IBM Mainframe Forum

hi i dont know if this is legal here. but currently im new to this languange (PL1, COBOL), but im working on mainframe and i dont understand how it works. well since im not a software person. is there a place where can i study this in a friendly way not in a technical way. i tried the technical way but the stuffs dont go in to my mind. any help would do. thank you

Go to www.redbooks.ibm.com and put Mainframe in the search box. You should find publications which give you a beginners overview through to the more advanced reading.

thank you billy,

is there a way that i will embrace this language?

Sorry, misread your question. You don't have a programming background, and someone is expecting you to pick up COBOL and PL/I with no training?

yup i dont have a broad programming background, there is a self study training but for my level it is too technical. so im looking for an alternative to study the language.

I think you'll need to approach them one at a time. I'd suggest COBOL first. You can probably find some introductory COBOL books. Not knowing about programming might be a benefit when learning COBOL, as you won't have to unlearn things from other languages.

However, it'll be difficult for you to find a place where people have the time to give you self-study from scratch, but obviously if you have specific questions, ask them here.

You could probably find some basic tutorials on the net - I did for when I was doing some SQL coding the other week. Also, a good book for COBOL may be COBOL for Dummies. There is no equivalent for PL/1

i see..

i was working on pl/1 yesterday. haha. think im going to start again.

if i encounter any doubts ill just ask here.

thanks for the info nic and billy.