Stepping up to LANSA Version 11

Step 3 - Start to use the new RDMLX features

When:      Optional - at your leisure (you must complete steps 1 and 2 first).
Benefits gained:
The most important things about this step that managers or planners need to know:
The most important things about this step that application developers need to know:

New data types.

LANSA V11 offers support for a wide-range of industry-standard data types, including date and time types and long character fields. This comprehensive support permits better and easier application integration. It also provides for a more complete "OTHER" file capability, dramatically enhancing LANSA's ability to extend and enhance existing applications.

Enhanced language syntax.

An enhanced syntax for the RDML programming language in LANSA V11 means you have to write less code than before and offers improved string handling. The enhanced syntax is more familiar and comfortable to brand new LANSA developers. This reduces both your development and training costs.

The procedure to enable RDMLX is straightforward - there are a couple of matters you need to consider before you proceed.

It is necessary to enable full RDMLX in a partition in order to use and benefit from many of the new features and enhancements in LANSA V11, including:

  • new field types
  • relaxation of limits
  • enhanced language syntax
  • Web Application Modules (WAMs)

There are certain issues you should consider before you proceed.

Perhaps the major item is that, once a partition is enabled for full RDMLX, you can no longer use LANSA for iSeries for application development in that partition. If you are following our recommended steps, then you have already switched development to use the Visual LANSA IDE. If not, then you should do so now before proceeding to enable full RDMLX.

To find out more about the issues and whether they may affect your choices or plans, download Who put the 'X' in RDMLX? (PDF 169KB).

Now that you have decided to start using RDMLX you should consider your approach to taking this step.

Depending upon your developers skills and experience with LANSA you might decide to experiment before starting to use RDMLX in your main development partition(s).

If you want to experiment first, then an easy way to do this is:

  • Add a new partition to your development system and enable it for full RDMLX.
  • Get the developer(s) who are going to be experimenting to make the new partition available to their Visual LANSA IDEs.
  • Export some or all of your applications from your main development partition(s) into the new experiment partition.
  • Limit your RDMLX work to the experimental partition until you are satisfied that you understand it and the ramifications of using it.

Ready to proceed? For a description of the steps you should perform to enable full RDMLX for an existing partition refer to the Enabling Existing Partitions for Full RDMLX chapter in the Visual LANSA Administrator's Guide.

Recommended reading to help you understand the new RDMLX features in LANSA V11.

The LANSA V11 product set uses the term full RDMLX to refer to an optional extended set of capabilities and syntax for the LANSA repository and RDML language. Click the links below to find out more about the important new capabilities that full RDMLX enables.

For further conceptual and reference information on RDML vs RDMLX, you can refer to the following sections in the product documentation:

  • What's New in LANSA Version 11.0
  • The RDML and RDMLX Partitions chapter in the Visual LANSA Administrator's Guide
  • The RDMLX Commands and Full RDMLX chapter in the Technical Reference Guide
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