AI Month
Stop Defending Mainframe Costs. Start Demonstrating Mainframe Business Value.
Every budget cycle, IBM Z teams are asked to justify the platform's cost. The strongest answer isn't about hardware or software. It’s about measurable business value.Come budget season, and somewhere, a technology leader is asked a familiar question: "Why does the...
The General Ledger, the Mainframe, and the Programmer Who’s Taking Up Golf
Why Finance and Mainframe Teams Need to Stop Talking About Cost Savings and Start Talking About Business ValueThere is an old accounting joke: An accountant is someone who solves a problem you didn't know you had in a way you don't understand. For decades, many...
Expertise in a Hoodie: Uwe Graf is The Modern Mainframe Nerd
Uwe Graf Head of ConsultingEasiRun Europa GmbH Hesse, GermanyThis profile features Uwe Graf, one of the top four 2026 Influential Mainframers in the class of 2026.If you ask Uwe Graf to describe himself, he won’t start with a list of certifications or corporate...
How Gil Peleg Is Winning VC Backing for Mainframe AI
Gil Peleg Co-founder, CEOGeniez AI London, England, United KingdomThis article features Gil Peleg, one of the top four 2026 Influential Mainframers.While others try to modernize around the mainframe, Gil Peleg is building AI inside it. VCs are paying attention. ...
Modernizing the Mainframe Without Losing Knowledge
Bridging JCL and APIs in Mainframe Modernization Mainframe development sits between two realities. On one side, there is the traditional world of JCL, structured batch processes, and deterministic workflows. On the other, we see the rise of API-driven automation,...
Mainframe’s New Era: AI, Youth, and the Future of SHARE
If you've ever been to a SHARE conference, you know the energy. There's this buzz of people who are genuinely passionate about what they do. Orlando was no different, and sitting down with Tony Anter in the middle of all that felt right at home. Tony and I have had...
The Real Opportunity for AI on the Mainframe Isn’t Code
AI for the Mainframe: Turning System Data Into Answers For the past year, nearly every conversation about artificial intelligence and the mainframe has centered on one question: What will AI do to COBOL? Will it modernize legacy applications? Generate new programs?...
An Undocumented CICS Fix That Boosts Throughput and Cuts CPU
IBM has an undocumented fix to the CICS WEB interface that can optimize throughput and response time while also saving CPU. This article explains how to make it work for you. In the course of my current project, I had the pleasure of working with Ole Olsen at JN Data...
Performance & Tuning Month
Inside Db2 for z/OS: How Optimized B+ Trees Power High-Speed Indexing
High-quality indexes are critical for fast data access and returns. IBM Db2 for z/OS relies on an advanced data structure called the Optimized Balanced Plus Tree to power high-speed indexing. This structure, an evolution of the classic B+ Tree, helps Db2 deliver...
The Race to Cool the World’s Data
“Managing heat generated by data centers will become progressively more challenging – and, at the same time, necessary.” Chris Frye, Director of Chiller Sales, LG Electronics U.S.A. Inc. According to McKinley, global demand for data center capacity could rise between...
The Mainframe’s Martini Moment
The mainframe is a must-have for enterprise IT, but for many development teams, ready access to it can feel frustratingly out of reach. Now, fresh innovation aims to change that, offering a “Martini moment” for mainframe delivery teams. The Inspiration Behind...
Runtime Fees: The Hidden Tax in Your Tech Stack
In COBOL environments, runtime-based licensing imposes recurring costs each time an application is executed—costs that persist well beyond the initial compiler purchase. While initially tolerable in controlled, limited use environments, runtime-based licensing fees...
Pivoting to Optimal Mainframe Performance with Actual Intelligence
Enterprise Performance Strategies, Inc. (EPS) has a long and deep history with all things mainframe performance and capacity planning. EPS experts have worked extensively in z/OS design, development, and measurement architecture, as well as having worked with hundreds...
