02
Sat, Nov
2 New Articles

OCEAN 2012 Technical Conference Wows Attendees with 30 Sessions

General
Typography
  • Smaller Small Medium Big Bigger
  • Default Helvetica Segoe Georgia Times

 

This year's event draws 180 people interested in keeping up to date on the latest advances in IBM Power technology.

 

The annual OCEAN Technical Conference drew 180 registered seminar attendees, speakers, vendors, and volunteers this year as IT professionals from throughout Southern California gathered to sharpen their skills and learn about the latest wrinkles in IT's ever-changing landscape.

 

Bob Langieri, OCEAN VP and conference chairman, said, "The sessions this year were truly cutting edge, and we can't thank enough IBM and the other participating vendors and consultants willing to travel and send their technical experts from across the country to Southern California. It was highly uplifting for OCEAN members and should benefit them and their sponsoring firms greatly in the months to come."

 

Speakers at this year's conference, which featured seven separate learning tracks, included Jon Paris and Susan Gantner of Partner400; Eric Finkel, Terry Larkin, Ken Hilmen, and Isabelle Sato of IBM; Andy Chase of iQ for Business; Richard Milone and Scott Salisbury of CNX Corp.; Pete Massiello of iTech Solutions; Alan Seiden of Alan Seiden Consulting, LLC; Joe Pluta of Pluta Brothers Design; Alex Roytman of Profound Logic; Eamon Musallam of looksoftware; Craig Pelkie of Web400.com; Paul Holm of PlanetJ Corp. Representatives from LANSA, MaxAva, and Halcyon also hosted vendor presentations. All 16 table top spots in the vendor expo area were sold out.

 

This summer's conference continued the user group's "low-budget" theme of providing boxed lunches from Panera at meal time and using classrooms at National University in Costa Mesa, but users seemed to appreciate the no-nonsense approach to training, which kept tuition low and affordable.

 

Langieri said, "We were very fortunate to have a number of the best topic experts in the industry, including Jon Paris, Susan Gantner, and Pete Massiello, with us this year," Langieri said. He said attendees came from as far away as central California to attend the conference and were demonstrably excited by the advanced nature of the session topics. "People are beginning to realize how much has changed in the past year and how important it is to start using the new technology," Langieri said. "Yet some people still have the blinders on and just aren't willing to update their skills. People really need to get on board with the new tools, and I don't think it was ever as important as it is today to keep up with the new technology."

 

Carole Comeau, OCEAN vendor expo coordinator, said "Attendance has been relatively steady the past couple of years, though there were about 20 fewer people who registered this year than in 2011. There were only about 10 fewer paid registrants."

 

Among the more than 30 sessions presented at the conference this year were presentations titled "RPG in V7," "Simplify RPG with Open Access, "Instant Web Services and Stored Procedures," "JavaScript 101 for RPG Programmers," "Fast, Free Apps for Your IBM i," "My Favorite Things About RSE," "Tips and Tricks to Make Your SQL Sing," "Business Intelligence–Psst, You're Doing It Wrong," "Designing Screens and Reports with RDP," and other sessions on PHP, PowerLinux, browser tools, Power Systems performance tuning, and client development for smartphones and mobile devices. All sessions were one hour and 15 minutes.

 

Langieri said OCEAN will consider having Jon Paris and Susan Gantner return to give a two-day class on Rational Developer for Power (RDP), and Joe Pluta could give a Webinar on creating Android applications. If users are interested in getting additional training on either topic through OCEAN, they should contact Langieri at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

 

The dedicated OCEAN Board worked tirelessly on this year's event and has been the indomitable force keeping the group on track for presenting some of the most current technical seminars outside of COMMON conferences. Lewis Libman, UnitedHealth Group, is president of the Board this year, assisted by Comeau and Langieri; Margaret Matthews of Margaret Matthews Consulting, VP Programs; Anne Martinez, VP Membership; Perry Mills, S4i Systems, VP Publicity; Xavier Martinez, SCAN Healthcare, VP Secretary; John Kienstra, Vision Solutions, VP Treasurer; and Brian Anderson, IBM Liaison to the group.

