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kasrana
Posted December 21, 2011
Great Reference/Guide Book
¿The Minimum You Need to know to be an OpenVMS Application Developer" by Roland Hughes is not a book is a well written manual and how to guide. However, it is not for those that have no experience with computers/programming languages, if you do not have previous knowledge in Open Virtual Memory then you will be lost. But if you do have experience with all of the above then you will find this book to be a great asset. It is well laid out, comprehensive and, has plenty of easy to follow examples. This is great if you want to refresh your skills, learn some new skills or as a reference guide/book.
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acesrwild777
Posted December 6, 2011
great reference
"The Minimum You Need to know to be an OpenVMS Application Developer" by Roland Hughes is not a book for the uninformed, if you don't have previous knowledge in OpenVMS (Open Virtual Memory System) then this is not a book for you....and I'm not sure you would be interested in it anyway. If you don't speak "programming language" then this will seem like it was written in a foreign language, because in a sense it is. However, for those who have an interest and background in Open Virtual Memory Systems this book is a great and comprehensive reference with lots of examples lending to its easy to follow nature. This book covers a variety of different databases that will be encountered and prepares you for how to work with them in multiple different languages. Hughes as also put together an extremely easy to use index making finding and flipping to an ease when using the book as a quick reference.
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banjoplatypus
Posted December 6, 2011
informative and easy to follow
"The Minimum You Need to know to be an OpenVMS Application Developer" by Roland Hughes is a great tool to understanding applications used when needing to operate an OpenVMS (Open Virtual Memory System). I believe it is a great resource for anyone dabbling in computer programming. It has a guide for navigation and implementation of multiple databases. I am just starting out with application development and found the author's guide extremely readable, relatively user friendly, and comprehensive. I found the author extremely knowledgeable, more so than myself, and amazingly educational. His ease at explaining everything really sets this IT book apart from others.
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BinaP
Posted November 18, 2011
User Friendly
This is a great reference book and learning guide for the OpenVMS operating system. The author assumes that the reader already has a good base knowledge and understanding of programming and uses that as a starting point. If you do not have experience with any programming language such as C++ or application development you may need to work your way up to this book. It is well laid out which makes it easy to find exactly what you are looking for via the index and the illustrations made it easy to follow the coding examples. The instructions are easy to read, understand and follow. I would recommend this book to anyone who is looking to learn the OpenVMS operating system.
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3MMP
Posted November 18, 2011
Easy to follow
This book has been written for anyone who would like to be an OpenVMS Application Developer. It is a very comprehensive guide written by Roland Hughes and, in my opinion, is a must read if you do want to enter the field of OpenVMS Application.
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"OpenVMS (Open Virtual Memory System) is a high-end computer server operating system that is a multi-user, multiprocessing virtual memory-based operating system (OS), it is designed for use in time-sharing, batch processing, real time, and transaction processing. It offers high system availability through clustering and distributes the system over many machines." If you have no idea what that means then you should probably begin with a book about basic computer systems/programming first.
Hughes' has done a great job as he takes the reader through MMS and CMS tools from the DECSET OpenVMS software development toolkit and the CDD FMS, RDB & MySQL databases as well as walking the reader through the development of a single application in each of the following: DEC BASIC, FORTRAN, COBOL, C and C++ using a variety of tools.
I expected this guide to be dry like some of the others but Hughes has done a great job in his use of language and form which makes it easy for the reader to understand (provided you have a basic understanding to begin with). Overall this is a great way to learn OpenVMS and as a resource for those who already know OpenVMS. -
SavPat
Posted November 18, 2011
Great Resource
The Minimum You Need to Know to be an OpenVMS Application Developer is a how to manual for anyone who is interested in learning how to use Open Virtual Memory System application developing or VMS for short. This is NOT a beginner's guide by any means, it is meant for those that already have background in software development and programming.
