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  3. Is COBOL still relevant?

Is COBOL still relevant?

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  • U Offline
    U Offline
    User 4243366
    wrote on last edited by
    #1

    We all know COBOL is a dying language and there is not much coverage here because of that. However if anyone is involved with COBOL at any level or knows someone who is, you/they might find this article thought provoking. http://primacomputing.co.nz/COBOL21/COBOLRelevance.aspx

    L N C realJSOPR Mike HankeyM 6 Replies Last reply
    0
    • U User 4243366

      We all know COBOL is a dying language and there is not much coverage here because of that. However if anyone is involved with COBOL at any level or knows someone who is, you/they might find this article thought provoking. http://primacomputing.co.nz/COBOL21/COBOLRelevance.aspx

      L Offline
      L Offline
      Lost User
      wrote on last edited by
      #2

      I choose not to read it.

      Peter Wasser Art is making something out of nothing and selling it. Frank Zappa

      U 1 Reply Last reply
      0
      • U User 4243366

        We all know COBOL is a dying language and there is not much coverage here because of that. However if anyone is involved with COBOL at any level or knows someone who is, you/they might find this article thought provoking. http://primacomputing.co.nz/COBOL21/COBOLRelevance.aspx

        N Offline
        N Offline
        Nagy Vilmos
        wrote on last edited by
        #3

        Member 4246474 wrote:

        We all know COBOL is a dying language

        No it isn't. COBOL is still used in a lot of older systems, especially in the financial world. It is being phased out, but rumours of its death are greatly exaggerated. [see TIOBE[^] survey]


        Panic, Chaos, Destruction. My work here is done. Drink. Get drunk. Fall over - P O'H OK, I will win to day or my name isn't Ethel Crudacre! - DD Ethel Crudacre I cannot live by bread alone. Bacon and ketchup are needed as well. - Trollslayer Have a bit more patience with newbies. Of course some of them act dumb - they're often *students*, for heaven's sake - Terry Pratchett

        U 1 Reply Last reply
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        • L Lost User

          I choose not to read it.

          Peter Wasser Art is making something out of nothing and selling it. Frank Zappa

          U Offline
          U Offline
          User 4243366
          wrote on last edited by
          #4

          Any reason why? I thought it was well balanced and made some good points.

          L 1 Reply Last reply
          0
          • N Nagy Vilmos

            Member 4246474 wrote:

            We all know COBOL is a dying language

            No it isn't. COBOL is still used in a lot of older systems, especially in the financial world. It is being phased out, but rumours of its death are greatly exaggerated. [see TIOBE[^] survey]


            Panic, Chaos, Destruction. My work here is done. Drink. Get drunk. Fall over - P O'H OK, I will win to day or my name isn't Ethel Crudacre! - DD Ethel Crudacre I cannot live by bread alone. Bacon and ketchup are needed as well. - Trollslayer Have a bit more patience with newbies. Of course some of them act dumb - they're often *students*, for heaven's sake - Terry Pratchett

            U Offline
            U Offline
            User 4243366
            wrote on last edited by
            #5

            Agreed. The article acknowledges that. That statement is my personal opinion. It is the perceived wisdom of many people. Read the article.

            M 1 Reply Last reply
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            • U User 4243366

              We all know COBOL is a dying language and there is not much coverage here because of that. However if anyone is involved with COBOL at any level or knows someone who is, you/they might find this article thought provoking. http://primacomputing.co.nz/COBOL21/COBOLRelevance.aspx

              C Offline
              C Offline
              Chris Quinn
              wrote on last edited by
              #6

              People have been saying that COBOL was dying since I started in IT in 1985, and probably earlier than that! To quote Monty Python and the Holy Grail "Bring out yer dead. Here's one. That'll be ninepence. I'm not dead. What? Nothing. There's your ninepence. I'm not dead. 'Ere, he says he's not dead. Yes he is. I'm not. He isn't. Well, he will be soon, he's very ill. I'm getting better. No you're not, you'll be stone dead in a moment."

              ==================================== Transvestites - Roberts in Disguise! ====================================

              L U 2 Replies Last reply
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              • U User 4243366

                Any reason why? I thought it was well balanced and made some good points.

                L Offline
                L Offline
                Lost User
                wrote on last edited by
                #7

                I am not going to read the article because in my mind anyone still promoting something that is clearly dead is akin to the the conspiracy theorist. Nagy has enunciated it well - COBOL lives in legacy code and will die when all the aging practitioners die.

                Peter Wasser Art is making something out of nothing and selling it. Frank Zappa

                U 1 Reply Last reply
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                • U User 4243366

                  Agreed. The article acknowledges that. That statement is my personal opinion. It is the perceived wisdom of many people. Read the article.

                  M Offline
                  M Offline
                  Marcus_2
                  wrote on last edited by
                  #8

                  Member 4246474 wrote:

                  We all know COBOL is a dying language

                  Member 4246474 wrote:

                  That statement is my personal opinion.

