REVISED 19940524 STATUS Available TYPE Software TITLE IBM REDISCOVERY/2 VRM 1.00.0 ABSTRACT The challenge of moving to new technologies while maintaining legacy systems is a key issue for many application development organizations. The ability to find, access and reuse application components can help meet this challenge and have a positive impact on the productivity of a software development team, both in terms of the quality as well as the time required to deliver new applications. Today, IBM announces the general availability of ReDiscovery/2 which addresses this need, by providing a means to reuse and manage existing and future software assets. ReDiscovery/2 is a workstation product that increases programmer productivity by dramatically improving a developers access to existing application components, through easily built catalogs with customizable classification schemes and flexible, search and retrieval functions. ReDiscovery/2 automatically captures descriptive information about existing software in the customer environment and enables the user to locate and select application components quickly and easily. ReDiscovery/2 also provides the capability for users to organize these descriptions, while utilizing the user's existing library systems on OS/2. ReDiscovery/2 can be used to improve productivity and quality during application development, and maintenance tasks such as impact evaluation, redevelopment, rightsizing and language migration. In addition, the inventory organization capabilities in ReDiscovery/2 enable the user to implement software reuse, utilizing existing and future assets. ReDiscovery/2 provides support for OS/2 LAN and PVCS* library management systems. ReDiscovery/2 is further complemented by ReDiscovery/MVS, which adds support for MVS Partitioned and Sequential data sets (PDS and SDS), PANVALET* library management system, and Partitioned and Sequential data sets (PDS/SDS) managed by SCLM*. The first customer shipment of ReDiscovery/2 was on 11/22/93 to a selected set of customers. These customers participated in a program that was designed to validate that IBM had achieved the quality objectives for ReDiscovery/2 in a variety of production environments. These customers have confirmed that IBM has achieved its quality objectives. PRODUCT POSITIONING ReDiscovery/2 is positioned to provide key reuse capabilities to our customers. Reuse can be applied at several entry points across the application development life cycle: o Application development - Requirements specification - Design - Code - Test - Maintenance The following illustrates some of the ways that customers can derive value by using ReDiscovery/2. Potential values can include productivity gains, quality improvements, and reduction of elapsed development time. o Reuse -- where an application development professional (programmer, system analyst, AD manager) identifies usable or reusable parts. ReDiscovery/2 can help a user perform reuse by answering basic premises in the above list, questions such as "Is there a place to look for something?", "Does it exist?", and "How do I get it?". To effectively implement reuse, the customer must support an organized approach to supply parts and to reuse parts. - Supply - Cataloging reusable parts ReDiscovery/2 automatically captures information from existing part sources and begins the organization process. The user may use the default classification scheme (standards) or tailor a new one to complete the organization and description of the parts. - Reuse - searching for and selecting parts The reusable parts catalog can be browsed in a variety of ways, including keyword search, structured search, and wild card search. These methods, working on the classification scheme and the raw data, should identify reusable parts for the ReDiscovery/2 user. Once function and matching code have been located, an analysis can be performed to determine which is more cost effective: -- Using the located part as is -- Modifying a copy of the located part to enhance function (that is, redevelop) -- Code a new part using the identified function as a base The reuse support strategy is part of the overall goal to improve application developer productivity. Reuse can affect a wide spectrum of application development activities and a wide variety of reusable components. MAINTENANCE By comparing (benchmarking) how long researching the affected modules takes manually versus with using ReDiscovery/2, costs for reducing the understanding or migration time can be calculated. This cost reduction may be substantial. Summary: Users should discover that ReDiscovery/2 can help them catalog their host files and libraries, organize their private workstations, and manage their servers. ReDiscovery/2provides access to workstation or OS/2 LAN and PVC library management systems. HIGHLIGHTS IBM ReDiscovery/2 helps get your job done faster through automation! IBM ReDiscovery/2 allows the application developer to: o Do your maintenance jobs faster through problem solving, PVCS support, and multi-LAN support o Use as a rightsizing, language migration, and development aid o Operate via either TCP/IP (NFS or FTP connection) or over DFT connection o Use functional aids such as tagging to organize, manage, and and share reusable parts across multiple libraries o Automatically build descriptions of reusable components (captures source and library meta-data) o Organize component descriptions using a tailorable classification scheme o Allow for adding user-defined descriptive information o Manage, enforce standards upon, and tailor reuse catalog information o Retrieve components and launch an editor of choice or other tool to complete the application build process o Access parts on both the workstation and in a local area network (LAN) environment (OS/2 files and PVCS) o Locate reusable components based upon flexible search criteria o Register interest in a part to be notified when the part is changed ReDiscovery/2 has an easy to use, CUA conforming, object-oriented, graphical user interface. BUSINESS SOLUTIONS - SEARCH AND SELECTION SAVINGS ON REUSABLE CODE The features available in ReDiscovery/2 can save application programmers significant time by automating a manual process. Reuse becomes attractive to programmers when search and selection of items such as code components, test cases, and documentation are easy and complete. Reusing code is a faster way to create new applications than writing new code. Reuse can reduce the customer backlog by improving programmer productivity, application quality, and reducing the time it takes for a programmer to complete a task. Customers should achieve value by reusing code which can