30th Anniversary of the Platinum Db2 Tip of the Month

If you have worked with Db2 as long as I have you probably have fond memories of the Platinum Db2 Tip of the Month... but I know there are a lot of you out there who have no idea what I'm talking about. So let me explain.

First of all, there used to be a software company called Platinum Technology, Inc. They were headquartered in Oak Brook Terrace, Illinois and made some of the earliest Db2 for z/OS management products. Platinum was acquired by CA in 1999 and most of those good old Platinum Db2 tools are still available from CA today (albeit updated and modified, of course).

Well, back in the day, Platinum was one of the most innovative marketers in the world of Db2, and they used to mail out a monthly tip about how to use Db2 more efficiently. Even though they sold and marketed their tools, they were promoting Db2 itself (which made sense, because if Db2 thrived, so would their tools). 

And yes, I said mailed. With a stamp. In a mailbox and delivered by a postal worker. This was well before the days of email and the Internet. So each month, Db2 DBAs would eagerly anticipate receiving the latest tip of the month from Platinum... I know I did... until I joined Platinum and started writing the tips!

So the point of this blog post is just to commemorate the occasion, as this month, November 2018, marks the 30th anniversary of the first tip, which was mailed out to Db2 users in November 1988.

And here is what that tip was:

This is the type of thing that the tips covered, among many other tricks and techniques. 

And no, I do not still have this first tip in its original version (although I do still have a stack of original tips). This image comes from the 50th Monthly Tip book that Platinum published compiling the first fifty tips.

Here is the cover of that book:

Thanks for taking this trip down Db2 memory lane with me... hope you enjoyed it! How many of you "out there" still have copies of the Platinum Monthly Db2 Tips?