[xquery-talk] XQuery Platform Support

[john.zink at prudential.com]

OK..Let me see if I can explain it a bit clearer.
We basically have 2 scenarios where a rules engine needs to be implemented.
For our "new business" process I need an engine that examines application
type questions and returns a result for the policy.  The result can be
either accept or reject the policy.  The decision is made based upon a
collection of rules.  For example if you have 3 speeding tickets in the
last month you will be declined.  This engine has been created as I
explained before.  The new engine is replacing COM components that have all
the rules hard coded in the form of "IF-THEN-ELSE" statements.  The user
can now create the rules based on a schema that describes the message the
client will pass to the engine.  The engine takes the rules entered by the
user and converts them to XQuery expressions.  The engine than runs the
XQuery expressions against the XML being passed from the client to
determine the result for the policy (hold or accept).    The second
scenario is we have another engine running on the mainframe that processes
policies when they renew on a yearly basis.  This engine is basically a
COBOL program that processes a sequential input file and updates a VSAM
file with the results.  This engine processes thousands of records every
night in a batch process.   I would like to use the same client application
for building the rules as I mentioned in the first scenario.  I would then
need a way to get a mainframe program that runs in a batch process to
somehow process the XQuery statements.  I believe it would be too slow to
send mainframe records down to the server to run against the distributed
engine.   I only have a short window for the mainframe batch process.  Hope
this clarifies my situation.  I've just started to examine the mainframe
process so I haven't really formulated any real solutions for the mainframe
side of the problem.


John Z


                                                                                                                                       
              "James Governor"                                                                                                         
              <jgovernor at redmonk.com>                     To:                                         <john.zink at prudential.com>,      
                                                           <talk at xquery.com>                                                           
                                                          cc:                                                                          
              Thursday October 16, 2003 09:48 AM          Subject:   RE: [xquery-talk] XQuery Platform Support                         
                                                                                                                                       
                                                                                                                                       




I am not sure from your question exactly what scenario you're talking
to.

However it is worth noting that IBM this week acquired a mainframe data
integration firm called CrossAccess, which was pitched as filling out
its DB2 Information Integrator (II) strategy

http://www.ibm.com/news/us/2003/10/142.html

DB2 II is where IBM plans to instantiate xQuery, and as such it looks as
if IBM is potentially moving in a helpful direction. Assuming xquery is
mapped to mainframe data sources accessed natively using CrossAccess
connector technology.

Until IBM delivers a native XML store for DB2 however, some of the
xQuery productization is on hold.

IBM was partnering with Nimble Technologies for xQuery support, but
Actuate acquired Nimble, so I am not sure of the status of that deal.

Hope that helps a little but I am not sure we understood your problem.

As SoftwareAG points out, Tamino already offers xQuery support on the
mainframe.

Are you running 390 or ZOS, or VM/VSE or whatever? Which IBM mainframe
OS?


-----Original Message-----
From: talk-bounces at xquery.com [mailto:talk-bounces at xquery.com] On Behalf
Of john.zink at prudential.com
Sent: Thursday, October 16, 2003 2:07 PM
To: talk at xquery.com
Cc: ktegels at msn.com
Subject: RE: [xquery-talk] XQuery Platform Support


Not in the Yukon beta, but I am in the Whidbey alpha program.
The mainframe OS is IBM.