expanded private area (region) during logon. The LOGON and ACCOUNT command processors allow users to request private areas of up to 2,096,128 K bytes for each terminal session. Your installation can also customize the logon panel, the logon help panel, and customize logon processing using different exits.

TSO/E takes advantage of the MVS message service 4 to allow installations to provide TSO/E messages and the TRANSMIT full-screen panel to users in different languages. The TSO/E CONSOLE command also supports the display of translated system messages issued during a console session.

Several enhancements are provided for language enablement. The logon authorized pre-prompt exit and the PROFILE command support the specification of languages to be used in displaying translated information. Enhancements to SYS1.PARMLIB member IKJTSOxx allow installations to specify help data sets for different languages. The TRANSMIT command is also enhanced to allow users to enter Double-Byte Character Set (DBCS) text on the full-screen panel. Support for logon panels and their help text in different languages is also available.

The TSO/E REXX external function, SYSVAR, provides support for new arguments that REXX execs can use to obtain language information. Execs can use this information together with the new SETLANG function to set the language in which REXX messages are displayed.

Installations that have RACF® installed can use security labels (SECLABELs) to protect system resources. TSO/E provides several enhancements to support the use of security labels. The LOGON command and full-screen logon panel support the specification of a security label to be associated with a user's TSO/E session. SUBMIT command enhancements enable users to submit jobs at a security label that is greater than the one they are currently logged on with. OUTDES command enhancements let users print the job's security label on each page of output.

Installations can also control communication between users to protect the security classification of information. For example, installations can control and audit the use of the SEND command. LISTBC command processing enhancements let installations restrict users from viewing messages for which they do not have the proper security.

The TRANSMIT command supports a new keyword that lets users specify an alternate data set to log transmitted data. This enhancement allows users to log transmitted data at different security labels.

The CLIST language is a high-level programming language that lets programmers issue lists of TSO/E commands and JCL statements in combination with logical, arithmetic, and string-handling functions provided by the language. The programs, called CLISTs, can simplify routine user tasks, invoke programs written in other languages, and perform complex programming functions by themselves.

TSO/E provides REXX support to MVS users. REXX is a high-level procedures language that enables inexperienced users as well as experienced programmers to write structured programs called REXX execs. You can execute REXX execs in any MVS address space (both TSO/E and non-TSO/E). TSO/E also allows users to write APPC/MVS transaction programs in the REXX language.

The REXX language allows programmers to perform logical and arithmetic operations and communicate with terminal users. REXX built- in functions increase usability by allowing you to easily perform character manipulation and conversion operations. REXX also provides support for issuing host commands from within a REXX exec.

TSO/E extends the programming capabilities of REXX by providing TSO/E functions, REXX commands, and programming and customizing services. These facilities allow you to perform additional tasks such as controlling the execution of a REXX exec and customizing how system services are accessed and used. Some of these facilities are available only to REXX execs that execute in the TSO/E address space.

REXX execs perform functions similar to CLISTs and can call, and be called by, existing CLISTs and other TSO/E programs. Therefore, REXX is an attractive alternative to the CLIST language.

TSO/E REXX is the implementation of the Systems Application Architecture® (SAA) Procedures Language on the MVS system. By using the instructions and functions defined for the SAA Procedures Language, you can write execs that will run in any of the supported SAA environments, such as VM/SP (CMS).

The TSO/E service facility lets TSO/E users execute authorized or unauthorized programs, TSO/E commands, or CLISTs from an unauthorized environment, while maintaining system integrity. TSO/E Release 1 enhances the TSO/E service facility to allow users to optionally bypass some internal processing when accessing an unauthorized command, program, or CLIST from an unauthorized environment. This enhancement can result in a potential performance benefit and it also permits linkage to the ISPEXEC interface of ISPF. In TSO/E Release 2, the command/program invocation platform support, described in z/OS TSO/E Programming Services extends the bypassing of internal processing to the initialization and termination environments for the TSO/E service facility. In TSO/E Release 3, the command/program invocation platform support further extends the TSO/E service facility enhancement to include authorized commands and also unauthorized and authorized programs.

Installations can take advantage of the REXX compiler support by adding the IBM Compiler and Library for REXX/370 (licensed program number 5695-013) or a functionally equivalent compiler. A REXX compiler communicates with TSO/E using defined interfaces. A compiled REXX exec executes more efficiently because the exec does not need to be interpreted at run time.

Installations can use the functions provided by the TSO/E ALLOCATE and FREE commands to manipulate z/OS UNIX files.

TSO/E provides health checks that are registered automatically during system initialization. These checks run at regular intervals and they can be disabled at any time. They alert installations to potentially serious problems so that corrective action can be taken to limit the impact.