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Extending the COBOL Programming Language |
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Common Business Oriented Language
The COBOL language was designed to automate simple data processing requirements. In the 1960’s, COBOL quickly emerged as the preferred programming language for business development. As the language evolved, standards emerged, ANS 68, 74, 85, 97, and COBOL applications became an important component of information technology software and infrastructure. For the past twenty years, there have been forecasts of a decline in COBOL application development with new development to be done exclusively with other programming languages such as C, C++, and Java.
However, the COBOL programming language has proven to be more resilient than predicted. In addition to the coding and operational challenges that had to be addressed with for Y2K, there continues to be resources spent in COBOL application development: maintenance, repurposing, and platform migration.
It is a given that new development platforms and programming languages will continue to be evaluated as a replacement for COBOL. However, a considerable number of information technology executives consider the past half century of COBOL code to be an organizational asset which needs to be evaluated in terms of integrating or repurposing with other development platforms and languages. Rewriting mission-critical, applications is time consuming and expensive and in many instances may not be commercially viable. The objective is to identify those areas of application development which can provide the most benefit with the least
development effort and leverage legacy systems already in place by rehosting the applications to other platforms or by interfacing legacy applications with new web services technologies.
The future of COBOL is standardizing applications in order that business applications written in COBOL will have access to the web. Most organizational enterprises have been redirecting a significant portion of their new application development toward e-commerce and digital content over the Internet. There is a transitioning underway from traditional COBOL development to e-business and web-enabled applications. A
COBOL programmer’s skillset will now need to include XML and Java.
Maintaining and Coding COBOL Programs
Over the past few years, there has been a significant increase in demand for COBOL training and educational consultancy in the IBM mainframe environment.
The functionality of the COBOL programming language has been extended to include:
- The exchange and usage of data in standardized formats including XML and Unicode which will be useful in precluding EBCDIC related problems in a distributed environment.
- Enhanced XML and Unicode support for utilization in a SOA: Service Oriented Architecture environment.
- Interoperability with Java components across distributed applications - z/OS, UNIX, Linux, and Windows environments.
- Support for Java interoperability in new systems which allows legacy code to be used with new applications.
- The reuse of existing applications in WebSphere Application Server.
- Support for z/OS UNIX System Services to access UNIX file types and run UNIX applications.
COBOL remains well suited and widely used for batch applications in large scale business computing.
The current release of COBOL includes support for object-oriented programming:
- XML generation and parsing.
- Calling conventions to and from non-COBOL languages such as C.
- Execution within framework environments such as Microsoft's .NET and Java.
SYS-ED Approach to COBOL Training
The COBOL programmers you need may be already be working for you! SYS-ED’s challenging “hands-on” COBOL training lets you develop your own programming staff and save the time,
effort and expense of hiring new personnel.
Since 1980, we have been helping organizations address their
mainframe staffing requirements. SYS-ED system consultants are superb teachers; and teach far more than the syntax of the
COBOL programming
language. We also provide the expertise and guidance on the
implementation of Enterprise COBOL,
interfacing COBOL with Java classes, optimizing COBOL modules, emphasizing readable and maintainable code, and migrating from
Micro Focus to
Micro Focus Net Express.
In SYS-ED courses, students learn by doing; one-third of their class time will be spent coding and debugging programs. Each student in a SYS-ED COBOL course receives a comprehensive hand-out and tailored COBOL training aids. After a course is over, students
can submit the inevitable COBOL questions which come up back on the job. Courses can be taken as part of an
integrated COBOL training program or a la carte. Tailored course offerings can be conducted on-site at the client location.
Courseware Superior by Design
The courseware provided in our COBOL courses is highly respected. It incorporates up to date source documentation and
subject matter that reflect an analysis of program logic and sample programs which have been validated on consultancy projects. Given the scarcity of up to date industry standard COBOL textbooks and the
increasingly hybrid implementations of FOSS: free open source software and IBM systems software, courseware which explains and demonstrates is fundamental to an effective learning experience.
