Talsco Weekly: How will AI change the role of the RPG Developer?

Welcome to another edition of Talsco Weekly

IBM i Brief: 🆕 IBM i set for major announcement in 2025. 🔄 IBM i prepares for major operating system update, so what will it be called? 🌏 COMMON India marks historic milestone for IBM i community.
AI: ⬆️ IBM unveils Granite 3.2 with enhanced reasoning capabilities. 🔒 OpenSecret to launch encrypted backend in 2025.
Career: 👩‍💻 How will AI change the role of the RPG Developer? The IBM i Developer? 🔍 Curiosity sparks higher performance in the workplace.
Learning: It’s not too Late to register for the WMCPA Spring Conference.
Vendor: 🛡️ Shield Advanced Solutions revolutionizes IBM i monitoring (Press Release).

IBM i Brief

🆕 IBM i set for major announcement in 2025

IBM i chief architect, Steve Will, hints at a significant upcoming release during his recent IBM i Guided Tour presentation.

While specifics remain under wraps, the announcement is expected to introduce substantial changes, possibly including IBM i 8.1.

History suggests that Rochester has a full-blown new version of the OS in the works.

The release will focus on AI integration

We want to make it easier for people to deploy and manage AI workloads that are connected to IBM i - Steve Will

Enhanced security features

Security is going to be a big part of what we do. - Steve Will

Improved open-source capabilities, marking a potential new era for the platform.

IBM’s open source strategy has driven modernization through development tools like PHP, Node.js, and Python. The success of VS Code integration through Code for IBM i shows IBM’s commitment to open source development solutions.

That has been a real boon, a real benefit for people who hire people out of school who don’t know RPG,” Will said. “That’s helped us make decisions on how we’re going to support doing application development and application modernization and artificial intelligence into the future of IBM i. - Steve Will

In the future, the IBM i will become more Linux like, making it easier for those not familiar with the IBM i.

🔄 IBM i prepares for major operating system update, so what will it be called? Make a guess here. 🌏 COMMON India marks historic milestone for IBM i community

The inaugural COMMON India conference held February 24-26 drew impressive attendance, showcasing strong interest in IBM Power and IBM i. USA-based IBM Champions received enthusiastic welcomes, with attendees ranging from seasoned professionals to students exploring career opportunities.

The event highlighted India’s growing IBM i community and its appetite for cutting-edge Power systems knowledge.

AI

⬆️ IBM unveils Granite 3.2 with enhanced reasoning capabilities The latest release in IBM’s foundation model series introduces improved reasoning features through Granite 3.2 Instruct 8B and 2B models. The update brings multimodal capabilities with Granite Vision 3.2 2B for document understanding, while Granite Guardian 3.2 offers enhanced safety monitoring with new model sizes and verbalized confidence feature. The release focuses on balancing performance with practical efficiency. 🔒 OpenSecret to launch encrypted backend in 2025

Could this be the answer to enterprise security issues when it comes to secure AI?

A new backend platform for developers, OpenSecret, is introducing encryption-by-default capabilities.

Maple: Secure and Private AI for Work and Personal Use

The system provides private key management, encrypted sync, and confidential computing features while maintaining user-friendly access.

Users get personal data vaults only they can access, while developers avoid liability concerns.

The platform promises to make private encryption more accessible through familiar login experiences.

OpenSecret

Thinking about: Now that the IBM i is open, we are starting to see more and more solutions from outside the traditional IBM i ecosystem.

Career

👩‍💻 How will AI change the role of the RPG Developer? The IBM i Developer?

Should developers worry about their positions going away?

The short answer is no. But their roles and tools will most definitely change.

Consider mechanics: Fifty years ago, mechanics primarily used wrenches and basic tools to fix cars. Today, while they still use wrenches, they also rely on sophisticated diagnostic equipment and computerized systems.

AI tools are becoming part of the developer’s toolkit.

Question: What skills will be most important when working with AI?

Similarly, while AI tools are changing how developers work, they aren’t replacing developers - but they likely will transform their roles.

Just as the work of developers has evolved dramatically over the past 50 years, the next few decades will bring significant changes to how we develop software.

Two critical skills (closely related) will become increasingly important:

First, the ability to effectively communicate and analyze problems will remain essential.

Second, developers will need to become Prompt Engineers, that is masters giving clear, precise instructions to AI tools. This includes understanding the capabilities and limitations of different AI models - whether they’re general-purpose Large Language Models (LLMs) or specialized AI tools designed for specific tasks.

While AI will handle many routine coding tasks, human developers will remain vital for their ability to understand context, provide direction, and solve complex problems.

🔍 Curiosity sparks higher performance in the workplace Research shows that organizations with curious employees consistently outperform their peers. When workers are encouraged to explore and ask questions, they develop more innovative solutions, make fewer decision-making errors, and build stronger team relationships.

Learning

It’s not too Late to register for the WMCPA Spring Conference

The WMCPA iCON Conference is just around the corner! This premier event offers expert-led sessions on IBM i, open-source technologies, and security. Highlights include networking opportunities, a unique Reverse Job Fair for students, and engagement with industry vendors.

👉 Quick Links:

Sessions Grid: View Schedule
Registration: Register Now
More Info: WMCPA.org

💡 WMCPA offers free IT career exploration day for students on March 12, featuring sessions on business-IT integration, interdepartmental communication, and real-world development challenges.

For students considering a career in IT, don’t miss this FREE training opportunity.

Vendor

🛡️ Shield Advanced Solutions revolutionizes IBM i monitoring (Press Release)

Shield’s AAG Nagios monitoring plugin gets a powerful upgrade through Ansible integration, enabling automated remediation capabilities.

What is Ansible?

a Red Hat-backed open-source tool, automates IT tasks with simple YAML playbooks, no agents, and a Python base, popular in DevOps.

The enhanced solution allows for automatic triggering of playbooks based on system conditions, handling everything from threshold breaches to PTF management.

This integration streamlines problem resolution and empowers administrators with custom remediation tasks, marking a significant advancement in IBM i system management.

Learn more about AAG here and here.

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Contact us

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