M E M O R AN D U M

The first week I completed the JCL CBT I had previously started. The CBT was informative, but it's difficult to remember some commands if you don't get a chance to write programs like you do in a classroom environment. I'm trying to find out if there is a test system where I could write sample programs to get some more experience.

The first job for the week was to test out the new software we had received during the previous week. I took some documents that I had created using Word and Excel and tried to duplicate them using the imitation software. The spreadsheet based product worked nearly as well as Excel except that it was DOS based. The word processing software was not comparable at all. If you wanted to create a simple document with no graphics or graphical layout features it would work fine, but when you tried to produce a more professional looking document it didn't have the tools to complete it. Another problem was its inability to read formats other than text(.txt) or old WP for DOS files. I also spent several hours trying to figure out the Novell Netware SNA gateway software. The disks had been mixed together with a previous version and there were no identifying marks to distinguish the different copies. I called the Novell Help desk but they were unable to give me a listing of current disks and files. I tried to load the program from what I felt were the right disks, but it failed the installation when I started. This wasn't a project that was needed, just a curiosity on my part on setting up a gateway. I also took some time to install virus protection software on some of the network PC's that we set up. During this week we were off for two days because of the fourth of July holiday.

After the long holiday weekend I worked with the production team on the weekly download process. Each Monday (or first work day of the week) we download a file from TSO to the network for our customer. The process is fairly simple except that the file is quite large and takes a long time to transfer. During this time I also learned how to write a CSR (Customer Service Request). CSR's are generated whenever there is any problem with a current report or if you want to create a new one. The job I worked on was to delete the sending of multiple copies of a report. It seemed like a lot of wasted time and effort, but then it was explained how the production process worked and it make more sense. It's difficult to think about mainframe applications after spending so much time working with PC's.

In the second week I also worked on installing an HP desk plotter to print color presentations and overheads. I spent a couple hours sorting through parts and extra pens as well doing some general maintenance. When it was cleaned up I proceeded to set it up as a remote printer on our LAN. After setting up I helped a co-worker create and print some overheads for a presentation.

Late in the week I met with a Blue Cross network technician to go over the process of connecting our PC's to the Blue Cross LAN. He showed me how there network is connected throughout the building as well as how the network software is setup. It was interesting to see how they connect and control so many systems. The rest of the week was spent working on miscellaneous small projects. I spend some more time working on database tables for the Visual Basic project we created. My internship documentation and time log also took some time to complete.