SYS-ED courses and software specific websites have been designed to add value-added service to IBM's SOA initiative.
1- Delivery of content through multiple delivery medium as part of a collaborative environment for integrating data at a business level.
2- Student hand-outs, reference guides, and validation assessment for training human resources that leverage existing investments in software infrastructure.
3- Application development accelerators in the form of industry and client-specific training aids, examples, templates, and data modeling.
4- Support services in the form of technology updates, knowledge base, answers to questions, and tailored documentation in hybrid and interrelated information technology.
SYS-ED has extended its instructor-led
COBOL training service
to include distance-learning. Client organizations are presented with a palette of medium to select from in order to address operational, time compression, and validation assessment requirements.
The interrelationships among technology, productivity, and training are complex. The selection of the delivery medium requires a clear distinction between industry standard COBOL content and addressing the operational
requirements specific to the client organization. This service is offered selectively; no one is allowed to enroll in a course without an interview with our
Director of Education.
SYS-ED's COBOL instructor-led and web-based courses are offered through our New York schedule. Only employees sponsored by Fortune 1000 corporations, government municipalities, and healthcare providers are allowed to enroll in a SYS-ED course and only after a telephone consultation with our Director of Education. This is essential for ensuring that the
individual be placed in the course which corresponds to the employer’s operational objectives and system software operating environment. We recommend that prospective client's contact IBM and review their
COBOL course outlines and performance objectives. And then compare it to SYS-ED's training service.
Upon completion of a instructor-led course at the client location, it is standard policy to organize content for future utilization in a web-based training infrastructure.
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Information Technology in Transition
Longstanding Consultancy Experience
in Information Technology
Alternative to the Information Technology Training
Offered by the Software Companies
Learning Paths
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In order to review and print course topics, prices, and dates, invoke the Search button. |
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COBOL Curriculum - Core Courses |
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Structured COBOL |
COBOL Programming |
COBOL Programming: Advanced |
You will learn:
- structured programming
techniques.
- flowcharts, structure charts,
visual table of contents, overview diagrams, and detail diagrams.
- the principles of structured
design.
- how to produce and interpret pseudocode.
- top-down coding and
top-down
testing.
- implementing the trade-offs associated
with sequence, selection, iteration, and case structures.
- design naming conventions.
- program readability.
- program maintainability.
- implement and utilize error handling.
- performance issues: indexing
versus subscripting, and paging.
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You will learn:
- writing programs that prepare a report.
- designing, coding, and testing structured
programs.
- the features for structured
coding.
- COBOL intrinsic functions and
arithmetic statements.
- how to work with different types of data.
- disk files.
- how to code working storage entries using
standard picture clauses, 88 levels and redefine clauses.
- how to code Procedure Division logic
including Moves, IF, Perform and complex logic.
- coding Procedure and Data Division
entries for handling sequential files and file processing logic.
- coding, manipulating, and searching COBOL
data stored in Occurs clauses.
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You will learn:
- sequential files.
- indexed files.
- how to use sort/merge feature.
- developing interactive programs.
- compiling and testing a program on an IBM mainframe.
- developing object oriented COBOL programs.
- writing, executing, and debugging COBOL programs using the advanced features of COBOL.
- multi-dimensional and variable length tables.
- multi-program and sub-program calls.
- VSAM file manipulation.
- how to utilize stand sorting, merging, and programming standards.
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COBOL Debugging |
Enterprise COBOL |
COBOL Programming
with Net Express |
You will learn:
- the architecture of a load module and use this information to debug COBOL programs.
- how to utilize the compiler listing for debugging programs.
- compiler and linker options for debugging.
- the various parts of a dump.
- how to locate data areas, buffers, I/O information, and debugging information.
- locating statements which have caused specific errors.
- interpreting common completion codes and their causes.
