ICU IT Services Expands its Market Base by Embracing Linux on IBM Z and IBM LinuxONE
March 1, 2018
ICU IT Services used an IBM LinuxONE system to gain expertise in the Linux space and create Linux demo environments for its customers.
ArticlesIBM Storage Technology Shifts to Accommodate Cloud and Cognitive Demands
March 1, 2018
The IT industry is celebrated for its embrace of rapid change and disruptive breakthroughs, but storage is the outlier. If all of the disciplines of large-scale computing were invited to a party, storage would be the designated driver. After all, it’s the custodian of the handfuls of electrons and the tiny, fragile magnetic fields that […]
ArticlesNow Is the Time for Digital Transformation on IBM Z
March 1, 2018
In the northern hemisphere, seasonal changes in the weather are upon us. The familiar March winds and April showers aren’t entirely welcome, but typical and expected. Regular, significant change is no stranger in global enterprise IT—in fact, change is a constant. Fresh winds are never far away, blowing through the corridors of IT like an […]
ArticlesInstructor Brings the Mainframe to Eager Students
February 1, 2018
Phil Grabowski is passionate about the power of the mainframe. At the recent SHARE user group event, he chartered a bus so 29 students could experience the platform firsthand.
ArticlesThe Art and Science of AIX Performance: The System Monitors
February 1, 2018
The first three installments in this series of articles cover much ground. We’ve learned how to deploy statistics-gathering programs to collect data on the behavior of system workloads, we understand that maintaining a complete history of those systems and what runs on them is essential to our diagnosis, and we know that keeping firmware up […]
ArticlesEnterprises Tap Hybrid Cloud for Agile DevOps and Innovation
February 1, 2018
After years of talking about it, many large enterprises are making cloud deployments the centerpiece of an overall organizational transformation. Often, they take a hybrid approach that begins with DevOps. They are recognizing driving business innovation and better meeting shifting market demands requires significantly reduced development times and rethinking how developers innovate. They are also […]
ArticlesHarry Williams on Building the Next Generation of Mainframers
February 1, 2018
Reg Harbeck talks with Harry Williams about his involvement with SHARE and bringing new people to the platform. Listen to the interview via the orange play button or read the transcript below. Reg Harbeck: Hi. I'm Reg Harbeck and I'm here with Harry Williams, who is the president of SHARE. Harry has been really involved […]
ArticlesEstablishing an Infrastructure for Tuning a Distributed Network
February 1, 2018
Just as with system or application tuning on a computer, network tuning is a discipline involving hardware and software, but components and methodology differ significantly. There are also commonalities, like the need to collect performance data from various sources, the need to understand interdependence and interactions involved in changing software, hardware or both. Product knowledge […]
ArticlesIBM Design Thinking Leads to an Elevated User Experience
February 1, 2018
Before design thinking even had a name, innovative companies saw its value. The premise is straightforward—a product should be designed and built to meet the users’ wants and needs. In 2012, Charlie Hill, IBM Fellow, vice president, Platform Experience, began working with Phil Gilbert, general manager for IBM Design, to co-found IBM Design Thinking. “Design […]
ArticlesAndrea Fletcher, Software Developer, Lincoln Heritage Life Insurance Company
January 8, 2018
Name: Andrea Fletcher Title: Software developer Company Name: Lincoln Heritage Life Insurance Company Company’s Function: Final expense insurance HQ: Phoenix Years in IT: 3 The biggest challenge our data center is facing today is the rest of the company’s perception of what IT does. My favorite activity outside of work is any DIY activity. I […]
ArticlesThings to Consider When Doing a Network Redesign
January 2, 2018
When I started my career, my assignment was singular: Support CICS/VS on the mainframe. My clients were few, because online processing was relatively new, but two of the clients had grown into major players in online and were significantly expanding outside their home offices. In fact, these clients had offices spread across a substantial portion […]
ArticlesIBM Z Addresses GDPR Compliance With Pervasive Encryption
January 2, 2018
Personal data should be treated as important, guarded information. The European Union (EU) has underscored this fact by establishing the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), which goes into effect May 25. Cindy Compert, IBM cybersecurity leader, U.S. Public Sector Market, and CTO, data security and privacy, IBM Security, prefers to more informally call the GDPR “the […]
ArticlesIBM z14 Pervasive Encryption Protects All Data
January 2, 2018
In reality, encryption is largely absent from corporate data centers. The IBM z14 is poised to change that.
