Re: Which of the SYSIBM tables/views show the row count for

[Joe Pluta <joepluta@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Lukas Beeler wrote:
> The real, important work is still there, but many shops running i5/OS
> are still stuck in their AS/400 mindset:
>   
I won't spend a ton of time on this because it's truly an opinion piece, 
but consider that your mindset is partially colored by your experience.

> * No transactions
> * No referantial integrity
> * No Journalling
>   
Most IBM midrange shops haven't needed these because their primary 
purpose is to recover from a database or system crash, and these simply 
don't happen on the System i.  Back in the days when disk space and CPU 
cycles were a premium, it was a huge benefit to not have to do these 
things.  Now, I guess there's less reason, but I appreciate the fact 
that I don't have to do all the extra work entailed.

> * No proper DB backup procedures (SWA, Journal Backups)
>   
Most shops I know do backups fine.  SWA is a nice feature, but not 
necessary.  And if your don't use journals, you don't need to back them up!

> * No proper DB API using stored procedures (e.G. RLA directly from the
> App or SQL directly from the App)
>   
This is an application design issue.  A good server-based design is just 
as encapsulated as stored procedures and doesn't lock you into the SQL 
syntax (which was never designed for program-to-program calls).

> * No SQL Indexes
>   
We agree here, at least <smile>.  If a shop is using SQL and not using 
indexes, then they definitely need education.

> With many i5/OS databases stuck in the early eighties, there is not
> much need for a database administrator.
>   
Again, a lot of your complaints are design choices.  You don't need 
transactions and journaling on every file in the system.  RI is probably 
a good thing these days, but it's not necessary if your applications are 
written correctly.  I'm just glad I don't work on a machine where 
transactions are required because the database goes casters up regularly.

My opinions, purely.  Your mileage may vary.

Joe