- recognizing the differences between ABEND-AID and SYSUDUMP.
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You will learn:
- the new features/facilities.
- how to recognize problems with the new compiler.
- integrating COBOL applications with web-oriented business processes.
- enabling interoperability with Java components across distributed applications.
- intrinsic functions.
- external data and file attributes.
- passing data to subroutines by reference, content, and value.
- receiving returned values from subroutines or functions.
- accessing files in the HFS: Hierarchical File System using line sequential processing.
- dynamic allocation of files at run time.
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You will learn:
- creating COBOL projects.
- compiling and testing programs.
- debugging programs using the interactive debugger.
- debugging programs in a production environment.
- performing structured browsing and analysis.
- creating, editing, and converting a variety of data files.
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Professional
Distance-learning Service |
Definition of Service |
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SYS-ED's distance-learning training service is 65% lecture with the remaining 35% of the service provided in the form of scheduled
interactive question and answer sessions with a subject matter expert, hands-on exercises, optional
validation assessment, and
submission of questions through our technology exchange websites.
Enrollment is contingent upon the prospective trainee's having been qualified by our Director of Education to have the appropriate
background for the training and review of a checklist of items required for transmission of the service to the client location: bandwidth, firewall,
base operating system, software requirements, web browser, and set-up of hands-on machine exercises.
Alternative web-based and e-learning training is available: self-paced, presentation through the
client's authoring system, or podcast. These tailored services are offered selectively.
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COBOL Training in New York
COBOL Courses in New York
SYS-ED's COBOL courses are tough, but they're worth it. Our challenging "hands-on" COBOL training provides a foundation and framework for Fortune 1000 companies, government municipalities, and healthcare providers to meet their COBOL staffing requirements
and acquire specialized COBOL skillsets.1
Courseware
SYS-ED's COBOL courseware is highly respected in the field of information technology. We draw upon our extensive library of courseware, sample programs, and case studies to explain, demonstrate, and teach the real-world COBOL. Our COBOL curricula
include industry standard and consultancy derived content. We have the capability to provide tailored workshops and integrated training programs on z/OS, z/VSE, z/VM, and third party emulation workbench/platforms.
Teaching
is Our Business
Most computer training companies are divisions of large software companies or consulting companies. Not SYS-ED. Our only goal is to provide world class COBOL training for motivated IT professionals - no more and no less. Because
we're independent, we're free to concentrate on teaching - and
since 1980 we have been doing it very well.
Our Teachers Know How to Teach
SYS-ED instructors
combine teaching skills with broad practical experience as
consultants. Our instructors average 30 years of experience with COBOL in the mainframe environment - operating systems, programming languages, 3rd party utilities/development aids, and system software.
And they know how to teach it. We teach not only "how to", but "why", building a solid foundation in fundamentals and insights into advanced subject matter. After a course, they are available to
answer questions.
Enrollment -
SYS-ED COBOL Courses are NOT for Everyone
No one is allowed to enroll in a SYS-ED mainframe course, without a consultation with our Director of Education. We review the
operational objectives and project specifications for the organization evaluating whether to send its employee for the training. The employee is
only allowed to register if they have the background
corresponding to the
appropriate learning path.
COBOL Training in New York, at Your Office or Web-based
SYS-ED COBOL courses are held at our training center in midtown Manhattan and in conjunction with
CETi Technology Partners in North America and Europe. If you prefer, we'll arrange
tailored mainframe training on-site at your organization’s facilities inclusive of mobile computer classroom set-up. On-site COBOL courses can include the identical workshops, case studies, and hands-on approach as the mainframe training we offer in New York city.
For additional information including outlines, availability of private courses, references, and course customization, contact David Shapiro at our New York office at 212-564-9147 or register online. |
Footnote 1:
SYS-ED’s core mainframe curriculum have been submitted to the New York State Department of Education - Bureau of Proprietary School Supervision for technical review and licensing.
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