Welcome to another edition of Talsco Weekly

IBM i Brief: 🏗️ IBM shifts to build-to-order for entry Power Systems. 💼 IBM finalizes $6.4B HashiCorp acquisition.
AI: AI agents autonomously complete tasks without human direction . 🚀 IBM expands Granite model family.
Development: 🎥 F-2 Rename Symbol tutorial.
Database: 📊 Six foolproof data recovery methods for IBM i.
Hiring: 👔 IBM i talent solutions simplify hiring.
Learning: 📚 Free AI courses available from major institutions.
Vendor: 💻 IBM i migration options expand. 🔄 TL Ashford prepares for 2D barcode mandate.

IBM i Brief

🏗️ IBM shifts to build-to-order for entry Power Systems

Starting May 2025, IBM is transitioning all Power Systems manufacturing to a build-to-order model. The change affects their Guadalajara factory—now IBM’s sole production facility for entry Power Systems worldwide.

Historically, IBM has produced high-end Power systems and System z mainframes on a build-to-order basis from Poughkeepsie, New York for global markets. For AS/400 systems, IBM operated three factories: Rochester (US, Canada, high-end European), Santa Palombo (EMEA entry/midrange), and Guadalajara (Latin America, Asia).

No machines will be built during April’s transition period, with March order deadlines of 10th for high-end servers and 17th for midrange/entry models. This represents IBM aligning with industry-standard practices used by competitors like HPE, Dell, and Lenovo.

Several things will change and several things will not change. Too many to list, so you will have to find all the details here.

Thinking about: Have you ever wondered what systems IBM uses to manage the manufacturing process of Power Systems Hardware 🤔. And, will IBM will move Power Systems manufacturing back to Rochester?

💼 IBM finalizes $6.4B HashiCorp acquisition

IBM’s completion of its $6.4 billion acquisition of HashiCorp, a key move finalized after regulatory nods from the U.S. FTC and U.K.’s CMA.

HashiCorp’s tools, like Terraform, enhance IBM’s hybrid cloud and AI offerings, focusing on infrastructure automation.

The deal, initially expected by late 2024, aims to integrate Terraform with IBM’s Ansible and other products for seamless cloud management.

It looks like IBM is doubling down on hybrid cloud.

AI

AI agents autonomously complete tasks without human direction 

What are AI Agents?

Unlike AI assistants that require prompts for every action, AI agents can work independently after initial instructions.

AI Assistants vs AI Agents: AI Assistants are reactive, waiting for commands from the user and AI Agents are proactive that work more autonomously.

IBM highlights that these systems can design workflows, utilize tools, and collaborate with other agents to accomplish sophisticated tasks. The power of agents comes from their advanced planning and reasoning capabilities, offering enterprise benefits including task automation, better performance through multi-agent frameworks, and higher quality responses.

IBM’s watsonx Orchestrate helps organizations deploy these AI agents to automate processes and workflows across business applications.

🚀 IBM expands Granite model family

IBM has launched Granite 3.2, its next-generation AI model series featuring enhanced reasoning capabilities and multi-modal options.

Enhanced reasoning capabilities in Granite 3.2 8B and 2B instruct models, new Vision Language Model (VLM), slimmed-down Granite Guardian models, and next-gen TinyTimeMixers (TTM) models

What are TTM models?

Tiny Time Mixers (TTMs) are lightweight, pre-trained models designed for multivariate time series forecasting, leveraging the efficient TSMixer architecture with about 1 million parameters. Unlike LLMs, they focus specifically on time series data. For example, TTM-forecast can predict manufacturing costs of goods, such as steel production expenses, with high accuracy and minimal computational requirements on CPUs.

IBM’s focus remains on delivering efficient, specialized AI for enterprise applications.

Development

🎥 F-2 Rename Symbol tutorial

Code for IBM i: Refactoring variables to make your code more understandable and maintainable. RPG programs with variable names that need to be changed.

Database

📊 Six foolproof data recovery methods for IBM i

When batch processes fail on IBM i systems, having solid recovery mechanisms is crucial. The article outlines six effective methods to handle errors and roll back to previous states without data loss.

These techniques help maintain system integrity during sequential program execution failures.

This guide offers essential strategies for IBM i administrators to protect critical information during process interruptions.

Hiring

👔 IBM i talent solutions simplify hiring

With over 25 years in the IBM i market, Talsco provides custom hiring approaches to address critical staffing needs.

Direct hire services support succession planning by connecting organizations with IBM i experts who can modernize legacy systems.

The flexible RPG Flex Hire option offers part-time, short-term, and extended project consulting services, ensuring comprehensive coverage regardless of organizational requirements.

Learning

📚 Free AI courses available from major institutions

Google, Harvard, and other major institutions are offering completely free AI courses to help professionals build skills in this rapidly growing field.

Vendor

💻 IBM i migration options expand

Public cloud solutions for IBM i have matured significantly, becoming viable for production workloads. Organizations now have multiple choices including IBM Power Virtual Server, Skytap on Azure, MSPs with Power10 hardware, and on-premise solutions. Key decision factors include latency requirements, CapEx vs OpEx preferences, in-house skills, data sovereignty, and resource scalability. Maxava’s Migrate Live solution offers seamless transitions between these environments with minimal disruption.

🔄 TL Ashford prepares for 2D barcode mandate

IBM i barcode software company TL Ashford is helping customers comply with GS1’s Sunrise 2027 initiative requiring 2D barcodes in retail.

Unlike traditional UPC codes that store just 95 bits, QR Codes and Data Matrix can hold thousands of bytes, enabling “dynamic data” like expiration dates, lot numbers, and website links.

The transition opens creative possibilities including augmented reality integration for warehouse scanning and “smart shelves” in retail stores.

The History & Future of Barcoding

The 75-year-old barcode concept has evolved from simple retail identification to powering global supply chains across industries. Today, barcodes appear everywhere from products to tickets to public transit.

Future developments include the transition to 2D symbologies like QR Codes under GS1’s Sunrise 2027 initiative. These advanced codes will enable Smart Data Capture with contextual information, while AI and RFID integration promises enhanced capabilities including simultaneous scanning and interpretation of damaged codes.

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