How the Right Tech Platform Mix Can Maximize Value Amid Rising IT Costs
It finally happened: IT inflation has hit 4.8%, exceeding GDP growth, the consumer price index, and both U.S and global inflation rates. IT inflation is even outpacing the rate of increase in IT spending for most organizations. Businesses are stretching...
The Cost of Not Investing in Technology
Technical debt costs US companies an estimated $2.41 trillion annually. This is part one in a four-part series exploring the consequences of not investing in technology. As CFO of DataKinetics, my role extends beyond adding and subtracting figures in a ledger. When...
Revolutionizing Mainframe Optimization: Prioritize Business Impact Over IT Resource Management
The backbone of global business operations runs through mainframes—which handle a staggering 30 billion transactions daily, hold 80% of the world’s business data, and process 90% of credit card transactions. Mainframes are not relics of the past but are integral...
Sign up to receive the latest mainframe information
Upcoming Events
Events
-
-
Vanguard Security & Compliance
For 40 years, Vanguard Security & Compliance has brought together global cybersecurity leaders from both private industry and government agencies to deliver the most complete knowledge-based training for securing and […]
-
Accelerating Mainframe Efficiency: Development and Testing Webinar
Zoom - Virtual MeetingUnlock the power of instantly available mainframe resources to revolutionize mainframe delivery. The third session in the PopUp Persona Webinar series reveals how application developers, software engineers, and QA teams […]
-
-
Virtual IMS User Group | Data Gravity and IBM Z: Bringing Processing to the Data
Zoom - Virtual MeetingAs data volumes grow, they naturally attract applications, services, and processing toward them—a concept commonly referred to as data gravity. In hybrid cloud environments, understanding data gravity has become increasingly […]
-
Virtual CICS User Group | Latest Update on Security in CICS TS 6.3: The Journey to Zero Trust
Zoom - Virtual MeetingCICS has been advocating zero trust principles and introducing security-focused enhancements since CICS TS 6.1. This session will explore the latest security capabilities available in CICS TS 6.3 and how […]
❓Mainframes at the Movies
With summer blockbuster season upon us, it’s time to turn our attention away from the workaday world of the datacenter to its fictional representation. Mainframes have made memorable appearances on both the big and small screen for decades—sometimes portrayed as...
Izzi Software Launches Z/XDC on Visual Studio Code to Speed Adoption and Boost Mainframe Debugging for the Future
New expansion to top debugging now available, integrating seamlessly into existing workflows and supporting young programmers by improving accessibility MINNEAPOLIS, August 3, 2026 — Izzi Software, owner of ColeSoft, the leading provider of debugging solutions for IBM...
What to Expect at SHARE Pittsburgh
With SHARE Pittsburgh approaching, SHARE President Art Gutowski joined Planet Mainframe to talk about what attendees can expect—and why the conference remains valuable for both newcomers and longtime mainframe professionals. Gutowski is nearing the end of his...
Real-Time Mainframe Software Visibility, SHARE Pittsburgh 2026, and more
BMC Brings Governed AI Agents to Enterprise Workflows and Mainframe Operations Precisely Delivers Real-Time Mainframe Software Visibility to the ServiceNow AI Platform IBM Reports Infrastructure Revenue Down 7 Percent SHARE Pittsburgh 2026BMC Brings Governed AI Agents...
What the New IBM z17 Rack-Mount Systems Bring to the Table
The z17 goes small, and I think that’s rather clever. On July 7, 2026, IBM announced new configurations of the z17, and for the first time ever, you can now get a rack-mount option right across the Z and LinuxONE portfolio. Not a new processor, not a new architecture,...
❓ROI, Business Case, and Tuning for Value: Round Two
This month at Planet Mainframe Trivia, we've been exploring how organizations maximize the value of their mainframe investments. Creating value doesn't end once a project is approved. Organizations continually look for ways to improve performance, optimize resources,...