From "IBM invests in Unix and ASP technology for the AS/400" by Peter Martin, AS/400 Experts Journal, Vol. 3, No. 2, March/April 2000. Provided courtesy of The 400 Group.
Portable Applications Solutions Environment (PASE) is a component of OS/400 that allows a subset of AIX functionality to run on the AS/400. IBM Corp. officially announced it earlier this year, and it is intended to ease the porting of Unix applications to the AS/400.
Can I use PASE now?
Yes, PASE is available right now on all versions of V4R4, AS/400e servers. PASE is part of the operating system and will be available on future AS/400e model lines.
Is PASE a chargeable item?
Yes, shops that implement PASE will be charged to use it and must select Option 33 in OS/400 before they're able to implement it. "There will be a nominal charge to use PASE, associated with royalties for Unix," comments IBM's Ian Jarman. The nominal fee has yet to be decided.
Do I need AIX or Unix skills to use PASE?
No, AS/400 shops don't need these skills to use PASE. OS/400 operations, security and backup are used with PASE, not AIX. Therefore, no AIX knowledge is required by PASE users.
Why was PASE technology brought to the AS/400?
"This is an element like Java and Domino to revitalize applications and solutions on the AS/400," states Jarman.
Jarman squashes rumors that this is a forerunner to an AS/400-RS/6000 marriage, but speculation persists.
"Consolidation of IBM servers is inevitable. From a pragmatic view, I don't think you can resist the ties. There's no sense perpetuating all the lines," comments Alan Zwiren, vice president of marketing at Magic Software.
Have any AS/400 business partners developed PASE applications?
Yes, there are currently two AS/400 business partners that have PASE-enabled applications. SPSS has its number-crunching software, called SPSS, now available. JD Edwards announced at PartnerWorld that its Active Supply Chain suite will use the new technology.
This was first published in April 2000