THE FOUR HUNDRED - Power Systems & IBM i Insights

1. Where We Are And Where We Are Headed With AI On IBM i

   Here we are in 2026, and we have gotten used to GenAI like we did the coronavirus pandemic after it largely ran its course after three years. The difference, of course, is that there is no vaccine for GenAI, especially when a substantial part of the growth in the global economy is coming from enormous capital spending on GenAI hardware and software.

   I have spent a large portion of my career as an IT journalist and analyst tracking high end, large scale, distributed computing in its many forms and have been fascinated by the clever and creative advances in the …

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2. IBM Unveils Expert Query To Replace Db2 Web Query

   IBM’s Technology Expert Labs is launching IBM Database Expert Query for i, a new tool that allows users to create and run reports against the integrated Db2 for i database from the comfort of a Web browser. IBM is positioning Expert Query as a replacement for Db2 Web Query, the business intelligence and analytics tool that it abruptly killed more than two years ago.

   Expert Query was developed over the past year by Technology Expert Labs (formerly Lab Services). We have heard rumblings that Big Blue was gearing up a replacement for the well-liked Db2 Web Query product, and it …

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3. Guru: Are Binding Directories A Shortcut Or A Source Of Chaos?

   Ask any IBM i developer about binding directories, and you will usually get one of two reactions: A grateful nod or an eye roll. For some, binding directories are a lifesaver, making compile commands cleaner and projects easier to manage. For others, they are a ticking time bomb, introducing hidden dependencies that come back to haunt you months later.

   I have seen both sides. In fact, one of the worst compile-day disasters I’ve witnessed started with a well-meaning developer adding a single service program to a global binding directory. Suddenly, half the shop’s programs were linking against the wrong version …

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4. IBM Takes On The Memory Crunch With New FlashSystem Lineup

   There is a shortage of main memory and flash in the world right now. This is due, in large part, to the explosion in investments in yottascale AI systems that burn tens of gigawatts of juice. Such systems require a huge amount of HBM stacked memory on their GPU and XPU accelerators as well as high performance DRAM and flash in their hosts and truly enormous shared flash storage to serve up datasets.

   The biggest companies buy up most of the DRAM and flash chips a year or more before they are even made, but with demand skyrocketing, the memory …

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5. IBM i PTF Guide, Volume 28, Number 7

   First, we wish you all a happy belated Valentine’s Day, which we were thinking about because we put the IBM i PTF Guide together on Saturday.

   Second, there is a new System Planning Tool, Version 6.26.041.0, which is available for download at this link. We also note that the link to the IBM Systems Workload Estimator and the link to the IBM Systems Energy Estimator no longer work and just take you to a generic IT Infrastructure page that is, how shall we say?, not particularly useful.

   And third, we have Security Bulletin: IBM WebSphere Application Server could provide …

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