I have talked about service programs in the past and, at the time, I mentioned that you need a binding source without really saying why. So, to revisit the subject, using the binding language allows you to change your service Read more…
Last week I mentioned the CPYTOIMPF command and how easy it makes reformatting data so that it can be handled by other platforms. Not surprisingly the IBM i makes it just as easy to handle data coming back with the Read more…
One of the many things that the IBM i (and its predecessors) has always been good at is exchanging data with other platforms. And one thing that often surprises me is that people often don’t realise just how easy sharing Read more…
Here’s handy: The ON-EXIT operation code begins the ON-EXIT section. The ON-EXIT section contains code that runs every time that the procedure ends, whether it ends normally or abnormally. The ON-EXIT section runs under the following conditions: The procedure reaches Read more…
This is as much a reminder to myself as anything else because the %CHAR built in function has the unfortunate behaviour of stripping leading zeroes when converting a number to a character value. Sometimes I need to keep those leading Read more…
CL is an often undervalued part of the i developer’s toolkit, and one that IBM have been quietly enhancing over the years. It does have some quirks however, the most annoying being that if you are reading a file, once Read more…
The SQL TRANSLATE function is worth knowing about if you ever find yourself needing to (for example) fix data from an external feed before you attempt to do anything with it. The function requires returns a value in which one Read more…
I mentioned the DSPPGMREF command a couple of weeks ago. This command allows you to generate a list of system objects used by specified programs and is particularly handy when you want to see which programs are doing what to Read more…
No, I’m not going to revive the perennial — and pointless — argument about what we call the platform. It’s an IBM Power System running the IBM i operating system and there really is nothing else to discuss here. Beyond Read more…
I was in two minds about whether I should schedule a post for today. On one hand, it’s Monday and I would like to maintain my post schedule as far as possible. On the other hand, I am sure that Read more…