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I am familiar with computers and many of the programs used to write program and so I was able to follow the book. Hughes has done a great job with chapter layout; indexing and illustrations to guide the reader which is essential when you are trying to self learn something. Hughes essentially becomes the teacher and guides you step by step. If you truly do want to learn how to be an Open VMS Application Developer this is a great tool. -
Pacino23
Posted November 18, 2011
Great Tool
There are already quite a few reviews outlining the details of Roland Hughes' book, The Minimum You Need to know to be an OpenVMS Application Developer so I will not bore you with more of the same details. What I will say is that I do agree with the other reviewers when they say that this is a great resource for those individuals WHO ALREADY HAVE EXPERIENCE in the IT field. This book is not for those whose only interaction with computers is at home on their desktops! Hughes' has done a great job of charting out a systematic guide to operating and sustaining the application and coding & programming of essential modules running on OpenVMS such as languages and databases. Hughes' is not verbose and makes it easy for the reader to follow along; the accompanying CD is also a great tool. Unlike other manuals Hughes has included a chapter regarding his own views of the IT industry and the need to constantly learn and evolve with the industry because "IT is a way of life, not a job."
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MilsP
Posted November 18, 2011
Great Guide
Open Virtual Memory System is a computer server operating system (OS) that offers end users many more options than simple networking such as the ability to cluster which allows the system to distribute the application itself and a single transaction.
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Roland Hughes' book, The Minimum You Need to know to be an OpenVMS Application Developer, is a great resource and informative guide for anyone who would like to learn how to use VMS especially anyone already in the field of computer science. However in order to reap the full benefits from this book it is essential that the reader already possess a basic understanding of programming and application development.
I found this book to be very comprehensive and well thought out in terms of chapter layout, indexing references to programming languages, tools and databases. The illustrations are a great tool as well. I found that I was able to follow this book but that may be because I already work in the IT field. It is definitely not a book you would read for entertainment purposes or if you are just beginning to learn about computers. I will definitely be using this book as a reference guide. -
HardyMeagan
Posted November 18, 2011
Easy to Follow
OpenVMS Application Developer is not by ANY means a book that I would NORMALLY read. While I understand computers backward and forward and could understand Ronald Hughes' book, it is definitely not a book written for entertainment purposes. (Which is what I normally read).
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OpenVMS stands for Open Virtual Memory System and this book is a basic guide to OpenVMS Application Developing. I don't have much background in this type of computer work but the chapters were easy to follow and understand because of the step by step instructions, coded examples and easy to navigate index. If you are into this type of computer work, this is a great tool! Mr. Hughes served not only as an author but also as a teacher throughout this book and I was very impressed with how well he laid out his instructions and examples. Even for someone who doesn't have extensive knowledge in computer programming, I found the steps easy to understand and could probably pull off some of these tricks of the trade on my own following Mr. Hughes steps. -
Great tutorial, excellent desk reference
This is a great introduction to application development on the OpenVMS operating system. OpenVMS is for high-performance distributed computing, and in many situations is much better suited for high-end computation and science applications than Windows or Linux/Unix.
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This guide assumes you have a pretty good understanding of at least one programming language to get started. I have experience with Java, C++, and several scripting languages, and I did fine - but it might be a little heavy for someone who doesn't have any background in application development at all.
The book includes concrete examples in code, and step-by-step explanations in every chapter. I have never developed for OpenVMS for this, and I could follow it flawlessly.
The index is well done, and what makes this book double as a great desk reference. Anything you need to look up is easy to find in a short amount of time. -
Anonymous
Posted January 16, 2007
An Excellent OpenVMS programming book
OpenVMS (Open Virtual Memory System) is a high-end computer server operating system. As a multi-user, multiprocessing virtual memory-based operating system (OS), it is designed for use in time-sharing, batch processing, real time, and transaction processing. It offers high system availability through clustering and distributes the system over many machines. The ability to distribute both the application and a single transaction across multiple nodes is the heart of clustering otherwise, it is just networking. Roland Hughes¿ book, The Minimum You Need to know to be an OpenVMS Application Developer, offers Computer Applications Developers, Consultants, Systems Analysts, and developers switching to OpenVMS, a detailed and informative companion guide to understanding and implementing the applications and modules needed to operate and maintain OpenVMS. From logging into OpenVMS, each chapter charts a systematic guide to operating and sustaining