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Raising Awareness for SAP on i

Jon Paris and Susan Gantner have an interesting post on the IBM Systems Magazine Web site about the “willful ignorance” many people display about installing SAP on i. This isn’t the first time I’ve heard this conversation and it’s a growing awareness in our community that yes, SAP is easier to install, maintain, and run if installed on an IBM i system.

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What Words Describe This Thing We Call IBM i?

Editor’s note: I suspect Joe isn’t being entirely serious here ( First published 3-13-12. Reposted and slightly updated with a little spritz on 11-7-13) Steve Will, Chief Architect for IBM i, recently cleared up a question many literal minded IBM i … Continue reading

Posted in Misc | Comments Off on What Words Describe This Thing We Call IBM i?

IT Jungle: Planning to Stay on i5/OS V5R4 Past September 2013 and Rely on Extended Support? It’ll Cost Ya

Every time IBM cancels support for an operating system, it usually offers extended support for customers who can’t move to the new OS by the end of support date. Extended Support is a service extension on IBM support for customers … Continue reading

Posted in IBM i general | 3 Comments

MC Press Online: InFORM Decisions Reforests Burned-Over US National Forest Areas by Selling IBM i Software

From MC Press Online: inFORM Decisions, a provider of iSeries document automation and payment automation solutions, announced it has reached a milestone of 1000 trees planted through the Arbor Day Foundation’s Gift of Trees Program to assist in the reforestation … Continue reading

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Really??? 12 1/2 Weeks for an RPG ILE Compiler Quote??? Bad Example of IBM i Online Sales Process

From Aaron Bartell, the sad story of a man who hoped he could buy an RPG ILE compiler with his credit card, only to discover it took IBM 12 1/2 weeks (this is not a typo) just to get him … Continue reading

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Reminder: IBM Now Charges Media Cost When Upgrading to i 7.1 or i 6.1

A few years ago, IBM started assessing a media charge for customer IBM i operating system upgrades. Where the media used to be free, you now have to be pay for it. The cost I have is $118/per machine but … Continue reading

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The Present and Future Use of SSDs and IBM i

Chris Smith of MC Press Online has a nice article today that discusses how people are using Solid State Drives (SSDs) right now (think caching) and when and where this technology might start to edge out hard disk drives from … Continue reading

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IT Jungle: Getting Started with an i5/OS V5R4 to i 6.1 Upgrade

IT Jungle just published my latest article on getting started with an i5/OS V5R4 to i 6.1 upgrade. I cover a lot of issues in planning for the upgrade, including: Some guidelines for deciding whether to upgrade to i 6.1 or i … Continue reading

Posted in IBM i Tech Info | 2 Comments

IT Jungle: Changes in IBM Business Partner Rules for Who Owns an Account

Timothy Prickett-Morgan of IT Jungle has an interesting article out this week about the announcements that came out of PartnerWorld in New Orleans last week.

But if you’re an IBM i customer, the interesting part comes at the bottom of the article in the section labeled Change in Power Systems Channel Rules. Here, Tim discusses some recent changes that can have an effect in how an average IBM i shop buys from the channel, including: Continue reading

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IBM i Jeopardy…The Category is AnyNet i 7.1 Support: The Answer is No and Yes

As shops prepare to upgrade from i5/OS V5R4 to i 7.1, some people may have questions about AnyNet capability on the i 7.1 operating system. Specifically, is AnyNet still supported in i 7.1 and can you access it in i 7.1?

The answers are no and yes. Here’s what’s happening.

AnyNet is a method IBM uses to run SNA communications traffic over a TCP/IP network. AnyNet has been a staple of IBM communications for a long time but IBM is phasing it out starting with the i 7.1 operating system. IBM had made a statement of direction a few years ago saying that:

“AnyNet support is also available in V5R3 through V6R1, however, IBM plans to withdraw support of AnyNet in the release following V6R1; customers currently using AnyNet should start to move to Enterprise Extender in preparation for this.”

Reading that statement, you would assume IBM is withdrawing AnyNet functionality in version 7.1 and beyond.

That would be a wrong assumption.

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Patrick Townsend to V5R4 Shops: Skip i 6.1 and Go Directly to i 7.1

On the Townsend Security Data Privacy Blog, Patrick Townsend today makes a security case that shops upgrading from i5/OS V5R4Mx should just jump directly to IBM i 7.1 rather than going to i 6.1.

The reason? Important new security features, he says, such as:

…a new automatic encryption facility in DB2/400 called FIELDPROC (That’s short for “Field Procedure”)…[you may be able] to implement column level encryption without any programming.

and…

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Posted in IBM i Tech Info, IBM i Tools | Comments Off on Patrick Townsend to V5R4 Shops: Skip i 6.1 and Go Directly to i 7.1