                  But you make it sound like it's everyones opinion (at least everyone at Codeproject). I don't think it's more dying than you or me, we'll eventually die but hopefully not in the near future. I think it's the same weith Cobol, it'll still be around for a long time. So in essence you right, Cobol will die but it'll take a long time doing so. I'd wager C# is dead before Cobol though.

                  L U 2 Replies Last reply
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                  • C Chris Quinn

                    People have been saying that COBOL was dying since I started in IT in 1985, and probably earlier than that! To quote Monty Python and the Holy Grail "Bring out yer dead. Here's one. That'll be ninepence. I'm not dead. What? Nothing. There's your ninepence. I'm not dead. 'Ere, he says he's not dead. Yes he is. I'm not. He isn't. Well, he will be soon, he's very ill. I'm getting better. No you're not, you'll be stone dead in a moment."

                    ==================================== Transvestites - Roberts in Disguise! ====================================

                    L Offline
                    L Offline
                    Lost User
                    wrote on last edited by
                    #9

                    The last refuge of a scoundrel is to quote Python - I do it all the time.

                    Peter Wasser Art is making something out of nothing and selling it. Frank Zappa

                    1 Reply Last reply
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                    • M Marcus_2

                      Member 4246474 wrote:

                      We all know COBOL is a dying language

                      Member 4246474 wrote:

                      That statement is my personal opinion.

                      But you make it sound like it's everyones opinion (at least everyone at Codeproject). I don't think it's more dying than you or me, we'll eventually die but hopefully not in the near future. I think it's the same weith Cobol, it'll still be around for a long time. So in essence you right, Cobol will die but it'll take a long time doing so. I'd wager C# is dead before Cobol though.

                      L Offline
                      L Offline
                      Lost User
                      wrote on last edited by
                      #10

                      Why does C# lack credibility? Maybe I should start a new thread.

                      Peter Wasser Art is making something out of nothing and selling it. Frank Zappa

                      M 1 Reply Last reply
                      0
                      • L Lost User

                        I am not going to read the article because in my mind anyone still promoting something that is clearly dead is akin to the the conspiracy theorist. Nagy has enunciated it well - COBOL lives in legacy code and will die when all the aging practitioners die.

                        Peter Wasser Art is making something out of nothing and selling it. Frank Zappa

                        U Offline
                        U Offline
                        User 4243366
                        wrote on last edited by
                        #11

                        Thanks Paul. That is a fair comment. However, this article is neither promoting COBOL nor damning it. Rather, it is asking what should be done about it. I found it interesting and apparently, so have a number of other people. It's a bit sad to see people commenting on something they haven't even read, but this is a lounge and that's what happens in lounges :-)

                        L 1 Reply Last reply
                        0
                        • C Chris Quinn

                          People have been saying that COBOL was dying since I started in IT in 1985, and probably earlier than that! To quote Monty Python and the Holy Grail "Bring out yer dead. Here's one. That'll be ninepence. I'm not dead. What? Nothing. There's your ninepence. I'm not dead. 'Ere, he says he's not dead. Yes he is. I'm not. He isn't. Well, he will be soon, he's very ill. I'm getting better. No you're not, you'll be stone dead in a moment."

                          ==================================== Transvestites - Roberts in Disguise! ====================================

                          U Offline
                          U Offline
                          User 4243366
                          wrote on last edited by
                          #12

                          OK, call it a draw... Come back here, I'll bite you in the leg...

                          1 Reply Last reply
                          0
                          • U User 4243366

                            Thanks Paul. That is a fair comment. However, this article is neither promoting COBOL nor damning it. Rather, it is asking what should be done about it. I found it interesting and apparently, so have a number of other people. It's a bit sad to see people commenting on something they haven't even read, but this is a lounge and that's what happens in lounges :-)

                            L Offline
                            L Offline
                            Lost User
                            wrote on last edited by
                            #13

                            I never commented on the article - I commented that I was not going to read it. I don't read articles on flying saucer sightings either. Thats just an efficient deployment of resources.

                            Peter Wasser Art is making something out of nothing and selling it. Frank Zappa

                            U 1 Reply Last reply
                            0
                            • L Lost User

                              Why does C# lack credibility? Maybe I should start a new thread.

                              Peter Wasser Art is making something out of nothing and selling it. Frank Zappa

                              M Offline
                              M Offline
                              Marcus_2
                              wrote on last edited by
                              #14

                              No, please don't... ;-) It's based on how much Cobol is used in the financial systems (I don't work with finance systems but a fairly large corporation and we have a lot of legacy systems in Cobol, that will remain in Cobol for the foreseeable future). At most places I've worked VB (and by that I mean VB1-VB6) has been something that has been tried to have removed, either by redoing applications altogether (in Java, C#) or trying to "port" them to VB.Net. VB had ~20 years where it was great and now we try to cleanse our memory from it, my best guess is that in 10-20 years time we'll do it with C# and .Net as well but Cobol will still linger on in the background as it does today.

