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(→‎Rules regarding this Wiki: Extended rules after learning what people can do.)
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I had a hard time to learn and I want to make it easier for you to just get started.
I had a hard time to learn and I want to make it easier for you to just get started.


Most content in this Wiki is based on my own experiences with an old 9401-150 machine, running OS/400 V4R5 with latest patches, which is from the early 2000's. When I describe newer machines or OS releases, I'll indicate that in the text.
Most content in this Wiki is based on my own experiences with an old 9401-150 machine, running OS/400 V4R5 with latest patches, that is from the early 2000's. When I describe newer machines or OS releases, I'll indicate that in the text.
 
Please read [[The Naming of the System]] for my thoughts regarding the battle of ''It's not an AS/400 anymore!''


=== Evolution ===
=== Evolution ===
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This is different with OS/400. Newer releases of OS/400 carry over almost all stuff you'd know from V4. Most knowledge you acquired with just V4 isn't worthless with V7. V7 has '''additional''' capabilities to learn. And that's probably one of many reasons, why the AS/400 is sometimes called a ''mini-mainframe''. It's all about backward compatibility, seen from an application's point of view.
This is different with OS/400. Newer releases of OS/400 carry over almost all stuff you'd know from V4. Most knowledge you acquired with just V4 isn't worthless with V7. V7 has '''additional''' capabilities to learn. And that's probably one of many reasons, why the AS/400 is sometimes called a ''mini-mainframe''. It's all about backward compatibility, seen from an application's point of view.


== Background ==
If you are interested in background information how and by whom the system was developed, see [[History]].
IBM has a long standing history for providing machinery and services for classical business cases. Maybe the AS/400 is commonly perceived as ultimately boring because of that: The AS/400 is mostly running stuff considered boring (by geeks). Commercial IT at it's best<ref>Or worst.</ref>: Warehouse management, personnel administration, tracking account movements, to name a few. Stuff that makes sure civilisation as we know it won't collapse, because money stops flowing, carriage of goods ceases, personnel isn't directed to where needed.
 
IBM launched the '''AS/400''' hardware platform with it's proprietary operating system called '''OS/400''' in 1988. This platform was essentially a somewhat modified version of the ''IBM System/38'', announced in 1978. The S/38 is the brainchild of [[wikipedia:Frank Soltis|Frank Soltis]] (Hardware), Dick Bains and Dan Hicks (Software) and [[wikipedia:Glenn Henry (IT entrepreneur)|Glenn Henry]] (Project Manager), with contributions from lot more of people.
 
Ca. 1997, the whole platform was rebranded to '''AS/400e''' (for eServer), reflecting IBMs strategy to focus on e-Business. Around the year 2000, the platform was rebranded again as '''iSeries eServer''', while around 2005 the next renaming took place, to '''System i''', <ref>Coincidently to a rename of the former RS6000 machines to '''System p'''.</ref> while the Operating System was renamed from '''OS/400''' to '''i5/OS'''. Eventually, with the advent of OS release V6R1 around 2007, the OS got it's today's name, '''IBM i''', while the hardware was renamed to simply '''POWER'''.<ref>The transition from separate hardware developments for AIX and OS/400 to common hardware was completed by then.</ref>
 
See [[The Naming of the System]] for thoughts regarding this topic.
 
=== See also ===
* From the english Wikipedia:
** [[wikipedia:IBM_System_i|IBM System i]]
** [[wikipedia:IBM_i|IBM i]]


== Getting started ==
== Getting started ==
If you are interested in getting to know (more) about AS/400 basics, you may read [[About Green Screens and mouse-clickable UIs]] as well as about [[Features which separate the AS/400 from common computer systems]] to get a first glance what makes this platform so unique. This might provide a better understanding when deciding if you want to continue exploring the AS/400 beyond theoretical statements.
If you are interested in getting to know (more) about AS/400 basics, you may read [[About Green Screens and mouse-clickable UIs]] as well as about [[Features that separate the AS/400 from common computer systems]] to get a first glance what makes this platform so unique. This might provide a better understanding when deciding if you want to continue exploring the AS/400 beyond theoretical statements.