 

Attendee evaluations of the sessions were highly complimentary, Langieri said. People enjoyed the gourmet sandwiches, and vendors reported picking up a few possible leads from attendees for follow-up calls that could make their sponsorship well worth the price of admission. As usual, MC Press Online was represented at the conference with its "book store" featuring discounts on the latest IBM-related technical books. For those who missed it, you can still visit the MC Press Bookstore, which is currently featuring "The Big Summer Sale" and a wide array of seasonal bargains.

 

080312SmithMusallamSchutSalisbury

Eamon Musallam and Garrett Schut, looksoftware, with Erin Salisbury, inFORM Decisions, pose in front of the looksoftware booth at the OCEAN Technical Conference.

 

080312SmithJohnDominicHalcyon 

John Dominic, vice president of sales, Halcyon Software, tied in exhibiting at the OCEAN conference with a round of client visits in California.

 

080312SmithMaxava

Simon O'Sullivan and Heather Jones of Maxava shared with MC Press Online that data centers are an increasing share of their business and that clients like checking on their systems with maxView Monitor running on their mobile devices.

 

080312SmithOCEANCrowd 1

OCEAN Technical Conference attendees talk with vendors while taking a break from seminars.

 

080312SmithRoytman

Alex Roytman of Profound Logic presents a session on Web and mobile apps for IBM i at the OCEAN Technical Conference.

 

080312SmithStacyJensenSEQUEL

SEQUEL Software Sales Manager Stacy Jensen says she plans to follow up with several OCEAN attendees who expressed interest in the company's solutions while at the conference.

Chris Smith

Chris Smith was the Senior News Editor at MC Press Online from 2007 to 2012 and was responsible for the news content on the company's Web site. Chris has been writing about the IBM midrange industry since 1992 when he signed on with Duke Communications as West Coast Editor of News 3X/400. With a bachelor's from the University of California at Berkeley, where he majored in English and minored in Journalism, and a master's in Journalism from the University of Colorado, Boulder, Chris later studied computer programming and AS/400 operations at Long Beach City College. An award-winning writer with two Maggie Awards, four business books, and a collection of poetry to his credit, Chris began his newspaper career as a reporter in northern California, later worked as night city editor for the Rocky Mountain News in Denver, and went on to edit a national cable television trade magazine. He was Communications Manager for McDonnell Douglas Corp. in Long Beach, Calif., before it merged with Boeing, and oversaw implementation of the company's first IBM desktop publishing system there. An editor for MC Press Online since 2007, Chris has authored some 300 articles on a broad range of topics surrounding the IBM midrange platform that have appeared in the company's eight industry-leading newsletters. He can be reached at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

BLOG COMMENTS POWERED BY DISQUS

LATEST COMMENTS

Support MC Press Online

$

Book Reviews

Resource Center

  • SB Profound WC 5536 Have you been wondering about Node.js? Our free Node.js Webinar Series takes you from total beginner to creating a fully-functional IBM i Node.js business application. You can find Part 1 here. In Part 2 of our free Node.js Webinar Series, Brian May teaches you the different tooling options available for writing code, debugging, and using Git for version control. Brian will briefly discuss the different tools available, and demonstrate his preferred setup for Node development on IBM i or any platform. Attend this webinar to learn:

  • SB Profound WP 5539More than ever, there is a demand for IT to deliver innovation. Your IBM i has been an essential part of your business operations for years. However, your organization may struggle to maintain the current system and implement new projects. The thousands of customers we've worked with and surveyed state that expectations regarding the digital footprint and vision of the company are not aligned with the current IT environment.

  • SB HelpSystems ROBOT Generic IBM announced the E1080 servers using the latest Power10 processor in September 2021. The most powerful processor from IBM to date, Power10 is designed to handle the demands of doing business in today’s high-tech atmosphere, including running cloud applications, supporting big data, and managing AI workloads. But what does Power10 mean for your data center? In this recorded webinar, IBMers Dan Sundt and Dylan Boday join IBM Power Champion Tom Huntington for a discussion on why Power10 technology is the right strategic investment if you run IBM i, AIX, or Linux. In this action-packed hour, Tom will share trends from the IBM i and AIX user communities while Dan and Dylan dive into the tech specs for key hardware, including:

  • Magic MarkTRY the one package that solves all your document design and printing challenges on all your platforms. Produce bar code labels, electronic forms, ad hoc reports, and RFID tags – without programming! MarkMagic is the only document design and print solution that combines report writing, WYSIWYG label and forms design, and conditional printing in one integrated product. Make sure your data survives when catastrophe hits. Request your trial now!  Request Now.

