Westi (software)
Encyclopedia
Westi was one of two early local teleprocessing
packages for IBM
's DOS/VSE environment. Westi stood for Westinghouse Terminal Interactive.
and access method
for programmers to 'talk' to monitors and handle data entry. Such access methods later became known as APIs and the handlers a form of transaction processing
.
Initially written for the IBM 2260
running under DOS on IBM mainframe
s, the original product was offered free for IBM users. With the advent of DOS/VS and the IBM 3270
series terminals, Westinghouse realized they could recover part of their development costs and commercialized the product, circa 1970. The company added transparent remote access about 1980.
's mainline program and, like IBM's soon to follow CICS
, programmers wrote subroutine
s to read and write data to and from terminals and discs. This real time paradigm became known as transaction processing
.
This differed from Westi's primary competitor, DUCS
, which reversed that model in that it was a subroutine package that read from and wrote to monitors. While Westi was not as easy to program and use as DUCS, Westi (like CICS) handled task management.
In terms of speed, Westi fell between DUCS and the considerably more process-bound CICS.
terminals, and the Westinghouse Software group began a rewrite for new products. Several new team members were assigned, including John Gaston, who took over lead development following the departure of Steve O'Donnell in the latter 1970s. (Steve O'Donnell went on to found GOAL Systems, Inc.)
and WESTI, bifurcated, taking independent development paths.
and matching features with CICS.
in Avignon, France. The result was WestiTAM, a 4k bi-sync module, which the Florida group expressed an interest in.
In 1978, WEMSSA resumed relations with the Florida group and eventually the two merged, coming under the new director of WEMSSA in London, David Hazlewood. Westinghouse committed to remerging the product line, re-engineering new products under the direction of Dr. Ferguson and Leigh Lundin. However, part way into development, Westinghouse began to break up the division during the outsourcing
thrust of the Reaganomics
era. Through badly managed negotiations, Westinghouse ended up with neither developers or outsourcing partners, which spelled the end for one of the industries foremost software groups.
, Paris
, Lyon
, London
, Genève, Zürich
, München, and Amsterdam
. Development offices were in Orlando
, with further development in Columbus, Ohio
and Avignon, France.
Telecommunications Access Method
Telecommunications Access Method is an access method, in IBM's OS/360 and successors computer operating systems on IBM System/360 and later, that provides access to terminals units within a teleprocessing network....
packages for IBM
IBM
International Business Machines Corporation or IBM is an American multinational technology and consulting corporation headquartered in Armonk, New York, United States. IBM manufactures and sells computer hardware and software, and it offers infrastructure, hosting and consulting services in areas...
's DOS/VSE environment. Westi stood for Westinghouse Terminal Interactive.
The product
Westi provided an interfaceUser interface
The user interface, in the industrial design field of human–machine interaction, is the space where interaction between humans and machines occurs. The goal of interaction between a human and a machine at the user interface is effective operation and control of the machine, and feedback from the...
and access method
Access method
An access method is a function of a mainframe operating system that enables access to data on disk, tape or other external devices. They were introduced in 1963 in IBM OS/360 operating system...
for programmers to 'talk' to monitors and handle data entry. Such access methods later became known as APIs and the handlers a form of transaction processing
Transaction processing
In computer science, transaction processing is information processing that is divided into individual, indivisible operations, called transactions. Each transaction must succeed or fail as a complete unit; it cannot remain in an intermediate state...
.
Initially written for the IBM 2260
IBM 2260
The text-only 960-character monochrome IBM 2260 cathode ray tube video display terminal plus computer keyboard was a 1964 predecessor to the more-powerful color text-and-graphics IBM 3270. The 2260 screen image was normally configured with 12 lines of 80 characters each, which corresponded to IBM...
running under DOS on IBM mainframe
Mainframe computer
Mainframes are powerful computers used primarily by corporate and governmental organizations for critical applications, bulk data processing such as census, industry and consumer statistics, enterprise resource planning, and financial transaction processing.The term originally referred to the...
s, the original product was offered free for IBM users. With the advent of DOS/VS and the IBM 3270
IBM 3270
The IBM 3270 is a class of block oriented terminals made by IBM since 1972 normally used to communicate with IBM mainframes. As such, it was the successor to the IBM 2260 display terminal. Due to the text colour on the original models, these terminals are informally known as green screen terminals...
series terminals, Westinghouse realized they could recover part of their development costs and commercialized the product, circa 1970. The company added transparent remote access about 1980.
Application
Westi operated as an applicationApplication software
Application software, also known as an application or an "app", is computer software designed to help the user to perform specific tasks. Examples include enterprise software, accounting software, office suites, graphics software and media players. Many application programs deal principally with...
's mainline program and, like IBM's soon to follow CICS
CICS
Customer Information Control System is a transaction server that runs primarily on IBM mainframe systems under z/OS and z/VSE.CICS is a transaction manager designed for rapid, high-volume online processing. This processing is mostly interactive , but background transactions are possible...
, programmers wrote subroutine
Subroutine
In computer science, a subroutine is a portion of code within a larger program that performs a specific task and is relatively independent of the remaining code....
s to read and write data to and from terminals and discs. This real time paradigm became known as transaction processing
Transaction processing
In computer science, transaction processing is information processing that is divided into individual, indivisible operations, called transactions. Each transaction must succeed or fail as a complete unit; it cannot remain in an intermediate state...
