Murach's Cics for the Cobol Programmer : Training and Reference / Edition 1

by Raul Menendez, Doug Lowe

Overview

CICS is the world-class transaction processor that's used on large, IBM enterprise computers. The goal of this book is to teach you how to develop CICS programs as quickly and easily as possible, no matter what version of CICS you're using (including CICS Transaction Server).

If you're new to CICS, by the end of chapter 2, you'll see how a complete CICS program works, so you'll understand all the pieces involved. And by the end of section 2 (just 6 chapters), you'll be able to design, code, and test pseudo-conversational CICS programs on your own.

But that's just the beginning. Whether you're a new or experienced programmer, the rest of the book covers features that enhance your skills and answer the questions that crop up on the job every day.

To be specific, section 3 presents additional commands and techniques you'll use regularly. Then, section 4 presents a complete CICS application made up of 4 interrelated programs. Once you understand the design, BMS mapsets, and COBOL code for these programs, you'll have the skills of an entry-level CICS programmer in industry.

The last two sections present commands and skills you can learn in whatever sequence you prefer. Section 5 shows you how to process files and DB2 databases (essential skills in any CICS shop). And section 6 gives you an overview of other CICS features and skills that you should know about, even if you don't use them every day.

Of particular interest are chapters 20 and 21 in section 6 because they give you a view of where CICS is headed. In chapter 20, you'll learn how to design, code, and test CICS programs in which the "presentation logic" (all the functions related to sending data to and from the terminal)is separated from the "business logic" (the functions that process the data). That way, you can use CICS for what it does best-transaction processing on the mainframe-while languages like Java or Visual Basic are used for the user interface. In chapter 21, you'll see that this approach can also be used for web applications, making CICS a more flexible transaction processor for the enterprise applications of the future.

All of the content is presented in an innovative way, with the coding details and examples for each feature on the right-hand page and added perspective on the left. This is a real time-saver, both when you're learning CICS in the first place, and when you're looking up information or coding details later on.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781890774097
Publisher:	Murach, Mike & Associates, Inc.
Publication date:	12/28/2004
Series:	Murach: Training & Reference
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	633
Product dimensions:	7.92(w) x 10.00(h) x 1.53(d)

Table of Contents

Section 1	Introduction to CICS
Chapter 1	CICS concepts and terms
	An introduction to CICS	4
	How CICS manages multiple users	12
	CICS services	16
Chapter 2	Introduction to CICS programming
	How a CICS program works	26
	The specifications and BMS mapset for an inquiry program	38
	The design and COBOL code for the inquiry program	48
	The CICS commands used in the program	60
	How to develop a CICS program	66
Section 2	How to design, code, and test a CICS program
Chapter 3	How to design a CICS program
	The customer maintenance program	74
	How to create an event/response chart	78
	How to create a structure chart	82
Chapter 4	How to create a BMS mapset
	How to design user-friendly screens	92
	How attributes control the look and operation of a field	96
	How to code BMS macros	102
	The BMS mapset and symbolic map for the customer maintenance program	116
	How to assemble a BMS mapset	132
Chapter 5	How to code a CICS program
	How to control the execution of the programs within a task	136
	How to work with mapsets	148
	How to work with files	152
	Other coding essentials	164
	The customer maintenance program	172
Chapter 6	How to test a CICS program
	Introduction to CICS program testing	190
	How to test a program from the top down	196
	How to use the CICS service transactions for testing	204
Section 3	Other CICS programming essentials
Chapter 7	How to use temporary storage control
	Temporary storage queue concepts	220
	How to work with temporary storage queues	222
	A maintenance program that uses a temporary storage queue	228
Chapter 8	Additional CICS commands and programming techniques
	Terminal handling techniques	234
	How to handle unrecoverable errors	254
	How to access data using the Linkage Section	258
	How to format the date and time	262
Chapter 9	How to debug a CICS abend
	CICS abend codes	270
	How to use the Execution Diagnostics Facility	274
Section 4	A complete CICS application
Chapter 10	A systems overview
	The system design for the sample application	298
	Program control for the sample application	300
	Resources for the sample application	302
	Files for the sample application	304
Chapter 11	The menu program
	The specifications for the menu program	308
	The design for the menu program	310
	The BMS mapset and symbolic map for the menu program	312
	The COBOL code for the menu program	316
Chapter 12	The maintenance program
	The specifications for the maintenance program	324
	An event/response chart for the maintenance program	328
	The structure chart for the maintenance program	330
	The BMS mapset and symbolic map for the maintenance program	332
	The COBOL code for the maintenance program	340
Chapter 13	The order entry program
	The specifications for the order entry program	354
	An event/response chart for the order entry program	358
	The structure chart for the order entry program	360
	The BMS mapset for the order entry program	362
	The programmer-generated symbolic map for the order entry program	366
	The COBOL code for the order entry program	370
	The COBOL code for the GETINV subprogram	386
Section 5	CICS for file and database processing
Chapter 14	How to process files sequentially
	How to use the browse commands	392
	Two sample applications that do sequential processing	406
Chapter 15	How to use VSAM alternate indexes
	Alternate indexing concepts	438
	An enhanced customer inquiry program	444
Chapter 16	How to use other file processing features
	How to use generic keys	462
	How to use the MASSINSERT option of the WRITE command	468
	How to use the TOKEN option of the file control commands	470
	How to use shared data tables	472
Chapter 17	How to work with DB2 databases
	CICS/DB2 concepts	476
	The DB2 version of the customer inquiry program	480
	CICS/DB2 programming considerations	496
Section 6	Advanced CICS features and skills
Chapter 18	How to use other CICS control features
	How to use interval control	502
	How to use task control	512
	How to use storage control	514
	How to use recovery processing	518
Chapter 19	How to use CICS intercommunication features
	Intercommunication concepts	526
	How transaction routing works	532
	How function shipping works	534
	How to use Distributed Program Link	538
	Other intercommunication features	542
Chapter 20	How to design, code, and test a modular CICS program
	Program design considerations	550
	How to design a modular CICS program	556
	How to code and test a modular CICS program	566
	The customer maintenance program	572
Chapter 21	Introduction to CICS Web programming
	CICS and the Internet	594
	How to access CICS programs from a Web browser	596
Chapter 22	What else a maintenance programmer needs to know
	How to use the HANDLE AID command	606
	How to use the HANDLE CONDITION command	610
	How to access Linkage Section data using BLL cells	614
	How to use the LENGTH option	616

Editorial Reviews

Covers the latest versions of CICS (including CICS Transaction Server) so that beginners can learn current coding practices from the start. Six beginning chapters show how to develop CICS programs, and later chapters present CICS commands and techniques used regularly, commands and techniques for file and database processing, and code necessary for maintaining older programs. Twelve programs and dozens of coding segments illustrate design and coding practices. All content is presented in paired pages, with illustrations and crucial coding details for a single feature or function on the right, and explanations and perspectives on the left. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Booknews

Murach's CICS For The Cobol Programmer is a complete training manual for CICS so well written and presented that the novice will rapidly become proficient in designing, coding, and testing CICS programs. All the features programmers use regularly on the job are featured including those for VSAM file handling, editing input data, controlling the display of data at a terminal, DB2 data access, error processing, and debugging. Programmers are also provided with an overview of how CICS can be used for web-based applications, including the design and coding considerations involved. Murach's distinctive and "learner friendly" paired-pages style is followed throughout with the illustrations and crucial coding details for a single feature or function on the right-hand page, while the left-hand page offers extra explanation and perspective. Murach's CICS For The Cobol Programmer is a "must" for anyone wanting to learn CICS programming and operation.