The IBM i operating system no longer supports Advanced Function Printing Utilities (AFPU), although many IBM i users still need this functionality. Fortunately, IBM i still supports existing Advanced Function Presentation (AFP) resources, and AFPU will still run on IBM i. However, the loss of support means that users will eventually need to use other document software. The new document technology should allow users to easily import AFP resources and generate electronic or print output in a variety of formats. IBM has recommended DocPath´s Boulder Suite as a suitable replacement for AFP Utilities.
Overview
IBM i runs on the IBM Power Systems and PureSystems product line. It was originally named OS/400 in 1988, after the AS/400 series, then it was renamed to IBM i when IBM introduced the Power Systems series in 2008. The Power Systems and PureSystems series also support other OS, such as AIX, Linux and Windows.
Advanced Function Printing Utilities provide interactive, menu-driven facilities that allow IBM i users to design, create and manage AFP resources, which are used when printing documents on Intelligent Printer Data Stream (IPDS) printers. These resources may include overlays like electronic forms and labels, as well as page segments like images and logos. The AFP resources that AFPU creates conform to the Advanced Function Printing Data Stream (AFPDS) standard for IBM computers.
Advanced Function Printing Utilities provide users with the capability to print data from a database on an IPDS printer in a variety of formats, including bar codes and fonts. For example, AFPU allows a user to print bar code labels directly from a database without developing a specialized application. With this capability, non-programmers can print their data on many forms and labels. AFPU also fully supports the All-Point-Addressable (APA) IPDS printer capability for IBM computers.
Loss of Support
AFPU, known internally as 5770-AFI, was originally an internal IBM initiative, but it later became administered independently of IBM. IBM announced its plans to publish the AFP’s architecture as an open standard in May 2006, which was completed in September 2006. IBM assigned the role of administering AFPU to the AFP Consortium (AFPC), of which IBM is a founding member. The AFPC was incorporated as AFP Consortium Inc. in February 2009, with its own set of bylaws and tiered membership. The AFPC is now an official open standards organization for AFPU, with a membership of more than 35 companies in the document-processing industry.
The AFP Consortium manages the AFP data stream as an open architecture. As a result, IBM i no longer supports AFPU as of version 7.3, which was released on April 15, 2016. The last version of IBM i to support AFPU is v7.2, released on May 2, 2014. Several members of the AFP Consortium are offering replacement solutions for AFPU that support a range of modern fonts and image formats. These solutions include the Boulder Suite from DocPath and Overview AFP Designer for iSeries from Isis-Papyrus, although other companies also provide functions that replace AFPU.
IBM users often confuse AFPU (Advanced Function Printing Utilities) with AFP (Advanced Function Presentation), which creates a challenge to understand the effect that recent changes to IBM i will have on document management. While IBM i v7.3 doesn’t support AFPU, it will continue to support AFP resources such as overlays and page segments that were created with earlier versions of IBM i. IBM will also continue to support AFP resources that were created by the AFP Driver and commands such as CRTOVL and CRTPAGSEG.
The loss of support by IBM i therefore applies only to AFPU itself, not AFP resources. Furthermore, Advanced Function Printing Utilities should continue to work, so users can install the v7.2 version of AFPU on IBM i v7.3. However, IBM won’t provide user support if a problem with AFPU does occur. This capability of v7.3 will thus provides users with additional time to identify a suitable replacement for AFPU.
Boulder Suite
Boulder Suite allows IBM users to easily import Advanced Function Printing Utilities resources and use them to generate printed and electronic documents in a variety of formats, including AFP, PDF and PS. This solution also allows users seamlessly integrate AFPU from IBM´s InfoPrint Designer. IBM released this tool in 2001 to facilitate the development of AFP resources on IBM i system, and AFPU’s user base has grown dramatically since then. User requirements of InfoPrint Designer have also increased, primarily due to the demand for documents with color and high-quality graphics.
Boulder Suite provides a growth path for the thousands of AFPU and InfoPrint Designer users throughout the world. It runs natively on any IBM System i platforms, providing users with greater control, ease of use and security. Boulder Suite supports many advanced features, including online document generation in real time and electronic distribution by mail. It also includes a migration wizard that allows users to easily move to a DocPath environment.
DocPath technology allows users to modify the migrated forms with the DocPath Designer design tool, which has a simple yet modern interface. They can also use this tool to modify the data extraction and job flows during the migration process, while automatically converting the existing InfoPrint Designer and AFPU resources to the new DocPath environment. DocPath Boulder users can also add new features to their projects, including two-dimensional barcodes and dynamic charts once they have migrated their projects to DocPath. Furthermore, users can design completely new projects that will support all of DocPath’s features, allowing them to generate documents in a variety of output formats such as AFP, PCL, PDF and QMF, and then distribute their documents through various channels, including databases, email, fax and printers.
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References:
- https://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/en/ssw_ibm_i_73/rzaq9/rzaq9lpp5770AF1.htm
- http://www-01.ibm.com/support/docview.wss?uid=nas8N1022140
- https://docpath.com/
- https://docpath.com/category/blog-articles/
André Klein
Freelance DocPath Consultant