Modernize with Open Source, API's and ESB

Welcome to another edition of Talsco Weekly

News: Who has the momentum, IBM or Google?
Development: RPG Tip. Take a break from coding.
ERP: The strength of SAP is good for the IBM i.
Leadership: Tips for first-time managers.
Modernization: API, ESB, and open source can help with modernization.
Open source: Enterprise open source strategy.
Security: Cybersecurity threats from an unlikely source.

Photo by Robert Lukeman on Unsplash

News

IBM or Google? "Alphabet was clearly a better investment than IBM over the past ten years, as its 430% rally crushed IBM's total return of just over 50%. But past performance doesn't guarantee future gains, and IBM seems to have turned a corner over the past year as Alphabet lost momentum."

Development

RPGLE to extract invoice numbers Have you ever been challenged by one of your fellow RPG developers to extract an invoice number from a string? Thanks to Nick Litten, here is the way to do it if it happens. Escape Room Game Need a 10-minute break? Check out IBMs Escape Room, "Zoombie Apocalypse". It's a game based tutorial walking you through some simple steps to build API solutions using IBM technology.

ERP

SAP HANA makes the IBM i stronger When you hear the name SAP many IBM i professionals think of the competition. But that is not always the case. In fact, as Timothy Prickett Morgan writes, "Anything that makes Power Systems stronger makes IBM i last longer". And this is good for all.

Leadership

4 Ways To Best Support First-time Managers We are at a point in the IBM i community where we are calling for new leadership to step in. As this article points out:

When you are a first-time manager, you move from being assessed primarily on your hard skills (being a designer, a content writer, an account manager, etc.) to being assessed based on your soft skills (communication style, ability to build relationships, motivate team members, uphold deadlines and team KPIs, etc.). On top of that, you are now expected to carry a different level of professionalism.

Needless to say, it can be a challenge for developers to transition into management. Here are four simple ways you can help new managers make the transition.

Modernization

What is best for integration, API or ESB? As enterprises move from modernization to digital transformation should they use an API or ESB strategy? Enterprise service bus (ESB) At the core, it is an architecture that allows for the integration of applications through a set of rules. IBM sees the benefits of ESB as

a centralized ESB offers the potential to standardize—and dramatically simplify—communication and integration of services across the enterprise

What really is an API (Application Programming Interface)? There is a technical definition and a business definition of an API. Here are some real-world examples of APIs that will help paint a picture of how they can be used in the enterprise. List of ESB technology solutions ESB market is booming. Here is a list of just some of the players in the Enterprise Service Bus market. Many of which we are seeing play a role in the IBM i market.

Open Source

Open-source in the Enterprise An interesting article here because it touches on a tipping point in the IBM i community. We are seeing an open-source revolution of sorts in the IBM i community. At the same time, many companies that are in ERP evaluation mode might be overlooking what open source could do for them. The article points out that many:

Companies have not taken full advantage of open source. The vast majority prefer to use a publisher that will make them pay a prohibitively high price for support every year, and force them to change version every few years. Companies just haven't thought about doing open source.

There clearly is a move to embrace open source solutions on the IBM i platform. The first step is to define and develop an open-source strategy.

Security

Is your IT partner your biggest cybersecurity threat? "You would think a managed IT service provider would have good security, right? Sadly, not all IT service providers do enough to protect themselves and often fail to implement strong cybersecurity systems and processes or even educate their own technical teams around cybersecurity."

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