Re: open source the IBM i kernel. Was: Why i??? NEED YOUR INPUT

[Jon Paris <jon.paris@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

On Feb 26, 2010, at 11:26 AM, midrange-l-request@xxxxxxxxxxxx wrote:

> Let's perform a thought experiment.  I have an ERP package that runs  
> my
> business.  It runs on IBM i.  IBM _does_ open source i5/OS, the RPG
> compiler, etc.  My 19 year old niece _does_ hack some new code into  
> them and releases the changes into the wild.



I agree with your sentiment Buck. But I don't think there's any danger  
of your niece (or anyone else much) _wanting_ to hack the OS. So much  
of it is written in PL/MI. It is proprietary - never released publicly  
by IBM - and not likely to be since that would open up the other PL/x  
derivatives which are not even owned by Rochester. Trust me, very few  
C# or Java fans like Steve will _ever_ want to work in PL/MI. It has  
some nice features but is not an easy language to get into.

The RPG compiler on the other hand is written in C - now that we could  
work with. Well not me personally - I hate C - but someone would enjoy  
playing I'm sure.

Is this the 33rd or 34th time this list has hosted this discussion  
<grin>


Jon Paris

www.Partner400.com
www.SystemiDeveloper.com