increase productivity and quality, and reduce elapsed time to delivery of programs. When customers choose to reuse larger elements, even greater percentages of improvement may be possible. SYSTEMS MANAGEMENT - APPLICATION DEVELOPER PRODUCTIVITY ReDiscovery/2 helps application developers be more productive by supporting a reuse environment. ReDiscovery/2 allows users to automatically build descriptions of reusable parts from multiple disparate sources, add additional classification information, then search these catalogs to locate needed parts for maintenance of current applications or development of new applications. Organizing parts by classifying them into structures or by grouping them into components, and then providing summary information about the structure or component, allows a user to: o Search applications for needed parts o Determine what the component functions are o Research where and when the parts have been used or referenced ReDiscovery/2 provides the application developer with a tool that should reduce, if not eliminate, manual searches for code that can be used in new application generation. The easy availability of reusable code encourages application generation from available parts, rather than writing all new code. Coding time, testing time and future maintenance time can be significantly reduced by using existing, tested code. A tool which automates the search process for resuable parts makes a corporate reuse strategy feasible. GROWTH ENABLEMENT-- CONSTRAINT RELIEF ReDiscovery/2 provides a means to create new applications faster than writing new code, thereby potentially reducing application backlogs. Both programmer constraints and company constraints caused by lack of needed new applications can be eased. TECHNICAL DESCRIPTION You can use ReDiscovery/2 to catalog, search for, and retrieve parts. Examples of parts include code, specifications, documentation, or test cases. These parts can reside on your existing workstation or library systems such as PVCS Version Manager. ReDiscovery/2 also allows you to add reuse information about existing parts. Creates reuse information: o Allows you to create an organized view of library contents o Allows you to customize and add reuse information about parts for more thorough and selective searches o Enables customer-defined standards for reuse information o Allows you to subscribe to a part and be notified whenever changes are made to it o Provides data for reports about parts in the catalog based upon descriptive information o Supports a common reuse methodology across different library and file systems Catalogs: o Creates compact catalogs with keywords and reuse information about parts from multiple library and file systems o Facilitates customization of standards for reuse information Searches: o Provides searches of keywords and reuse information o Provides flexible searches based on specific reuse information o Searches a single location (a catalog) for parts from multiple, diverse sources Retrieves: o Retrieves selected parts or sets of parts for viewing or reusing o Retrieves parts from a local workstation or work groups on a LAN. OPERATING ENVIRONMENT HARDWARE REQUIREMENTS This product uses only existing attachment interfaces. ReDiscovery/2 runs on an IBM Personal System/2* (PS/2*) workstation with at least a 386 processor, however, a 486 processor running at 25MHz or better is recommended. The workstation should have the following minimum configuration: o 16MB of memory (RAM) plus 32MB of swapper space or more o 7MB of hard disk space to install the product, not including the space required by OS/2 and the catalogs you are going to create with ReDiscovery/2. o An IBM PS/2 mouse or a compatible pointing device. You can use the mouse to navigate around in ReDiscovery/2 more easily, and the mouse is required for you to use the drag and drop feature. o A VGA, SVGA, XGA, or BGA monitor o A communications adapter or appropriate network attachment (required for a network or host connection) SOFTWARE REQUIREMENTS To run ReDiscovery/2, you need: o One of the following versions of IBM Operating System/2* (OS/2*): - OS/2 Version 2.0, with the XR06100 Corrective Service Diskette installed - OS/2 Version 2.1. This is required to use the Drag and Drop feature of ReDiscovery/2 For detailed machine requirements for OS/2 Version 2.0 or OS/2 Version 2.1, see the appropriate "OS/2 Information and Planning Guide". o For network communications, one or both of the following: - For wide area network (WAN) communications from an OS/2 workstation running TCP/IP to other TCP/IP workstation hosts: IBM Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) Version 1.2.1 for OS/2, modified by the PROGCSD and NFSCSD Corrective Service Diskettes. The machines that you want to access must have a level of TCP/IP that is compatible with TCP/IP Version 1.2.1 for OS/2 and that supports the use of the Network File System to mount remote directories as local drives. - For local area network (LAN) communications from an OS/2 workstation to other OS/2 workstations: OS/2 LAN Server. Depending on the version of OS/2 you are using, you need one of two versions of OS/2 LAN Server: -- With OS/2 Version 2.0, OS/2 LAN Server Version 2.0 -- With OS/2 Version 2.1, OS/2 LAN Server Version 3.0 o To access files in the PVCS Version Manager library, any version of PVCS Version 4.0 through PVCS Version 5.1, which provide the Command Line Interface commands GET and VLOG to access the PVCS library. Any text editor that is compatible with OS/2 Version 2.0 or later is recommended. You can use the text editor to view program parts online. COMPATIBILITY Not applicable. LIMITATIONS The ReDiscovery/2 product runs on a workstation or a LAN Server. See installation instructions in the "ReDiscovery User's Guide" for limitations. PERFORMANCE CONSIDERATIONS See the "ReDiscovery User's Guide" for performance considerations. PLANNING INFORMATION CUSTOMER RESPONSIBILITIES Not applicable. CONVERSION Not applicable. SECURITY, AUDITABILITY AND CONTROL ReDiscovery/2 uses the security and auditability features of the platform hardware and software. Security for libraries is provided by the appropriate library maintenance system. User management is responsible for evaluation, selection, and implementation of security features, administrative procedures, and appropriate controls in application systems and communication facilities. PROGLIST o #8095, P/N 70G3659 (5871-AAA) IBM ReDiscovery/2 o #7443, P/N 13H9779 (5875-XXX) IBM ReDiscovery/2 5-Pack o #7444, P/N 13H9782 (5875-XXX) IBM ReDiscovery/210-Pack *Signifies a trademark or registered trademark of International Business Machines Corporation.