                              1 Reply Last reply
                              0
                              • M Marcus_2

                                Member 4246474 wrote:

                                We all know COBOL is a dying language

                                Member 4246474 wrote:

                                That statement is my personal opinion.

                                But you make it sound like it's everyones opinion (at least everyone at Codeproject). I don't think it's more dying than you or me, we'll eventually die but hopefully not in the near future. I think it's the same weith Cobol, it'll still be around for a long time. So in essence you right, Cobol will die but it'll take a long time doing so. I'd wager C# is dead before Cobol though.

                                U Offline
                                U Offline
                                User 4243366
                                wrote on last edited by
                                #15

                                I DID qualify it by saying it is perceived wisdom. (However, at this stage, I do share it personally.) I gained that perception by talking with other programmers in other lounges, but your point is taken. I'll modify my statement to: "Many programmers believe COBOL is a dying language." However, the article neither endorses that view nor condemns it. I was hoping to get some comments from people who actually read it and who program for a living, to see if they agree or disagree with it. I programmed COBOL for a couple of decades but don't any more, so I have an interest and wondered what others opinions might be. I think the point about COBOL being overtaken by a paradigm shift is an interesting one.

                                1 Reply Last reply
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                                • L Lost User

                                  I never commented on the article - I commented that I was not going to read it. I don't read articles on flying saucer sightings either. Thats just an efficient deployment of resources.

                                  Peter Wasser Art is making something out of nothing and selling it. Frank Zappa

                                  U Offline
                                  U Offline
                                  User 4243366
                                  wrote on last edited by
                                  #16

                                  It is indeed and each of us has a right to decide what inputs we will process. :-) I am suitably chastened by your response. (you're missing a lot of fun with UFOs though... ;-))

                                  1 Reply Last reply
                                  0
                                  • U User 4243366

                                    We all know COBOL is a dying language and there is not much coverage here because of that. However if anyone is involved with COBOL at any level or knows someone who is, you/they might find this article thought provoking. http://primacomputing.co.nz/COBOL21/COBOLRelevance.aspx

                                    realJSOPR Offline
                                    realJSOPR Offline
                                    realJSOP
                                    wrote on last edited by
                                    #17

                                    It's only relevant to someone that's being paid to code in it.

                                    ".45 ACP - because shooting twice is just silly" - JSOP, 2010
                                    -----
                                    You can never have too much ammo - unless you're swimming, or on fire. - JSOP, 2010
                                    -----
                                    "Why don't you tie a kerosene-soaked rag around your ankles so the ants won't climb up and eat your candy ass." - Dale Earnhardt, 1997

                                    Mike HankeyM 1 Reply Last reply
                                    0
                                    • U User 4243366

                                      We all know COBOL is a dying language and there is not much coverage here because of that. However if anyone is involved with COBOL at any level or knows someone who is, you/they might find this article thought provoking. http://primacomputing.co.nz/COBOL21/COBOLRelevance.aspx

                                      Mike HankeyM Offline
                                      Mike HankeyM Offline
                                      Mike Hankey
                                      wrote on last edited by
                                      #18

                                      Quote:

                                      Our highly trained Tech Support man, Heisenberg (results are always uncertain...), has found the right filing cabinet and you will be shown the requested document in seconds If you can't be bothered waiting for Heisenberg,

                                      As an aside this is what you get if you don't have Javascript enabled. Thought it amusing.

                                      VS2010/AVR Studio 5.0 ToDo Manager Extension

                                      1 Reply Last reply
                                      0
                                      • realJSOPR realJSOP

                                        It's only relevant to someone that's being paid to code in it.

                                        ".45 ACP - because shooting twice is just silly" - JSOP, 2010
                                        -----
                                        You can never have too much ammo - unless you're swimming, or on fire. - JSOP, 2010
                                        -----
                                        "Why don't you tie a kerosene-soaked rag around your ankles so the ants won't climb up and eat your candy ass." - Dale Earnhardt, 1997

                                        Mike HankeyM Offline
                                        Mike HankeyM Offline
                                        Mike Hankey
                                        wrote on last edited by
                                        #19

                                        and fortunately that someone is not me.

                                        VS2010/AVR Studio 5.0 ToDo Manager Extension

                                        realJSOPR R G 3 Replies Last reply
                                        0
                                        • Mike HankeyM Mike Hankey

                                          and fortunately that someone is not me.

                                          VS2010/AVR Studio 5.0 ToDo Manager Extension

                                          realJSOPR Offline
                                          realJSOPR Offline
                                          realJSOP
                                          wrote on last edited by
                                          #20

                                          I actually know a guy that's got a COBOL coding job here in San Aantonio.

                                          ".45 ACP - because shooting twice is just silly" - JSOP, 2010
                                          -----
                                          You can never have too much ammo - unless you're swimming, or on fire. - JSOP, 2010
                                          -----
                                          "Why don't you tie a kerosene-soaked rag around your ankles so the ants won't climb up and eat your candy ass." - Dale Earnhardt, 1997

                                          Mike HankeyM 1 Reply Last reply
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