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GeneralRe: The least liked programming languages Pin
Nelek11-Aug-20 9:24
protectorNelek11-Aug-20 9:24 
GeneralRe: The least liked programming languages Pin
Sander Rossel11-Aug-20 21:43
professionalSander Rossel11-Aug-20 21:43 
GeneralRe: The least liked programming languages Pin
Dan Neely12-Aug-20 2:38
Dan Neely12-Aug-20 2:38 
GeneralRe: The least liked programming languages Pin
Richard Andrew x6412-Aug-20 5:24
professionalRichard Andrew x6412-Aug-20 5:24 
GeneralRe: The least liked programming languages Pin
Dan Neely12-Aug-20 5:49
Dan Neely12-Aug-20 5:49 
GeneralRe: The least liked programming languages Pin
Greg Utas12-Aug-20 6:15
professionalGreg Utas12-Aug-20 6:15 
GeneralRe: The least liked programming languages Pin
Richard Andrew x6412-Aug-20 6:30
professionalRichard Andrew x6412-Aug-20 6:30 
GeneralRe: The least liked programming languages Pin
Vivi Chellappa12-Aug-20 7:40
professionalVivi Chellappa12-Aug-20 7:40 
You should learn where RPG evolved from.

Prior to digital computers, there used to be accounting/tabulating machines used by companies for their payroll calculations.

These calculations were very simple: in a factory employing thousands of workers producing all sorts of equipment -- from parts going into machines to complete assembled machines such as automobiles, radios, TVs, etc. -- workers were paid a base salary plus an incentive for every part/unit produced over the base limit set by the company. For instance, a worker may be required to produce 60 carburetors an hour (2400 based on an 8-hours a day, 5-day work week) and be paid a few pennies for each carburetor they produced over this limit.

A punched card for each worker would contain his base pay (this may vary from worker to worker based on seniority) -- remember that these electromechanical relay-based machines had no storage -- and the total number of units he produced in the week.

The accounting machine would read the punched card, subtract the base work unit of 2400 and multiply the remainder by the per-unit incentive pay, and add the amount to his base pay. A new punched card would be produced for the worker with his name and base pay (this would be used the next week so that the keypunch operator only needs to punch in the number of units produced) and a line would be printed in the payroll register showing the employee' pay for this week. The accounting machine would then read the next card and repeat the process.

These accounting machines very slowly disappeared as more companies adopted expensive digital computers. In fact, the first commercial computer was purchased by GE from Univac Computer Corporation for automating the payroll process.

However, you didn't have enough programmers to be able to program the new-fangled computers in assembler language. IBM, the primary supplier of accounting machines, felt that they could employ the programmers of the old accounting machines if they designed a language that mimicked the process used in the accounting machines. After all, you had to only:

Read a card
Perform a very simple calculation, and
Go back,

perhaps giving the name RPG.

Of course IBM had to call it Report Program Generator!

This language was provided in the early IBM 1401 computers and in the Series 3, 32, 34, 38 and the successor AS/400 systems. These machines were far cheaper than the IBM 360/370/390 series and were bought up by all sorts of small businesses. You had backward compatibility all the way back to accounting/tabulating machines!

But unfortunately, not forward compatibility with C which was not invented for another two decades and was not anticipated by IBM. So all of you code kiddies can complain about RPG.

The exact formatting requirements of RPG followed the pattern of the plugboard -- a rectangular board with holes arranged in several rows -- where a column of a hole indicated a function such as operation, first operand, second operand, resultant, etc.

Billions of lines of code were written in RPG and continue to function excellently even unto today, to the dismay of you all who are shocked that there used to be a time when programs did not have strange memory leaks which caused random failures and thus assure you of continuing employment.

The IBM AS/400 holds the record for the largest selling minicomputers (in the millions) a number exceeded only by the PCs which are of course obsoleted every 6 months by the latest and greatest Intel or AMD chip.

The AS/400 does support -- besides RPG -- COBOL, C, C++, and who knows what else.

However, there are very few people who are qualified in RPG that the RPG programs are allowed to remain undisturbed.

Entire ERP suites were written in RPG and are still in use today.

No, they are not as expensive as Oracle or SAP nor do they require periodic human sacrifices to keep them running.
JokeRe: The least liked programming languages Pin
Dan Neely12-Aug-20 9:39
Dan Neely12-Aug-20 9:39 
GeneralRe: The least liked programming languages Pin
Dan Neely12-Aug-20 2:40
Dan Neely12-Aug-20 2:40 
NewsWhy the C language will never stop you from making mistakes Pin
Kent Sharkey11-Aug-20 8:31
staffKent Sharkey11-Aug-20 8:31 
GeneralRe: Why the C language will never stop you from making mistakes Pin
Nelek11-Aug-20 9:23
protectorNelek11-Aug-20 9:23 
GeneralRe: Why the C language will never stop you from making mistakes Pin
Dan Neely12-Aug-20 2:44
Dan Neely12-Aug-20 2:44 
NewsWindows 10 Device Manager loses the ability to search online for driver updates Pin
Kent Sharkey11-Aug-20 7:46
staffKent Sharkey11-Aug-20 7:46 
GeneralRe: Windows 10 Device Manager loses the ability to search online for driver updates Pin
Nelek11-Aug-20 9:21
protectorNelek11-Aug-20 9:21 
NewsBoeing 747s still use floppy disks to get critical software updates Pin
Kent Sharkey11-Aug-20 7:31
staffKent Sharkey11-Aug-20 7:31 
GeneralRe: Boeing 747s still use floppy disks to get critical software updates Pin
Nelek11-Aug-20 9:20
protectorNelek11-Aug-20 9:20 
GeneralRe: Boeing 747s still use floppy disks to get critical software updates Pin
GenJerDan11-Aug-20 21:36
GenJerDan11-Aug-20 21:36 
GeneralRe: Boeing 747s still use floppy disks to get critical software updates Pin
Sander Rossel11-Aug-20 21:49
professionalSander Rossel11-Aug-20 21:49 
NewsOwn your own hologram device with the PORTL hologram machine Pin
Kent Sharkey11-Aug-20 7:01
staffKent Sharkey11-Aug-20 7:01 
NewsMicrosoft looks ready to abandon its new 'Dataflex' low-code brand Pin
Kent Sharkey11-Aug-20 7:01
staffKent Sharkey11-Aug-20 7:01 
GeneralRe: Microsoft looks ready to abandon its new 'Dataflex' low-code brand Pin
Nelek11-Aug-20 9:14
protectorNelek11-Aug-20 9:14 
GeneralRe: Microsoft looks ready to abandon its new 'Dataflex' low-code brand Pin
Joe Woodbury11-Aug-20 20:42
professionalJoe Woodbury11-Aug-20 20:42 
JokeRe: Microsoft looks ready to abandon its new 'Dataflex' low-code brand Pin
Richard Deeming11-Aug-20 22:14
mveRichard Deeming11-Aug-20 22:14 
NewsAndroid is now the world’s largest earthquake detection network Pin
Kent Sharkey11-Aug-20 7:01
staffKent Sharkey11-Aug-20 7:01 

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