ArticlesOpen Source is Changing Businesses
January 2, 2018
Some revolutions begin with a bang. But not the open-source revolution. In 1991, Finnish inventor Linus Torvalds was working on a computer project with the sole purpose of providing a challenge for himself. Liking what he saw, Torvalds showed the software that was to become Linux* to other programmers. Soon, many programmers began to contribute, […]
ArticlesYour Partner in the Cloud
January 2, 2018
McKinsey & Company predicts that enterprises building multiclouds with infrastructure on-premises are expected to double provisioned workloads by 2018 (bit.ly/2iz4a5k). Private clouds, when designed with the right technology, can deliver the simplicity associated with public cloud solutions, while retaining the security, availability and freedom traditionally associated with infrastructure fully under your control. IBM Power Systems* […]
ArticlesUSAA Integrates Applications and Data Across Platforms Using RESTful APIs
January 1, 2018
UP CLOSE Customer: USAA Headquarters: San Antonio Business: Financial services Challenge: Integrating applications and data across platforms Solution: Using RESTful APIs to open communications channels between backend and client-side resources Hardware: Eight IBM z13 systems Software: IBM WebSphere Application Server “There’s gold in them thar hills!” an old and enduring U.S. miner saying goes. It can apply today, as organizations are finding […]
ArticlesAn Application View of Data Is Important for a Point-in-Time Recovery
January 1, 2018
Hardly a week goes by without another report of data being stolen, lost or corrupted. Black hats working for organized crime or unfriendly governments often perpetrate these events, but many are the result of poor planning, carelessness or outright neglect. While most data centers with mainframe footprints have a disaster recovery (DR) strategy with a […]
ArticlesThe Art and Science of AIX Performance: The Stats Utilities
January 1, 2018
This is the third installment in my series on AIX performance. Part 1 focuses on current firmware, the foundation upon which any good AIX system performance is built. I also explain why taking a detailed history is so important to diagnosing performance problems. Part 2 explores the depth to which one can understand how a […]
PodcastsAndrew Hicks Celebrates Interest in the Mainframe and Building 3-D Printers
January 1, 2018
Reg Harbeck: Hi. I’m Reg Harbeck and today I’m here with Andrew Hicks who is a new IBMer who is involved with the mainframe and a vast number of other really interesting things. I met him at SHARE and every conversation we’ve had has been so interesting that we absolutely had to do a zTalk […]
ArticlesTrevor Perry on Slide Decks and IT Strategy
January 1, 2018
Paul Tuohy: Hi everybody and welcome to the first iTalk with Tuohy of 2018. To kick off the year, I think no better person to maybe look back at 2017 with and to kick off the new year is my friend, my colleague, my fellow IBM Champion and general AS/400 evangelist, Trevor Perry. [Laughs] I […]
ArticlesManaging Emerging Technologies
December 18, 2017
In this post, I finish up my focus on the management theme from the previous four weeks of posts, with a concentration on the management of emerging technologies like robots and artificial intelligence (AI). There’s been much written about jobs being lost to new technologies like computerized algorithms (at this time) and autonomous vehicles (in […]
ArticlesA Focus on Cloud Management
December 11, 2017
In this post, I keep my focus on the management theme from the previous three weeks of posts with concentration on cloud. What is different with cloud as compared to system, network and application management? Don’t cloud services require system and network management? Don’t cloud services run an application so isn’t application management useful? Time […]
PodcastsConnor Krukosky Talks About His Unconventional Path into Mainframes and IBM
December 11, 2017
Reg Harbeck talks with Connor Krukosky, young mainframe enthusiast, about how he got into mainframes and what he loves about the IBM Z platform. Listen to the interview via the orange play button or read the transcript below. Reg Harbeck: Hi. This is Reg Harbeck and today I have the honor and pleasure of being […]
ArticlesREXX Language Helps Ensure Consistency of Applications Across Platforms
December 4, 2017
The fact that the REXX programming language has a long history is an asset. It speaks to its stability, growth and expansion to different platforms and multiple versions. REXX has earned its reputation as a small, easy-to-learn language, just 23 instruction statements, that can be used to write programs for a wide variety of needs. […]
ArticlesA Comprehensive Approach to Application Management
December 4, 2017
In this post, I explore the discipline of application management, which is an IT management process with tools focused on the availability, performance and manageability of applications. Applications that have files, databases and other resources distributed over multiple OS images can be a challenge to manage. When suddenly some part of the application isn’t working, […]