Is IBM RDi required or optional?

[RalphMcDonald]

I have not yet downloaded Valence 2.0 but hope to do so soon. We have not installed IBM's RDi so need to know if it is a prerequisite or not?

[richard.milone]

You technically do not need to have RDi, we just recommend it. The key to being efficient with your front-end development is having Aptana, which is a free JavaScript editor that plugs into RDi. When you plug Aptana into RDi you can then do your RPG back-end and JavaScript front-end all in one integrated environment. However, many customers have reported to me that they use WDSC or even the green screen to do their RPG coding, and then use the “stand-alone” version of Aptana to do the front-end JavaScript. Within CNX all of our development is done in RDi with Aptana plugin, so you’ll get the best support with that setup because it’s what we use all day long. But if you want to avoid that the next best thing is your existing WDSC or green screen for the RPG side and then get the stand-alone version of Aptana at www.aptana.com. Since the stand-alone version of Aptana doesn’t have the Remote Systems Explorer to work with IFS documents you will first need to map a drive to your IFS and then Aptana’s built in FTP can open and close files on that drive. CNX can provide any help you need to get up an running.

[RalphMcDonald]

Thank you, Richard.