the application coding and programming of essential modules running on OpenVMS. Such languages, tools, and databases as DCL, DEC BASIC, FMS, COBOL, CDD, FORTRAN, C/C++, MySQL, and RDB cover the heart of what you need to know as a maintenance programmer. Using a created lottery tracking system, Hughes generates a single application and develops it in each of the following: DEC BASIC, FORTRAN, COBOL, and C/C++. As well, Hughes shows readers how to use CDD, CMS, and MMS with these languages. By repeatedly applying the same method in different languages, Hughes demonstrates in a clearly written and easy to follow guide, how a programmer knowledgeable with one language can become skilled in others. The CD-ROM that comes with it contains the source code developed in the book allowing readers to learn the advantages and disadvantages of each language. Well-illustrated examples with detailed analysis, descriptions, and definitions, allow the reader to follow the book while working with the server, thereby learning the ¿nuts and bolts¿ of creating, understanding, and managing command files. Each chapter details troubleshooting tips, error handling tips, reducing debugging time, as well as the Do¿s, and Don¿ts of writing applications. Following each chapter, there are exercises to enhance comprehension of the modules and applications in OpenVMS. With a wealth of experience, Roland Hughes provides thoughtful and knowledgeable observations about the IT field. One important bit of knowledge he conveys: ¿IT is a way of life, not a job.¿ With easy to follow instructions and detailed examples, I highly recommend this informative and well-mapped book as an asset to those in the IT industry, as well to students entering the computer-programming field. Tracy Roberts, Write Field Services
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Anonymous
Posted December 15, 2006
Amazing
This is a truly astonishing work and a MUST for everybody who is starting with application developing, be it on VMS or not (I can not tell for others as I am starting myself). It is not a book where you will find many theories about abstract topics but one displaying everything you need to know by means of examples, explaining each example's important parts in-depth. You really feel the experience of the author throughout the text! This is a book I'd try to take with me if my house was burning down.
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Anonymous
Posted May 17, 2006
The best OpenVMS programming book in 15 years
One of the best VMS programming books I've ever come across is 'Writing VAX/VMS Applications Using Pascal' by Theo de Klerk published in 1991 (BTW, my copy is not for sale :-). I learned quite a bit of VMS application theory in this book and implemented many of the ideas into BASIC, C and C++. The reason I mention this book is that I just received my copy of 'The Minimum You Need to Know to be an OpenVMS Developer' and it is clearly in the same league as the Pascal book. This is a major effort and should be on the bookshelf of every beginner through intermediate level OpenVMS application developer. Just my 2-cents worth.
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Anonymous
Posted May 19, 2006
A good addition for a VMS Application programers bookshelf
After I got over the surprise of seeing a new book on OpenVMS Software Development I wondered at the title - this is an 800 page book with a CD! The book is intended for people who are familiar with programming on another platform and are faced with maintaining an application on VMS written using classic OpenVMS software tools. Perhaps a better title would be ¿What a person unfamiliar with OpenVMS should know to maintain an OpenVMS application¿. Hughes describes uses of: the MMS and CMS tools from the widely used DECSET OpenVMS software development toolkit CDD FMS the RDB and MySQL databases. He also mentions other tools often found in the OpenVMS application development environment such as VMSMAIL, PHONE etc. Parts of OpenVMS which will be unfamiliar to a person transferring from another platform, such as logical names and DCL symbols, are introduced as they will often be encountered when maintaining an application on OpenVMS. The book is based around a single application which is developed in each of DEC BASIC, FORTRAN, COBOL, C and C++ using a variety of tools. Full source code is provided on the CD. By repeatedly implementing the same thing in different languages the programmer familiar with one language can learn about another. The presented code is not suitable for a production environment but is intended to illustrate something being described in the text. For example the error handling is not always fully implemented except when Hughes wishes to describe dealing with errors. Hughes describes building the application and typical ways of organizing the development environment and highlights common pitfalls for programmers coming from other platforms. The book is written in American English and in a casual style. Although it is easy to read some people who are not native English speakers may not recognise some of the colloquial terms used. I don¿t think this will significantly hinder understanding. Hughes has opinions about how things should be done and is not afraid to state them! Personally I find an opinionated book easier to engage with because there is something to argue or agree with. The final chapter is Hughes opinion on the state of the IT Industry. The key to appreciating this book its specific focus. I think the target audience will find this a useful resource to sit alongside the OpenVMS Documentation. However the material is also useful for an OpenVMS developer faced with an application in a different programming language to the one they usually use. The book is available from Island Computers. (ISBN 0-9770866-0-7) by Ian Miller OpenVMS.Org - OpenVMS News and Information
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