  • SB HelpSystems ROBOT GenericForms of ransomware has been around for over 30 years, and with more and more organizations suffering attacks each year, it continues to endure. What has made ransomware such a durable threat and what is the best way to combat it? In order to prevent ransomware, organizations must first understand how it works.

  • SB HelpSystems ROBOT GenericIT security is a top priority for businesses around the world, but most IBM i pros don’t know where to begin—and most cybersecurity experts don’t know IBM i. In this session, Robin Tatam explores the business impact of lax IBM i security, the top vulnerabilities putting IBM i at risk, and the steps you can take to protect your organization. If you’re looking to avoid unexpected downtime or corrupted data, you don’t want to miss this session.

  • SB HelpSystems ROBOT GenericCan you trust all of your users all of the time? A typical end user receives 16 malicious emails each month, but only 17 percent of these phishing campaigns are reported to IT. Once an attack is underway, most organizations won’t discover the breach until six months later. A staggering amount of damage can occur in that time. Despite these risks, 93 percent of organizations are leaving their IBM i systems vulnerable to cybercrime. In this on-demand webinar, IBM i security experts Robin Tatam and Sandi Moore will reveal:

  • FORTRA Disaster protection is vital to every business. Yet, it often consists of patched together procedures that are prone to error. From automatic backups to data encryption to media management, Robot automates the routine (yet often complex) tasks of iSeries backup and recovery, saving you time and money and making the process safer and more reliable. Automate your backups with the Robot Backup and Recovery Solution. Key features include:

  • FORTRAManaging messages on your IBM i can be more than a full-time job if you have to do it manually. Messages need a response and resources must be monitored—often over multiple systems and across platforms. How can you be sure you won’t miss important system events? Automate your message center with the Robot Message Management Solution. Key features include:

  • FORTRAThe thought of printing, distributing, and storing iSeries reports manually may reduce you to tears. Paper and labor costs associated with report generation can spiral out of control. Mountains of paper threaten to swamp your files. Robot automates report bursting, distribution, bundling, and archiving, and offers secure, selective online report viewing. Manage your reports with the Robot Report Management Solution. Key features include:

  • FORTRAFor over 30 years, Robot has been a leader in systems management for IBM i. With batch job creation and scheduling at its core, the Robot Job Scheduling Solution reduces the opportunity for human error and helps you maintain service levels, automating even the biggest, most complex runbooks. Manage your job schedule with the Robot Job Scheduling Solution. Key features include:

  • LANSA Business users want new applications now. Market and regulatory pressures require faster application updates and delivery into production. Your IBM i developers may be approaching retirement, and you see no sure way to fill their positions with experienced developers. In addition, you may be caught between maintaining your existing applications and the uncertainty of moving to something new.

  • LANSAWhen it comes to creating your business applications, there are hundreds of coding platforms and programming languages to choose from. These options range from very complex traditional programming languages to Low-Code platforms where sometimes no traditional coding experience is needed. Download our whitepaper, The Power of Writing Code in a Low-Code Solution, and:

  • LANSASupply Chain is becoming increasingly complex and unpredictable. From raw materials for manufacturing to food supply chains, the journey from source to production to delivery to consumers is marred with inefficiencies, manual processes, shortages, recalls, counterfeits, and scandals. In this webinar, we discuss how:

  • The MC Resource Centers bring you the widest selection of white papers, trial software, and on-demand webcasts for you to choose from. >> Review the list of White Papers, Trial Software or On-Demand Webcast at the MC Press Resource Center. >> Add the items to yru Cart and complet he checkout process and submit

  • Profound Logic Have you been wondering about Node.js? Our free Node.js Webinar Series takes you from total beginner to creating a fully-functional IBM i Node.js business application.

  • SB Profound WC 5536Join us for this hour-long webcast that will explore:

  • Fortra IT managers hoping to find new IBM i talent are discovering that the pool of experienced RPG programmers and operators or administrators with intimate knowledge of the operating system and the applications that run on it is small. This begs the question: How will you manage the platform that supports such a big part of your business? This guide offers strategies and software suggestions to help you plan IT staffing and resources and smooth the transition after your AS/400 talent retires. Read on to learn: