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For us, this was a great year. Growing the number of subscribers to our DAILY newsletter to over 700 is just one example of what we’ve achieved.
Now we are looking forward to 2023 where we can see a lot of activities around the IBM Power platform in our crystal ball. But first some relaxation and quality time with family and close friends.
Have you heard? HelpSystems is now Fortra! This webinar is your chance to go in depth on why we made this change and how it benefits you and your organization. During this discussion, Fortra leaders will share the story behind our new name and what it means when we say we’re tenacious in our pursuit of a stronger, simpler future for cybersecurity.
Watch the recorded session to learn:
Why we changed our identity
Key updates to our portfolio, including the Fortra platform and our Bundles
How our advanced threat research and intelligence informs everything we do
This session is a must for those eager to understand how the Fortra team of expert problem solvers is ready to find answers to your organization’s toughest problems, and how we remain committed to being a people-first company ready to collaborate with our customers.
Learn more at https://www.fortra.com/resources/videos/meet-fortra
On December 2, PTFs were released that added some new features to RPG. One of those features is the OPTIONS(*CONVERT) keyword. You add this keyword to parameters on your prototypes, and RPG will automatically convert the parameter to a character data type.
For example, consider the following subprocedure:
In this case, I accept a parameter that is a Unicode string and I’ve defined OPTIONS(*CONVERT), To keep things simple, this procedure simply prints the parameter using the DSPLY opcode.
Here’s what makes it interesting: It doesn’t matter what data type the caller provides! No matter if it is numeric, character, date or time – RPG will automatically convert it to VARUCS2(25), since that is what I specified for this parameter.
For example, the following will work fine:
The %TIME and %DATE built-in functions retrieve the current system time and date. Even though printVal() specifies a character parameter, the system will automatically convert them to character strings before passing them.
Likewise, the variables ts and dt represent timestamp and date fields, respectively. The final example uses a date literal. It doesn’t matter, they will all be converted to character, and the output looks like this:
Notice that the date that specified DATFMT(*DMY) printed in day-month-year format, the others did not have a format specified, so printed in the format of their respective data type. As a rule-of-thumb, it converts the data the same way that the %CHAR built-in function would.
I can also pass character and numeric fields, constants and literals to my printVal() subprocedure.
And it will convert them to the appropriate character value and display them.
There are some restrictions with this feature.
The parameter data type must either be a form of character (char, varchar, ucs2 or varucs2) or a pointer.
The parameter must be defined as CONST or VALUE.
If a pointer is used, it will be treated the same as options(*string), except that the caller can pass non-character data types.
While the parameter needs to be character, the caller can be just about anything. The only types it will not convert are pointers, procedure pointers and Java objects.
I suspect this feature will be useful for making subprocedures more versatile and easier to call. Since the caller can provide any data type, it won’t matter as much what format the caller’s data is in.
In a more extreme case, you could use it to add functionality to your subprocedure that adapts to the data that was given. For example, if I wanted to retrieve a customer’s phone number from the customer master (CUSTMAS) file, I could pass a search string with options(*convert) as follows:
Notice that I have an indicator called isNumber that will be on if the parameter can be interpreted as a valid number.
If a number was passed, I search the CUSTMAS file by the customer, but if it wasn’t a valid number, I used SQL to search for customer names that contain the character string provided.
For example, I could do this:
In this example, the first two calls will retrieve the customer number for account 1001 or 9999, respectively. The next ones will search for a customer with ‘Scott’ in their name, or ‘Tracy’ in their name. If a matching row Is found, their phone numbers will be printed (using the SND-MSG opcode that was added back in spring.)
I look forward to seeing all of the creative and useful things that people find to do with this new feature!
The post OPTIONS(*CONVERT) Keyword appeared first on Midrange Dynamics.
Welcome to our final newsletter of 2022, and a big festive hello from me!
This month we’re super excited to introduce you to automation services; a great way to jump start your journey to testing automation. With the help of an expert, we’ll get your test automation up and running while upskilling your team at the same time. Our new help centre is now live, and we’ve also got an exciting new single sign-on feature that’s just landed in Qualify Web.
Read on for your usual mix of customer stories, product news, latest blogs, UAT resources, and introductions to two new members of the Original Software family.
Enjoy!
Pam Grimley – Head of Customer Success
Our fast-start test automation services help you reach your automation goals quicker and with less risk, all while enhancing the skill levels of your own team as they get up to speed.
An experienced specialist will work with you, typically on a 3-month basis, to get your initiative moving and act as an expert and mentor for your own team.
Want to understand how your current UAT setup compares with industry best practice? Our benchmarking kit helps you see what you’re doing right, and what could be improved.
In the kit:
The Ultimate UAT Guide: showing you the gold standard for UAT
The UAT survey report: showing you latest UAT market trends
A UAT case study: showing what happens when you get it right
Managing Qualify client users within Windows Active Directory brings the ability to have a single sign-on to the application, speeding up and simplifying user management for your team.
Now, with our Cookie 6 release, single sign-on is also available in Qualify Web.
Please contact your customer success representative for more detailed information, or click below…
Do you have some team members or managers who would benefit from access to dashboards displaying real-time management data?
Qualify Web Dashboards brings fully customizable views to your management team that are super fast to create, and quick to modify.
We’ve overhauled our product support articles and we’re excited to bring you a brand new platform for your Help Center.
It’s still in the same location you’re used to, but take a look now and you’ll find it faster, cleaner and easier to navigate, with new articles being added all the time.
So if you’re looking for help in one of our products, training videos or technical how-to guides, check out our Help Center today!
In our latest blog we discuss how the way most organizations do UAT right now makes it NASTY.
Read why it is that UAT is such a pain – and what you can do to fix it.
Would you like to tell us what difference Original Software solutions have made in your organization?
Share your story and for everyone featured in a future newsletter, we will send a thank you gift for your trouble.
Kayleigh Cox, QA Specialist
Hey, I’m Kayleigh! Since I started working for Original Software in August 2022 as a QA Tester, it quickly became apparent that the company is second to none to work for. The drive and ambition everybody has is extraordinary; I feel very lucky to be part of a great team. I have been working as a software Tester for many years now and really enjoy the rewarding role.
In my spare time, you’ll find me going out on long walks with my miniature Dachshund Winnie who is the biggest diva you’ll meet, getting engrossed in new books, or cooking up a storm in the kitchen.
I’m excited to see where this opportunity will take me and love being part of Original Software!
Hi, I’m Matt! I’ve been lucky enough to join the company and a great team a little over two months ago. It’s been a very enjoyable and rewarding experience so far.
I’m a husband and dad to a little boy who actually believes he’s spider-man. During lockdown I decided to take up triathlon training which has since become my passion. I’m currently in training for my first half ironman in 2023 which will be a huge achievement, and one off the bucket list.
I’m excited to join the team at Original Software and to see what the future brings.
Matt Chard, Automation Specialist
As we move into 2023, we are looking forward to helping you and your colleagues achieve your quality goals.
In the meantime, we send our sincere best wishes for a healthy and happy new year for you and your loved ones!
The post 2022 December Newsletter appeared first on Original Software.
No doubt there are big disruptions coming to transportation and logistics. This is an industry where the #ibmi has a strong footprint, so many of the innovations needed are needed on this platform. #logistics #transportation #ibmi…lnkd.in/gRWui5eA bit.ly/3Wcp1cm
– Oscar Herrera (@OscarHerrera)19:27 – Dec 18, 2022
