Session Descriptions

Track 1 Modernizing and Extending Your iSeries Applications

HATS : Not your Father’s Screenscraper!
Wrap your arms around IBM’s Rational Host Access Transformation Services (HATS) and see for yourself that it’s not the screenscraper of the 90s! See for yourself how HATS enables you to rejuvenate any 3270 screen and deploy it to any user interface. Find out how HATS helps consolidate screens, minimize keystrokes, and access multiple back-end systems all without touching one line of code. Gain an overview of the core features in HATS, including Web browser support, rich client support, and portal support and hear about recently announced HATS features, like mobile device support and the Visual Macro Editor (VME). Plus, understand how the product is now packaged and find out where you can get hands-on information.

Creating Web Services from RPG Applications
Attend this session and get expert instruction on how to create Web services from RPG programs. Dive into the different options available from IBM, while leveraging technology that many iSeries shops are already entitled to. Get an overview of iSeries integrated Web services server for RPG; IBM Web Services Wizard; and HATS VME and Web services. Walk through screen shots of each method, along with step-by-step instructions for deployment. Also, compare different solutions so you can make an informed decision when you need to deploy Web services in your shop.

Building a Web Service in Minutes: Featuring HATS
Take advantage of IBM’s Rational Host Access Transformation Services (HATS) to quickly build Web services into your IBM i applications. Learn how new HATS enhancements enable you to create Web services from your IBM i, System z, and UNIX screens in minutes with absolutely no coding. Get a brief HATS overview then dive into the tooling used to create Web services from any 3270, 5250, or VTXXX application. Step through a demo of using the new HATS Visual Macro Editor to navigate any application and to create the integration objects that are used by Web services and other technologies. Finally, gain an understanding of the business benefits, as well as where you can get trial code and other product deliverables.

Hands-on Lab
Creating a Web Service using HATS
Put your new skills to practice in this lab as you create a Web service using HATS. First, get your hands on the HATS Visual Macro Editor to navigate through an RPG application, defining input and output fields and testing your macro as you go. Then put the HATS Web service creation tools to work to create an integration object that will execute your macro whenever your Web service is consumed by another application. Last, you will create the Web service and use the Web services Explorer to test it immediately. You’ll soon realize that once you get the hang of it, the whole process takes just a few minutes!

Bye, Bye SEU ! (Why You Should Kick the Habit)
See what you’ve been missing all these years and why you should kick your SEU habit to use a more modern development tool. First, decide if replacing SEU/PDM/SDA with a workstation-based toolset is the right decision for your shop. Evaluate the pros and cons of such a change, and figure out exactly how it will affect your productivity. And once you’ve decided to kick your old development toolset to the curb, you’ll get expert advice on the most appropriate tool to meet your specific development needs. Plus, gain insight into what old habits you should be looking to break when moving forward with your new toolset. You’ll find out just how much more productive and fun your programming job can be!

Moving from SEU and PD M to RSE (Remote System Explorer)
This session concentrates on the tools in WebSphere Development Studio Client (WDSC) that enable RPG programmers to replace SEU and PDM with Remote System Explorer (RSE). Get expert tips for installing and customizing RSE, starting with the RSE editor and related tools, helpful keyboard shortcuts, handy third-party plug-ins, and much more. Take an in-depth look at how the WDSC toolset changes the way you do your iSeries development in the future…you have nothing to lose but your application backlog!

Hands-on Lab
Taking RSE for a Test Drive
Come find out for yourself if Remote System Explorer (RSE) delivers the serious productivity gains it promises when building RPG applications. This hands-on follow-up session to “Moving from SEU and PDM to RSE” shows you the ins-and-outs of this powerful, Eclipse-based workbench that replaces SEU and PDM. Find out how and why RSE is more than a pretty face for SEU. You’ll see for yourself how productive you can be using the editor, the outline view, the verifier, and other highly productive programming tools. Take RSE for a spin, but be aware that it can become very addictive.

RSE Debugging Tools for RPGers
Gain insight into the most commonly used RSE debugging tools for RPG applications and discover your own favorite ways to accomplish debugging tasks in your shop. Delve into the STRDBG “green screen” debugger and the interactive debugger that is part of both WDSC and RDi. Look at the basics of using both, including selecting a debugging view, displaying and changing variables, and stepping through program execution. Weigh the pros and cons of each method to help determine which is the best for your debugging requirements.

Extending Your Applications with PHP
Take your knowledge of PHP to the next level and learn about the new and more advanced PHP features that help extend the scope of your applications. Get introduced to the Zend Bridge APIs, which enable you to integrate existing 5250 applications with PHP either as a Web service or in a new browser-enabled version of the application. Walk through examples of Zend’s i5 specific functions for manipulating spool files, calling programs and procedures, and utilizing the SQL and record level access functions provided. Familiarize yourself with the more advanced PHP functions like how to supply and consume Web services, interface with Excel spreadsheets, and more! In addition, review tools such as Zend Studio to help simplify your PHP programming tasks. This session builds upon the basics of PHP introduced in the Jumpstart session, and a basic understanding of PHP is assumed.

Hands-on Lab
PHP Programming
This lab provides you with hands-on exploration into the fundamentals of the PHP language and how it is implemented on the iSeries. Walk away equipped with the basics of PHP programming from an RPG programmer’s perspective. In addition, walk through examples of how to use DB2/400 and System i-specific extensions available with the Zend Core for i5. Leave this lab with the skills you need to take advantage of this emerging open source technology.

Leverage HTML, JavaScript, and CSS for Business Applications
See how to make HTML work for your business, how JavaScript can emulate the features in the current 5250 interface, and how to further simplify your development efforts with Cascading Style Sheets (CSS). From the basics on the HTML elements and the Document Object Model to the benefits and pitfalls of JavaScript, learn how to use HTML and CSS to create real business applications. Gain the know-how to handle the back button, enable function keys, manipulate the browser, create pop-up windows that make sense, and choose between Internet Explorer and Netscape Navigator. Find out how to use JavaScript to enable AJAX, and see how AJAX is leading the way in the next generation of Web applications — the rich client application — using the newest technologies like Google APIs, Dojo, and Silverlight.

EGL: The Next Generation in Application Design
Discover Enterprise Generation Language (EGL) tooling, IBM’s best-kept secret weapon for application development. Find out how EGL, a high-level language, is specifically designed to take as much of the “plumbing” work off of your hands as possible. Learn how to use EGL to easily communicate with data sources, including Web services, stored procedures, MQSeries, and RPG programs. See how you can easily define interfaces to all these different data sources and then create JavaServer Faces Web pages around them. Walk through the process of making newly built EGL application logic with existing browser-based code via AJAX. Then, take a look at the rich client technology coming in the new releases — get blown away by Google Maps and realtime charting. This is not your father’s business application!

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