New Mainframe Redbook

IBM published a new mainframe redbook this week that everyone who works with mainframe technology should download and have handy. It is titled Introduction to the New Mainframe: z/OS Basics and it offers a very nice high-level overview of mainframe technology circa 2006.

Of course, if you are a long-time mainframer much of this redbook may be too high level for you. But it will be just the right thing to have at your disposal when someone drops by to ask a basic question. Just e-mail them a copy of the book.

And even long-time experts still might want to at least leaf through it. It is divided into four broad sections, as follows:

• Part 1. Introduction to z/OS and the mainframe
• Part 2. Application programming on z/OS
• Part 3. Online workloads for z/OS
• Part 4. System programming on z/OS

So maybe you are a crackerjack programmer, but would like to know more about system programming. Maybe your online knowledge is skimpy. Or maybe you just want a nice overview of everything. Then this book is just the ticket!

Here is a brief synopsis out of the Preface of the redbook:

This IBM Redbook provides students of information systems technology with the background knowledge and skills necessary to begin using the basic facilities of a mainframe computer. It is the first in a planned series of textbooks designed to introduce students to mainframe concepts and help prepare them for a career in large systems computing.

This textbook can also be used as a prerequisite for courses in advanced topics or for internships and special studies. It is not intended to be a complete text covering all aspects of mainframe operation, nor is it a reference book that discusses every feature and option of the mainframe facilities.

Others who will benefit from this course include experienced data processing professionals who have worked with non-mainframe platforms, or who are familiar with some aspects of the mainframe but want to become knowledgeable with other facilities and benefits of the mainframe environment.

So download Introduction to the New Mainframe: z/OS Basics today...