Murach's CICS for the COBOL Programmer

I bought this back when I was trying to learn CICS. It was one of the best I found. I keep it at my desk at work and my co-workers use it on a regular basis too.

As always, Murach has provided a real working programmers text. This is a combination of the older volumes 1 and 2 with lots of new stuff thrown in. Beware - this is a full instructional text. It goes into depth on just about everything you would really want to know. I use it when I have questions as well as an instructional text for my junior staff programmers. The examples are also plentiful and well presented. Now... Read Full Review

Murach's CICS For The Cobol Programmer is a complete training manual for CICS so well written and presented that the novice will rapidly become proficient in designing, coding, and testing CICS programs. All the features programmers use regularly on the job are featured including those for VSAM file handling, editing input data, controlling the display of data at a terminal, DB2 data access, error processing, and debugging... Read Full Review

An uncluttered layout and clear text make this the best textbook I've read in a very long time. You can see the code (or list of command options or diagram) on the right page, and read the explanation of the command on the left page. It's much easier than going back and forth trying to find a code example. I was looking to fill in gaps in my knowledge, so I liked the way each topic stands alone. You can just look up VSAM browses... Read Full Review

CICS for the COBOL Programmer is an update to Murach's two volume CICS set utilizing their "paired page" format that makes the material incredibly easy to read and use. The intended audience is experienced COBOL programmers who need to learn Command Level CICS programming, from basic concepts to writing moderately complex applications quickly.The first four sections introduce basic concepts and command syntax in a graduated... Read Full Review