Want to dive deep? You should decide if you want your own machine or if it's sufficient to have remote access to a machine to start exploring as an ordinary user, without administrative rights. You may start with the latter and get your own machine at a later point in time, though.
Want to dive deep? You should decide if you want your own machine or if it's sufficient to have remote access to a machine to start exploring as an ordinary user, without administrative rights. You may start with the latter and get your own machine at a later point in time, though.
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Currently there is no known way to run OS/400 on (virtual) x86 platforms.<ref>There has been support for the 80386 in OS/400 for the so called ''portable'' AS/400, 9401-P02 and P03. This hardware utilized an 80386/20. But that's only the CPU, all the other stuff is as non-PC as can be.</ref> OS/400 ''can'' be virtualized — on appropriate hardware. That is, some kind of IBM POWER based system. But if you have the hardware in the first place, virtualization is probably superfluous.
Currently there is no known way to run OS/400 on (virtual) x86 platforms.<ref>There has been support for the 80386 in OS/400 for the so called ''portable'' AS/400, 9401-P02 and P03. This hardware utilized an 80386/20. But that's only the CPU, all the other stuff is as non-PC as can be.</ref> OS/400 ''can'' be virtualized — on appropriate hardware. That is, some kind of IBM POWER based system. But if you have the hardware in the first place, virtualization is probably superfluous.


OS/400 in recent versions can host LPARs for Linux, AIX, and itself, so it's quite possible to have a good deal of integration the other way 'round.<ref>POWER 8 is the first CPU with complete little endian support, which is required by most free and current Linux Distros like Debian (ppc64el). For older POWERs you need to find an appropriately older Distro which supports big endian (ppc64) CPUs.</ref>
OS/400 in recent versions can host LPARs for Linux, AIX, and itself, so it's quite possible to have a good deal of integration the other way 'round.<ref>POWER 8 is the first CPU with complete little endian support, that is required by most free and current Linux Distros like Debian (ppc64el). For older POWERs you need to find an appropriately older Distro that supports big endian (ppc64) CPUs.</ref>


== Further Reading ==
== Further Reading ==
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* [[Getting Data in and out of your AS/400]]
* [[Getting Data in and out of your AS/400]]
* [[Basic Software Development]]
* [[Basic Software Development]]
=== See also ===
* From the english Wikipedia:
** [[wikipedia:IBM_System_i|IBM System i]]
** [[wikipedia:IBM_i|IBM i]]


== Restrictions regarding this Wiki ==
== Restrictions regarding this Wiki ==
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** avoid spelling errors, slipshod procedure descriptions, and abstruse language.
** avoid spelling errors, slipshod procedure descriptions, and abstruse language.
* Name articles concise and distinctly (Wikis don't provide a hierarchy),
* Name articles concise and distinctly (Wikis don't provide a hierarchy),
** avoid repeating terms in several article names which are better used as a category name.
** avoid repeating terms in several article names that are better used as a category name.
* Always add category-tags at end of articles. This permits automatic grouping of related articles and better retrieval if the search function doesn't provide expected results.
* Always add category-tags at end of articles. This permits automatic grouping of related articles and better retrieval if the search function doesn't provide expected results.
* Add images sparsely and as additional reference only. Main explanation must be actual text, so
* Add images sparsely and as additional reference only. Main explanation must be actual text, so
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* Don't flood/plaster articles with full-size pictures. It strains the eyes to read!
* Don't flood/plaster articles with full-size pictures. It strains the eyes to read!
* Adhere to Wikipedia Style when outlining articles:
* Adhere to Wikipedia Style when outlining articles:
** Begin articles with a sentence or two which roughly describes what the article is about, highlight keywords also appearing in the article name,
** Begin articles with a sentence or two that roughly describes what the article is about, highlight keywords also appearing in the article name,
** Use separate sections for Weblink collections and Footnotes at the very end of the article,
** Use separate sections for Weblink collections and Footnotes at the very end of the article,
** Don't use the Single-Equals sign for sections, this is already implied by the article heading.
** Don't use the Single-Equals sign for sections, this is already implied by the article heading.

Revision as of 22:56, 9 March 2020

This Wiki is intended to help average computer users (probably you) who also are novice users with IBM i to get started with the system quickly. The system is in parts dramatically different from many things you've probably learned from conventional systems. This makes it hard to learn the concepts. Additionally, there's a certain amount of slang. Without proper translation into terms we know, it's even more complicated to get going.

Fortunately, there's a wealth of online resources available in the web. Unfortunately, these are scattered around, sometimes providing insight to special topics while omitting basic information for helping novice users to just get started.

Why?

The AS/400 is a huge platform to explore. As you probably wouldn't expect to learn everything Linux from reading three Wikipedia-Articles, you may possibly understand that this Wiki has a lot of content and is constantly growing and filled with more information. Also, existing content is prone to being enhanced and corrected of errors. You may help with this by writing me to <webhamster@pocnet.net>.

I had a hard time to learn and I want to make it easier for you to just get started.

Most content in this Wiki is based on my own experiences with an old 9401-150 machine, running OS/400 V4R5 with latest patches, that is from the early 2000's. When I describe newer machines or OS releases, I'll indicate that in the text.

Please read The Naming of the System for my thoughts regarding the battle of It's not an AS/400 anymore!

