Software Development — IBM i Languages
RPG, RPGLE, COBOL & CL Development
The languages your IBM i applications are actually written in. Paragon develops, extends, and maintains code in ILE RPG, free-format RPG, RPGLE, COBOL, and CL — whether that’s new development or work inside a program someone else wrote twenty years ago.
What we work in
The Native Languages Behind Your IBM i Applications
Most IBM i systems are built on some combination of these four. We work in all of them, in whatever mix your application actually uses.
New vs. existing code
New Development and Existing Code, Handled the Same Way
Some of what we do is new development — a program that doesn’t exist yet, built to a spec. More of it is working inside code that already exists: an enhancement to a program written a decade ago, a bug that’s been reported but not diagnosed, a report that needs a new field.
Both start the same way. Before we change anything, we read the program, trace what calls it and what it calls, and confirm we understand what it’s actually doing — not just what the variable names suggest it’s doing. Undocumented code and unfamiliar naming conventions are the normal starting point, not an obstacle.
If the underlying code is fixed-format and the engagement calls for it, we can convert to free-format as part of the work. If it doesn’t, we work in fixed-format directly. That decision belongs to the scope of the project, not to what’s easiest for us.
Common Requests
- A new program or subprocedure added to an existing application
- Bug fixes in code the original developer no longer maintains
- A report or extract that doesn’t exist yet
- Converting a fixed-format program to free-format RPG
- CL job scheduling and batch process changes
- Ongoing maintenance for an application with no in-house RPG developer
Related work
Where This Fits With What Else We Do
Straightforward RPG or COBOL work — an enhancement, a fix, a new report — is what’s on this page. If the underlying code needs to be brought forward more substantially, or connected to something outside IBM i, that’s IBM i modernization. If you need an outside opinion on the environment before committing to either, that starts as IBM i consulting.
FAQ
RPG & COBOL Development Questions
Do you need our source code and documentation to start?
Source code, yes. Documentation, not necessarily — most of what we’re brought in for has little or none, and reconstructing an understanding of undocumented code is part of the work, not a blocker to starting it.
Can you work in fixed-format RPG, or do you require free-format?
We work in both. We won’t insist on converting your code to free-format before we can maintain it — that’s a separate decision with its own cost and benefit, not a prerequisite.
Do you write new programs, or only maintain existing ones?
Both. New development and maintenance of existing code use the same team and the same process.
What if the person who wrote the original code is gone?
That’s the normal situation, not the exception. We start by reading the code and tracing its dependencies rather than relying on someone who remembers writing it.
Have RPG or COBOL Work That Needs Doing?
Tell us what you’re working with and we’ll tell you honestly what it takes.
Discuss your project Call 800-966-6725