I agree,
This essentially makes in mandatory to be SMS on any volume and that
means a lot of rule changes in the SMS constructs and in addition
forcing SMS on just about any type of load module PDSE's. IN
addition it seems to make in necessary for the whole SMS
infrastructure to be in place day 1 of the new new COBOL.
I am all for SMS but in a graduated fashion. Load modules PDSe's are
a PITA in a lot of ways. My thinking is that there will be a lot of
people NOT upgrading to the new COBOL just because of this.
Ed
On Sep 9, 2013, at 9:52 AM, Farley, Peter x23353 wrote:
It isn't just the raw library conversion that is an issue for large
shops. It is also the "plumbing", the everyday compile and
debugging procedures and tools. Consider the SDLC tool to start
with, which may be commercial (requiring the shop to wait on the
vendor for appropriate changes and then the normal rash of testing
and QA requirements before the new product version can be
implemented) or which may be home-grown, requiring active changes
by often scarce (and due to experienced retirements and/or layoffs,
far less knowledgeable of the design and execution of the
"plumbing" tools) internal personnel, requiring prioritization of
time and talents that may or may not be available due to more
pressing business requirements, or even if available, able to
accomplish the needed changes in a timely manner.
As usual, the devil is in the details, regardless of the
desirability of the end result. Implementation bureaucracy has
real value when changes can introduce instability costing clients
and companies real money, but also extends the time it takes to
implement even desirable results.
"Conservative" shops, in the pejorative sense that you use, have
real cost concerns that drive their conservative approach to
change. Whether the ROI of a change is positive is not the issue;
"plumbing" changes like those being introduced by COBOL 5.1 take
time and talent away from legitimate, immediate business needs too.
All that said, I tend to agree with you that the changes are a
positive for the future. I just won't hold my breath while I wait
to see them for myself.
Peter
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