Eric Gudgion

The rising business trend toward using open source software platforms has brought an increase in the number of critical applications deployed on Linux and BEA WebLogic. For many organizations, in fact, WebLogic deployments are their first major Linux installation. This article provides an overview of deployment considerations when using a Linux/ WebLogic combination. Linux deployments span traditional Intel-based servers from grid environments to mainframe systems (IBM's z/VM with Linux guests for example). In this article we will only cover the Intel architecture; however, almost all the points covered in this article are applicable for non-Intel deployments. Why Linux? Why the increasing number of deployments? Linux provides an alternative to proprietary operating systems. It can offer lower cost of ownership for some customers and has a large following of skilled ... (more)

WebLogic on the Mainframe: Install, Configure, Deploy

So, you're going to deploy WebLogic Server on the mainframe. Pretty scary, huh? There are all those "glass house" terms: sysgens, operating systems with a "z," parallel sysplex, Workload Manager, and on and on. Without a little education, the mainframe world can be as foreign to the Java developer and architect as the distributed J2EE world is to a COBOL programmer on the host. But these two environments aren't as different as you might believe. This article covers how to install, configure, and deploy WebLogic and WebLogic-based J2EE applications on the mainframe, specifically z/... (more)

WebLogic Server on the Mainframe

Integration is the biggest challenge facing IT organizations. The glass house controls much of the business-critical data in the enterprise, and traditional integration tactics, while complex and often proprietary, are still king. However, more convenient, aggregated, and flexible access to this data is requested and often required by the business side to extend, or at least defend, competitive advantage. Customers and users expect more access, better services, and more current data, and a company's competitors are just a click away. Fortunately, products such as the BEA WebLogi... (more)

The Benefits of Heterogeneity

"WebLogic Server is supported on the mainframe." I read the internal announcement and thought "Huh?" Why would someone want to deploy distributed Java applications on the big iron? What about training Java developers on the underlying mainframe systems? However, the more I thought about it the more the strategy made sense. Why wouldn't I want to combine the industry's most reliable, most scalable, most mature application server with the hardware platform that best provides the same benefits? Heterogeneity is a reality in today's computing world. IT organizations are responsible... (more)