.
This differed from Westi's primary competitor, DUCS
DUCS (software)
DUCS was one of two early local teleprocessing packages for IBM's DOS/VSE environment. DUCS was an acronym for Display Unit Control System.- The product :DUCS provided an interface and access method for programmers to 'talk' to monitors...
, which reversed that model in that it was a subroutine package that read from and wrote to monitors. While Westi was not as easy to program and use as DUCS, Westi (like CICS) handled task management.
In terms of speed, Westi fell between DUCS and the considerably more process-bound CICS.
Pittsburgh
Steve Robert O'Donnell wrote the original DOS 2260 package, which was distributed free of charge. Its popularity made Westinghouse realize Westi had potential as a commercial product. IBM Sole his original idea and used it to make profit. Some Time after that he created the company called Goal Systems.Columbus
In 1972, IBM released DOS/VS with the IBM/370 and the first IBM 3270IBM 3270
The IBM 3270 is a class of block oriented terminals made by IBM since 1972 normally used to communicate with IBM mainframes. As such, it was the successor to the IBM 2260 display terminal. Due to the text colour on the original models, these terminals are informally known as green screen terminals...
terminals, and the Westinghouse Software group began a rewrite for new products. Several new team members were assigned, including John Gaston, who took over lead development following the departure of Steve O'Donnell in the latter 1970s. (Steve O'Donnell went on to found GOAL Systems, Inc.)
Paris
Westinghouse Marketing suffered a schism about the same time, and the result was that Europe established an independent subsidiary, Westinghouse Electric Management Systems, SA, or WEMSSA, headquartered in Paris. At that point, the Westinghouse product line, WDUWDU (software)
WDU is a copy/backup/restore program for IBM's DOS, DOS/VS, and DOS/VSE environments.- The product :Westinghouse Disk Utility, popularly called WDU, has been a dominant force within the commercial dump/restore market for more than three decades...
and WESTI, bifurcated, taking independent development paths.
Orlando
The original development team moved to Orlando, Florida, where it eventually came under the management of Dr. Ray Ferguson and focused on integration with VSEVSE
z/VSE is an operating system for IBM mainframe computers, the latest one in the DOS/360 lineage, which originated in 1965. It is less common than prominent z/OS and is mostly used on smaller machines. Primary z/VSE development occurs in IBM's Böblingen labs in Germany.-Overview:DOS/360 originally...
and matching features with CICS.
Avignon
WEMSSA, under the direction of Eric Lutaud, contracted with GOAL Systems and eventually developer Leigh Lundin (author of DUCS Remote) for development, which focused on adding remote teleprocessingTelecommunications Access Method
Telecommunications Access Method is an access method, in IBM's OS/360 and successors computer operating systems on IBM System/360 and later, that provides access to terminals units within a teleprocessing network....
in Avignon, France. The result was WestiTAM, a 4k bi-sync module, which the Florida group expressed an interest in.
In 1978, WEMSSA resumed relations with the Florida group and eventually the two merged, coming under the new director of WEMSSA in London, David Hazlewood. Westinghouse committed to remerging the product line, re-engineering new products under the direction of Dr. Ferguson and Leigh Lundin. However, part way into development, Westinghouse began to break up the division during the outsourcing
Outsourcing
Outsourcing is the process of contracting a business function to someone else.-Overview:The term outsourcing is used inconsistently but usually involves the contracting out of a business function - commonly one previously performed in-house - to an external provider...
thrust of the Reaganomics
Reaganomics
Reaganomics refers to the economic policies promoted by the U.S. President Ronald Reagan during the 1980s, also known as supply-side economics and called trickle-down economics, particularly by critics...
era. Through badly managed negotiations, Westinghouse ended up with neither developers or outsourcing partners, which spelled the end for one of the industries foremost software groups.
Marketing
Westinghouse Electric Management Systems, SA (WEMSSA), had sales offices in Pittsburgh, San JoseSan Jose, California
San Jose is the third-largest city in California, the tenth-largest in the U.S., and the county seat of Santa Clara County which is located at the southern end of San Francisco Bay...
, Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, Lyon
Lyon
Lyon , is a city in east-central France in the Rhône-Alpes region, situated between Paris and Marseille. Lyon is located at from Paris, from Marseille, from Geneva, from Turin, and from Barcelona. The residents of the city are called Lyonnais....
, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, Genève, Zürich
Zürich
Zurich is the largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is located in central Switzerland at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich...
, München, and Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
. Development offices were in Orlando
Orlando, Florida
Orlando is a city in the central region of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat of Orange County, and the center of the Greater Orlando metropolitan area. According to the 2010 US Census, the city had a population of 238,300, making Orlando the 79th largest city in the United States...
, with further development in Columbus, Ohio
Columbus, Ohio
Columbus is the capital of and the largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio. The broader metropolitan area encompasses several counties and is the third largest in Ohio behind those of Cleveland and Cincinnati. Columbus is the third largest city in the American Midwest, and the fifteenth largest city...
and Avignon, France.