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Bridging Generations of Talent: Sujit Neb’s Work to Make Mainframe Skills Scalable
Sujit Neb Lead Automation EngineerBMC Software Pune, Maharashtra, IndiaThis piece is part of the 2026 Planet Mainframe Influential Mainframers series.Across more than 14 years in the mainframe space, Neb has focused on a challenge that continues to shape the future of...
NEWS – Introducing IBM’s New SQL Tool, Virtel 4.64 now Available, and more
Bringing AI to Mainframe Data: Introducing IBM SQL Data Insights Pro Virtel 4.64 Now Available: Stronger Session Security, Enhanced Japanese Codepage Support, and Key Usability Improvements BMC Advances Trusted AI Orchestration With New Control-M Kyndryl awarded a...
Beyond the Demo: Testing IBM Bob AI with COBOL, PL/I, Assembler, and JCL
IBM introduced IBM Project BOB at TechXchange 2025 as “an AI software development partner that understands your intent, repository, and security standards.” Positioned as an agentic AI tool, Bob aims to bring modernization expertise directly into developers’ daily...
Building What’s Next: A Journey Through Mainframe Vitality Training
I’ve always been a bit obsessed with computers—especially niche hardware. Growing up, I recall my dad having a collection of old systems from companies that no longer existed. They were different from the standard beige DOS and Windows boxes that had taken over, and I...
NEWS – Rocket Software and K2view Partnership, 2025 Gartner Peer Insights Customers’ Choice, and more
IBM Introduces New Software to Address Growing Digital Sovereignty Imperative Rocket Software and K2view Partner to Accelerate Mainframe Modernization with Governed, AI-Ready Test Data for Testing, Analytics, and AI BMC is recognized as a 2025 Gartner® Peer Insights™...
Inside EMMA: How a Mainframe Apprenticeship Scaled in Its First Year
Mainframe careers don’t suffer from a lack of interest, but a lack of pathways. EMMA was built to remove barriers to training, scaling, and hiring mainframe apprentices. This update revisits the program one year later, with results that tell a more nuanced workforce...
Mainframe Workforce Signals Are Shifting in 2026, Says Early Arcati Workforce Survey Data
Why the workforce conversation needs updating Workforce conversations in the mainframe community often default to a familiar concern: who will be left to run these systems in the future? While that question still surfaces, early signals from our 2026 Mainframe User...
Why Ongoing Education Matters for the Mainframe Skills Gap
I graduated virtually with my Master’s degree in 2020, about two months after COVID-19 shut down much of the world. Behind the scenes, I had been working for Enterprise Performance Strategies, Inc. (EPS) since 2017, so I had a supportive professional environment while...
Latest
Database security – You need to pay better attention to it
Almost 2 years ago, it was reported that over 10,000 MongoDB databases had been deleted by ransomware groups - and much of that was done in a week's time. Let that sink in for a minute - 10,000 databases in a week - it's mind boggling. Makes you think twice about your...
Why mainframe shops are procrastinating over multi-factor authentication
In my last article I outlined why, for a number of reasons, mainframe shops are growing increasingly aware of the importance of bolstering security on their ‘Big Iron’ box. Despite that, in this piece I want to discuss why some organizations are procrastinating over...
Who’s afraid of the Big Bad Wolf?
Or: We need to talk about mainframe hacking There’s an elephant in the room says Mark Wilson. It’s mainframe-sized, at serious risk of being hacked, and its name is Z. “The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.” That was US president Franklin D. Roosevelt at his...
Do I need real-time, continuous, mainframe security monitoring and auditing?
To be honest, mainframes are pretty secure, aren’t they? We’ve had RACF and other External Security Managers (ESMs) for years. On top of that, the new z14 gives us pervasive encryption. And there are any number of logs recording what’s going on on Z, and we can run...
Validating your files
Mainframe files/datasets are liable to change quite often. After all, people are using those files so they are likely to be modified/updated. So how could you tell whether there had been a legitimate change to the file or it had been hacked? How can you verify that...
Is your business affected by GDPR?
What GDPR Means for Mainframe Storage, Archive and Backup On April 27, 2016, the European Union passed regulation 2016/679, more popularly known as the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). On May 25, 2018, GDPR implementation began, and enforcement activities...
Multi-Factor Authentication Has Arrived – The Mainframes Are Ready
Retinal scans. Face recognition. Fingerprint scanners. Spoken phrases. Randomized pins. Those cool full-body laser scanners from the movies. Science fiction has correctly predicted many aspects of how we live in the digital age, including the rise of security...
Q: Meltdown, Spectre (and new variants) – how best to cope?
A: Become a Grandmaster at Whack-a-mole! “…used with reference to a situation in which attempts to solve a problem are piecemeal or superficial, resulting only in temporary or minor improvement…” Much (very much!) has been written regarding the security threats posed...
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Building the CA 7 User Group Together & Technical Sharing Session
Virtual MeetingHelp us set the vision for the new CA 7 User Group! Starting by defining the vision and mission, while drawing on past experiences to build a group that delivers […]
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Building the ESP User Group Together & New ESP Web Client Deep Dive
Virtual MeetingHelp us set the vision for the new ESP User Group! Starting by defining the vision and mission, while drawing on past experiences to build a group that delivers real […]
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Virtual CICS User Group: Unlocking Mainframe Knowledge: Using AI to Support CICS Professionals
Zoom - Virtual MeetingMany organizations rely on large CICS applications where critical knowledge is buried in legacy code and documentation. This session explores how AI can help MF CICS professionals quickly understand applications, […]
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Virtual IMS User Group: No Data Left Behind: The Complete Guide to IMS Database Recovery
Zoom - Virtual Meeting📅 June 16, 2026 🕦 11:30 AM ET When an IMS database fails, there is no time to learn recovery on the fly. In this practical and technically grounded session, […]
❓Python Programming Trivia
We often describe Python as a “modern” language, but its story spans decades of technological change, cultural shifts, and unexpected platforms. What began as a small side project in the Netherlands evolved into one of the most widely used programming languages in the...
NEWS – Rocket Software and K2view Partnership, 2025 Gartner Peer Insights Customers’ Choice, and more
IBM Introduces New Software to Address Growing Digital Sovereignty Imperative Rocket Software and K2view Partner to Accelerate Mainframe Modernization with Governed, AI-Ready Test Data for Testing, Analytics, and AI BMC is recognized as a 2025 Gartner® Peer Insights™...
❓Mainframe Professional Skills Trivia
Our last trivia quiz explored the legacy of mainframe pioneers, and this week we’re going to continue looking into the lineage of skills in mainframe professional practice, examining how early design and operational decisions shaped the way mainframe expertise is...
❓ Workforce and Training Trivia
Happy 2026—and welcome to a whole new year of Planet Mainframe Trivia! As our January theme focuses on Workforce and Training, this quiz looks at mainframe pioneers and the early decisions that shaped how mainframe skills are learned and passed on. Mainframe expertise...
Newest Virtel Release, SHARE Orlando Tickets, and more
VIRTEL announces release of Virtel 4.63: a major new version to better connect, secure, and simplify access to any mainframe application SHARE Orlando Early Bird Tickets Available Hitachi Vantara's Virtual Storage Platform One Wins CRN 2025 Products of the Year Award...
❓What 2025 Taught Us About Mainframes: A Trivia Quiz
As the year closes, and the year-end reflections roll in, we’re taking a closer look at key findings from the latest BMC, Kyndryl, and Planet Mainframe Arcati surveys. The results point to a platform that is evolving in response to cost pressures, skills gaps,...