Additional information
by Brian W. Kelly (Author)
Finally, there is a Pocket Query Guide for training IT and non-IT personnel for Query/400. Yes, it is in big pocket guide form and it is tutorial in nature! You'll be pleased with all the valuable examples, especially result fields, selection and output options. You won't want to put down the first comprehensive guide to Query/400 now that you have your hands on it. This book was overdue 20 years ago, when Query/36 was the offering of the day. As strange as it may seem, there has never been a Query book such as this...ever. Yet, there are tons of expensive Query classes. It is difficult in most companies to get someone to step up to the plate to learn Query. Moreover, OJT is a tough learning experience and an inexact science at best. How do you know if you're ever right? The biggest cost of Query work may be impossible to quantify. The inaccurate answers that are returned from important queries, done by well intentioned, but inexperienced knowledge workers, can be costly. Making important decisions on erroneous information, however, can be even more costly. Then there is the employee turnover issue. Just when they get good at Query, they're gone. There is always another person or a team of people to train. IT is continually training users on the same Query product. Training by any source is expensive. From IBM classes to expensive self-training systems, there is no cheap alternative. It is always expensive, but it doesn't always work. It's difficult to achieve the objectives. Moreover, history suggests that one thing about Query training is always true. In a year or two, you will be doing it again. Not anymore! There is no magic in this Query Developers Guide, but everything you need is in there! In addition, it is easy to read. The objective is for the users to train themselves. The AS/400 & IBM I Pocket sized Query Guide, and a little help from co-workers along the way, and a careful evaluation by IT is all you need. The Guide has an example for just about every type of Query you can imagine - from major result fields to File Joins. You'll see how to do it with examples that you'll use repeatedly. Additionally, for each example, there is a detailed explanation as well as the theory you need to get a head start on becoming a Query/400 guru.
Author Biography
Brian W. Kelly is a retired Assistant Professor in the Business Information Technology (BIT) program at Marywood University, where he also served as the IBM i and midrange systems technical advisor to the IT faculty. Kelly developed and taught many college and professional courses in the IT and business areas. He is also a contributing technical editor to IT Jungle's "The Four Hundred" and "Four Hundred Guru" Newsletters. A former IBM Senior Systems Engineer, he has an active consultancy in the information technology field, (www.kellyconsulting.com). He is the author of 87 books and numerous articles (hundreds) about current IT topics. Kelly is a frequent speaker at COMMON, IBM conferences, and other technical conferences and user group meetings across the United States. His favorite COMMON speaker was his buddy, the late Al Barsa Jr., one of the best ever. Though much of this book was conceived and some of it was published before today, publishing standards groups acknowledge this as Brian Kelly's 87th book. Thank you for the great support of Kelly's technical books from IT Jungle, MC Press, 29th Street Press and many seminars over the years.
