Re: Self-study courses in RPG?

[Buck <kc2hiz@xxxxxxxxx>]

James Lampert wrote:

> Terry Anderson wrote:
> > Not necessarily. I have nothing but PDM and SEU here and I do everything
> > in /free.
>
> Uh, the last time I looked, there was one other development tool 
> involved, besides editors and source management. I think it's called ... 
> a compiler.
>
> Our V5R2 box has no development tools at all, other than EDTF and the CL 
> compiler.
>
> Our V4R5 has the CL compiler and PDM/SEU.
>
> Our V4R4 and V4R2 boxes have all our development tools (but I don't 
> trust the ILE C on the V4R4 box for anything I'd willingly send to a 
> customer).
>
> And the ILE RPG compilers on both development boxes are V4R2. So neither 
> one of them has "/free."

James,
Respectfully, you have probably a unique environment there.  Since V4 is 
 beyond obsolete, it's perfectly reasonable that a responder on an RPG 
list would not immediately think that anyone here would be running a 
development operation targetting a compiler old enough not to have /free...

Regarding the self-study, I (like you) have never used a formal 
mechanism to learn RPG, and I'm not sure 'learn by doing' was much of an 
advantage compared to an explicit syllabus.  To that point, I think you 
may be doing yourself a disservice by discounting the value you 
personally add to the development of a syllabus that fits your 
particular circumstances.  At the very least, consider writing an 
outline.  Perhaps the top 10 things that you find indispensable in your 
organisation?

Your returning programmer can then observe code in your shop that 
matches these important concepts, and do some investigatory projects 
that will familiarise her with the practical pitfalls of each.
  --buck