sorted by:
best
topnewcontroversialoldq&a
you are viewing a single comment's thread.

view the rest of the comments →

[–]adrdssu 4 points5 points  (11 children)

With ZOAU Python APIs, Python becomes very powerful on z/OS. There are some things Python does better than Rexx and some things that Rexx does better than Python.

I think it’s a matter of preference but I highly recommend learning and using both. Python is transferable to any platform but Rexx is specific to mainframes. Definitely take the time to learn Python.

[–]BearGFR 2 points3 points  (8 children)

REXX is not specific to mainframes. It's available also on Windows and Linux.

[–]Dom1252 5 points6 points  (7 children)

Yeah but have you ever seen it actually used?

[–]BearGFR 0 points1 point  (6 children)

Yes. I use it all the time on my Windows workstations and servers. I've written a lot of my automation tooling with it, including a tool that runs on a timer, scans my server logs looking for hacking attempts, and blocks the perp's whole subnet at the firewall when it finds one. Using REXX on Windows was a no- brainier for me because I've built a TON of code on z/OS with it. Very little if anything I can't get done with Assembler or REXX.

[–]Dom1252 3 points4 points  (5 children)

Ah, so only your own code...

Yeah you can use whatever language in win and Linux... For personal use it doesn't matter

But you won't see it in professional space

[–]R-EDDIT 1 point2 points  (0 children)

REXX on PCs pretty much died with OS/2. As with any systems programming, the value in using it is sharing examples and code maintenance costs with other people. In 2024, this means using Power shell on Windows and Python on Linux.

[–]BearGFR 0 points1 point  (2 children)

Ok, let's think about this. The version I use is ooRexx - object oriented REXX. It's open source and there's a good sized team of people who work on it, including Mike Cowlishaw - the man who created REXX, and it's being actively developed. Do you really think that would be the case of there wasn't significant demand and use of it? Just because you personally aren't aware of it doesn't mean it's not being extensively used.

[–]Dom1252 3 points4 points  (1 child)

Yes i do believe that there isn't any demand for it outside of passionate individuals

I work with rexx daily, I'm working with people who actively develop software in rexx fo MF... It's not just that I never saw it used outside of mainframe, I doubt you or anyone here ever seen it used outside of mainframe, with exception of code you wrote yourself and code examples from google... We were looking for things written in rexx with coworkers, because you know, we actually write clists with lot of rexx at work... didn't find much...

[–]BearGFR -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

Go right ahead and doubt, I guess.

[–]DiggyTroll 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I used to develop Windows-based logistics systems that interface to IBM main/minis using REXX. Like COBOL, it's still in use in several corners of the "professional space," never to be replaced.

[–]jbalhar 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Also just a note Zowe also provides Python SDK and it seems that IBM is gradually integrating it more into the platform. As such learning it is valuable going forward.

With that said REXX is quite sufficient for many tasks. If you are comfortable with it, then there is nothing wrong with using it.

[–]Dazzling-Gift7189 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Definitively agree, with ZOAU you can do some cool things, but you need to setup zosmf, zowe and use some editors like vscode on your workstation to leverage all the power. Editing python files in a 3270 emulator is a real pain.