I moved to Raleigh, North Carolina back in 2014, right after I graduated from East Carolina University, the Harvard of the South.
Best decision I ever made. Because:
- Bojangles is fire 🔥
- My beloved IBM set up shop right here in the Research Triangle
- And most importantly... the Canes are BACK. Stanley Cup champions for the first time in 20 years!
And because you and I are friends, I got you my own metaphorical Stanley Cup: IBM Developer for z/OS 17.0.5! So let's get that sweet tea pourin', some Petey Pablo blastin', and get into it!
IBM Developer for z/OS Enterprise Edition (IDzEE) 17.0.5 and Select!
If you've been following along, you've heard me talk up IDz Select. It's still here, and still the simplest on-ramp as a single, concise bundle that helps teams modernize quickly, attract new talent, and keep traditional workflows running, with developers free to pick Eclipse or VS Code. Missed it last time? Here's the announcement.
Select gets you in the playoffs. Enterprise Edition wins you the Cup. IBM Developer for z/OS Enterprise Edition 17.0.5, it's giving understood the assignment 💅, and a key part of the IBM Application Delivery Foundation for z/OS (ADFz).
So with Enterprise Edition, you get:
Check out this guide on how to migrate to Enterprise Edition: Migration to Enterprise Edition (ADFz).
Storming in with 17.0.5 Updates
Targeted improvements across the emulator, editors, and Db2 development. The Remote Connection Emulator now supports headless macros, which you can run through a WebSocket interface or the new RCEMacro.exe command-line tool to convert, list, and run macros without opening the emulator window. The JCL editor adds JCL procedure (PROC) parsing, enabling navigation and preview of PROC definitions from PROCLIB libraries in both local and remote environments. In Db2 for z/OS development, you can now enable or disable SQL content assist in the SQL Editor from the Db2 for z/OS > Editors preference page. The release also includes quality-of-life improvements to advanced editor File Association.
Our Little Victory Parade
SHARE Pittsburgh 🏭 | August 16-20, 2026
Register for SHARE 2026 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. A lot of fantastic topics are getting queued up as we speak. And you might even get to see yours truly in the flesh! I'll do in-person blog signings for a reasonable price 😉
IBM Developer for z/OS on VS Code Hands-On Lab
Want hands-on time with the modern mainframe DevOps workflow? This IBM Z trial walks you end to end through developing and maintaining mainframe applications in VS Code, using IBM Developer for z/OS on VS Code alongside IBM Z Open Debug, GitLab, IBM Dependency Based Build (DBB), IBM ZCodeScan, and IBM Wazi Deploy. The newest release adds building with DBB zBuilder, COBOL scanning through ZCodeScan, and a 3270 terminal right inside the editor via the Remote Connection Emulator. Try the trial here.
IBM Developer for z/OS Enterprise Edition (IDzEE) Build and Deploy Hands-On Lab
Geared toward the build and deployment engineer, this IBM Z trial offers step-by-step practice with IDzEE's build, scan, and deploy capabilities for a modern CI/CD pipeline. You'll set up and configure DBB zBuilder, customize and analyze deployments with IBM Wazi Deploy (including advanced deployment scenarios), and onboard applications using the DBB Git Migration Modeler. Evaluation is easy: it's completely free, available within about two hours, and accessible for three days including weekends, with no installation required. Start the trial here.
IBM Developer for z/OS on VS Code Fundamentals
New to IDz on VS Code? This self-paced course teaches mainframe developers how to build and maintain applications efficiently in VS Code, walking through the editor's core features and tools across a set of short modules and a hands-on zTrial lab. Complete it and you'll earn a digital badge for it. Launch the course, or see the full overview and badge details.
What a Run, Team! 🏒