Redbooks

Some of the clients I visit aren't aware of the IBM Redbook site (and programme).

Check it out here: http://www.redbooks.ibm.com/

So... what are they and how do they differ to the product manuals?

The answer comes from how Redbooks are written: experienced professionals from the field (both inside and outside IBM) are brought together at an IBM location for about five weeks - and they do nothing else but work on the book. They bring their individual areas of expertise (e.g. project life-cycle, transactionality, testing techniques, inside knowledge of a product, etc., etc) and work together to write a book on a specific topic.

Examples in the WBI world include:

• Introduction to MQ Workflow
• Using WBI Modeler and Monitor
• Migration to Message Broker v5
• Interchange Server Performance Tuning tips
• And more!

Even better, you can get involved yourself. They mean it when they say they want business partners and clients to join in.

One of the locations is Hursley in Winchester, UK. I used to be based there so I have a soft spot for it in my heart...

It even has its own on-site clubhouse :-) Picture