What the IBM i Community Still Does Better Than Everyone Else

 First Sip

Today’s coffee is my familiar Dunkin' Medium Roast—nothing fancy, nothing trendy. It’s consistent, dependable, and exactly what I expect every morning.

That felt like the right cup for this article.

Because while the tech world chases the next big thing every six months, the IBM i community quietly keeps doing something most others have forgotten how to do: build systems that last, evolve responsibly, and serve the business year after year without burning everything down.

This isn’t about nostalgia. It’s about craftsmanship. And there are things this community still does better than almost anyone else.

1. We Build Systems That Are Meant to Last

In many environments, software is treated as disposable. Rewrite it. Replace it. Migrate it. Repeat.

IBM i teams take a different approach.

Applications are built with the expectation that they will:

  • Run for decades
  • Be enhanced incrementally
  • Survive hardware refreshes, OS upgrades, and staffing changes
  • Continue delivering business value long after the original developers have moved on

That mindset changes everything. It forces discipline. It rewards clarity. It prioritizes correctness over cleverness.

Longevity isn’t an accident on IBM i. It’s intentional.

2. We Respect Data as a First-Class Citizen

In the IBM i world, data isn’t an afterthought—it’s central.

Developers understand:

  • How data is structured
  • Why integrity matters
  • What happens when you get it wrong

The tight integration between the OS, the database, and applications means you feel the consequences of bad design early. Referential integrity, commitment control, and transaction safety aren’t optional concepts bolted on later. They’re baked in.

That discipline is increasingly rare—and increasingly valuable.

3. RPG and IBM i Are Always Evolving—Just Not Recklessly

One of the biggest misconceptions about IBM i is that it doesn’t change.

In reality, RPG and IBM i have always evolved—carefully, deliberately, and with respect for existing systems.

Over time, the platform has embraced:

  • New POWER hardware generations without breaking applications
  • SQL as the primary data interface
  • Service programs, procedures, and modular design
  • Fully free-form RPG
  • Modern tooling like VS Code-based workflows
  • APIs, open source runtimes, and cross-platform integration

What makes IBM i different isn’t a lack of innovation.
It’s the refusal to sacrifice stability just to chase trends.

Progress is integrated, not disruptive.

That’s not stagnation. That’s engineering maturity.

4. We Debug by Thinking, Not Guessing

There’s a calm precision in how IBM i developers troubleshoot problems.

Instead of:

  • Random retries
  • Blind restarts
  • Hope-based debugging

There’s an emphasis on:

  • Job logs
  • Call stacks
  • Data inspection
  • Reproducibility
  • Understanding why something failed

That mindset comes from decades of working in environments where mistakes are expensive and downtime matters. It’s a skill that doesn’t show up on résumés—but it shows up in results.

5. We Value Compatibility Without Freezing Innovation

Backward compatibility is often mocked in modern tech circles.

On IBM i, it’s a strategic advantage.

The ability to:

  • Run old code alongside new code
  • Modernize incrementally
  • Introduce new patterns without rewriting everything
  • Protect business logic while improving design

…means teams can move forward without stopping the world.

That balance—between protection and progress—is rare. And it’s something this community understands deeply.

6. We Teach Through Mentorship, Not Just Documentation

The IBM i community has always relied on people teaching people.

Senior developers:

  • Explain why decisions were made
  • Share war stories
  • Walk juniors through real systems
  • Pass down judgment, not just syntax

That human transfer of knowledge is one of the platform’s greatest strengths—and one of the reasons teams remain effective even when tools and languages evolve.

7. The Community Still Believes Software Is a Craft

More than anything else, this is what stands out.

There’s pride here.
Pride in clean logic.
Pride in reliable systems.
Pride in knowing that what you built matters.

IBM i developers don’t just ship code. They steward systems that payrolls depend on, hospitals rely on, and supply chains trust.

That sense of responsibility hasn’t disappeared here.

Final Sips

As I finish the last sip of my Dunkin Medium Roast, I’m reminded why this community continues to matter.

The IBM i world proves that:

  • Stability and innovation aren’t opposites
  • Modernization doesn’t require abandonment
  • Experience is an asset, not a liability
  • Thoughtful evolution beats constant reinvention

There’s a lot the broader tech industry could relearn from how this platform—and its people—operate.

And if we continue to embrace modern principles while honoring what already works, the best years of IBM i development aren’t behind us.

They’re ahead.

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