Evolution

Why should you care for V4? The current version is V7.something!

Every OS does evolve over time. So does OS/400, or IBM i, as it's called today. Windows Server 2019 bears a certain resemblance to Windows 2000 (not counting the UI changes!). Much stuff you learned in the 2000's era is outdated and never needed again in modern systems, though. MacOS 9 from 2001 bears only a slight resemblance to today's OS X (or macOS as it's now called). Most conventional platforms don't just evolve, they change, often in incompatible ways.

This is different with OS/400. Newer releases of OS/400 carry over almost all stuff you'd know from V4. Most knowledge you acquired with just V4 isn't worthless with V7. V7 has additional capabilities to learn. And that's probably one of many reasons, why the AS/400 is sometimes called a mini-mainframe. It's all about backward compatibility, seen from an application's point of view.

If you are interested in background information how and by whom the system was developed, see History.

Getting started

If you are interested in getting to know (more) about AS/400 basics, you may read About Green Screens and mouse-clickable UIs as well as about Features that separate the AS/400 from common computer systems to get a first glance what makes this platform so unique. This might provide a better understanding when deciding if you want to continue exploring the AS/400 beyond theoretical statements.

Want to dive deep? You should decide if you want your own machine or if it's sufficient to have remote access to a machine to start exploring as an ordinary user, without administrative rights. You may start with the latter and get your own machine at a later point in time, though.

  • Holger Scherer has been providing free access to an IBM i installation hosted in his company's bunker, for people to explore the system, learn and perhaps start programming. Unfortunately, this has been abused by commercial trainers and Holger decided to change rules. I absolutely support his decision but this means more restrictions for good guys also.
  • If you decide having your own machine is the way to go, I encourage you to start looking at internet auction sites and companies with IBM i expertise for a used box to eventually call your own.

The ever growing UNIX-User's Cheater Table could probably be helpful in finding out a certain command when you know the command in UNIX.

If you're coming from the IBM Mainframe World, you'll be relieved that many concepts are borrowed from OS/360. If there's demand, I'll probably add an extra article for an overview of similarities and differences.

A word on virtualization

Currently there is no known way to run OS/400 on (virtual) x86 platforms.[1] OS/400 can be virtualized — on appropriate hardware. That is, some kind of IBM POWER based system. But if you have the hardware in the first place, virtualization is probably superfluous.

OS/400 in recent versions can host LPARs for Linux, AIX, and itself, so it's quite possible to have a good deal of integration the other way 'round.[2]

Further Reading

This selection of initial reading may be not applicable to your particular situation, maybe because you're not (yet) owning an AS/400 or your box came with OS/400 preinstalled.

A little more advanced Topics:

See also

Restrictions regarding this Wiki

This Wiki is read only for guest users because of frequent vandalism and spamming. Also, self-creating user accounts isn't allowed for the very same reasons.

Volunteers are very welcome, especially for correcting my possibly numerous syntactic errors and misplaced commas. Feel free write an eMail to <webhamster@pocnet.net> and I'll add an account for you.

I'm also happy with any feedback. Even if it's only to say thank you.

Rules regarding this Wiki

Quality of the content comes before quantity. Also, to provide reasonable understandability and searchability for articles, please adhere to the following points:

  • Keep a high quality of language,
    • avoid spelling errors, slipshod procedure descriptions, and abstruse language.
  • Name articles concise and distinctly (Wikis don't provide a hierarchy),
    • avoid repeating terms in several article names that are better used as a category name.
  • Always add category-tags at end of articles. This permits automatic grouping of related articles and better retrieval if the search function doesn't provide expected results.
  • Add images sparsely and as additional reference only. Main explanation must be actual text, so
    • automatic translation services can actually do translate content,
    • disabled persons can make better use of this Wiki.
  • Don't flood/plaster articles with full-size pictures. It strains the eyes to read!
  • Adhere to Wikipedia Style when outlining articles:
    • Begin articles with a sentence or two that roughly describes what the article is about, highlight keywords also appearing in the article name,
    • Use separate sections for Weblink collections and Footnotes at the very end of the article,
    • Don't use the Single-Equals sign for sections, this is already implied by the article heading.
  • Be precise when mentioning actual products.

Please consult me before introducing new categories.

Footnotes

  1. ↑ There has been support for the 80386 in OS/400 for the so called portable AS/400, 9401-P02 and P03. This hardware utilized an 80386/20. But that's only the CPU, all the other stuff is as non-PC as can be.
  2. ↑ POWER 8 is the first CPU with complete little endian support, that is required by most free and current Linux Distros like Debian (ppc64el). For older POWERs you need to find an appropriately older Distro that supports big endian (ppc64) CPUs.
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