Presentation Layer for RM COBOL and PowerCOBOL Migration
in [Cobol]
|
From: rtwolfe on 1 Aug 2010 19:34 On Jul 30, 3:22 pm, Richard <rip...(a)Azonic.co.nz> wrote: [snip] > I have done conversions from field by field to Flexus SP2 and these > required returning to program logic after most entry fields. This can > be done in SP2 easily. Screen section can usually do this too, but it > is, IMHO, a real pain to control. > > Converting from field by field to screen section and then to something > else is just doubling the workload. Best to do a complete rewrite. Richard, During the past couple years, we have developed several automated user interface migration tools which we use in-house to offer user interface migration services. This includes DISPLAY/ACCEPT to COBOL sp2 GUI, Screen Section to COBOL sp2 GUI and several other environments. One of the more interesting tools is one which migrates Acucorp GT GUI source code to .NET Winforms and C#. The non-user interface source remains in COBOL. I don't know whether or not this tool could be adapted to RM COBOL DISPLAY/ACCEPT code, but I'm sure that we could take a look at it. Pete, if you are interested, I could check to see if we can convert Screen Section code to Webforms. Just let me know.
From: Pete Dashwood on 1 Aug 2010 20:39
rtwolfe wrote: > On Jul 30, 3:22 pm, Richard <rip...(a)Azonic.co.nz> wrote: > [snip] >> I have done conversions from field by field to Flexus SP2 and these >> required returning to program logic after most entry fields. This can >> be done in SP2 easily. Screen section can usually do this too, but it >> is, IMHO, a real pain to control. >> >> Converting from field by field to screen section and then to >> something else is just doubling the workload. Best to do a complete >> rewrite. > > Richard, > > During the past couple years, we have developed several automated user > interface migration tools which we use in-house to offer user > interface migration services. This includes DISPLAY/ACCEPT to COBOL > sp2 GUI, Screen Section to COBOL sp2 GUI and several other > environments. > > One of the more interesting tools is one which migrates Acucorp GT GUI > source code to .NET Winforms and C#. The non-user interface source > remains in COBOL. > > I don't know whether or not this tool could be adapted to RM COBOL > DISPLAY/ACCEPT code, but I'm sure that we could take a look at it. > > Pete, if you are interested, I could check to see if we can convert > Screen Section code to Webforms. Just let me know. Thanks Bob. I'm still assessing this whole exercise. It needs to be done cheaply for the people who need it and the work will not be profitable. I'll do it out of friendship and because they have done me a few favours over the years. My hope was that whatever is used might be of use to others and, obviously, the more people who use something the less it needs to cost. I already have components I wrote in COBOL and C# that can easily process their COBOL source and build the screen section, although, as Richard pointed out, if they are interactively processing each field, there would need to be some extensive restructuring of the whole program code. I'm OK with that as long as I can automate it. It will be too expensive to do it manually. I'm glad to see Flexus are still in business; you've always had good products. The general trend I'm finding with COBOL migration is that people want to go to web based front ends as part of migration. Usually it is ASP.NET (with C# or VB.NET code-behinds). If you have ability to generate Web Forms from existing interfaces, I think that could be useful. Will keep it in mind. Pete. -- "I used to write COBOL...now I can do anything." |