support: Customer Portal
Focused on delivering choice, investment protection and flexibility to organizations with valuable COBOL assets
  

Veryant Knowledge Base
Home > All Categories > isCOBOL General > What is the easiest and/or best way to convert a legacy text-based user interface to a web front end?
Question Title What is the easiest and/or best way to convert a legacy text-based user interface to a web front end?
Question:

If I have an application that uses text-mode (no graphical controls) DISPLAY and ACCEPT statements with no screen sections, then what are my options for getting my application to run within a web browser? 

Are there 3rd-party packages that will intercept my terminal output and turn it into a web or graphical front end, then take the user's inputs and interaction with the GUI and turn it back into input to stdin that my application will think came from a terminal? I know there are tools like this for COBOL CICS TN3270. Are there similar tools for text-based COBOL programs running in isCOBOL?

What screen scraper tools do you recommend? I'd like something that will look at my text-based screens while the program is running and "import" them and generate a graphical screen section.

Answer: 

Starting with isCOBOL 2009 SP1 you can use any 3rd-party package that wraps character-based interfaces for GUI, Web interface or other service. These packages, known as screen scrapers, can pretend to be a user at a terminal, run the text-based green-screen application, emulate the keystrokes needed to navigate the old user interface, process the resulting display output, extract the desired data, and pass it on to a modern system. 

To use the isCOBOL text-based terminal interface set the following property:

iscobol.guifactory.class=com.iscobol.gui.client.charva.GuiFactoryImpl
Authored by: Veryant Support This question has been viewed 7063 times so far.
Click Here to View all the questions in isCOBOL General category.
File Attachments File Attachments
There are no attachment file(s) related to this question.
How helpful was this article to you?
User Comments User Comments Add Comment
There are no user comments for this question. Be the first to post a comment. Click Here
Related Questions Related Questions
  1. How do I compile for compatibility with older versions of Java?
  2. When can I get the "java.net.SocketException: Permission denied:connect" message? And how can it be avoided?
  3. How do I migrate indexed files to a format that is supported by isCOBOL?
  4. How do I resolve "code too large for try statement" errors?
  5. How do I prevent hackers from decompiling Java class files to reverse engineer my COBOL application?
  6. How can I read an Excel spreadsheet from COBOL?
  7. Does SET ADDRESS OF X TO Y work?
  8. What Micro Focus library routines are supported?
  9. How do I create a desktop shortcut icon to launch my program?
  10. Do I need to worry about the compile warning "Note: MYPROG.java uses unchecked or unsafe operations?"
  11. How do I resolve a compile error on PIC X(2) USAGE COMP-5?
  12. What tools are available for automated functional (regression) testing of a COBOL application?
  13. Is there currently a way to debug COBOL and Java source together?
  14. Where can I obtain a copy of the ANSI 2002 COBOL standard?
  15. How do I increase the maximum Java heap size when compiling?
  16. How do I set up isCOBOL to access Vision files?
  17. How can I package my application and execute it in a JAR file?
  18. How do I determine what properties are set?
  19. How do I turn on debug trace to produce a log file?
  20. Should I use JISAM or isCOBOL ISAM Server (c-treeACE)?
  21. Why do I get a compile error "--S: Invalid open mode" on an OPEN I-O of an ORGANIZATION LINE SEQUENTIAL file?
  22. How would I create my own CBL_ALLOC_MEM and CBL_FREE_MEM routines?
  23. What is the recommended method for specifying isCOBOL framework properties?
  24. What is the best way to control Microsoft Word?
  25. How can I use the F10 key in my application without it changing the keyboard focus?
  26. Where can I find more information on A$ENCRYPT and A$DECRYPT?
  27. How do I use conditional compilation?
  28. How do I get my screens to be the same size and spacing as when I run with ACUCOBOL?
  29. How do I change the icon in the upper left corner of the Window?
  30. Does isCOBOL work with Flexus COBOL sp2?
  31. How do I specify properties or a properties file on the command line?
  32. How does a program detect at runtime whether it is running standalone GUI, thin client or with Web Direct 2.0?
  33. What is the behavior difference of STOP THREAD?
  34. What are the defaults for the DATE-ENTRY control DISPLAY-FORMAT property and format styles?
  35. How do I select 11x17 paper size using WIN$PRINTER?
  36. How would I create my own CBL_CHECK_FILE_EXIST routine?
  37. Sending SMTP mail
  38. Is the isCOBOL 2009 SP1 release intended to deploy mainframe applications over the cloud? Or is it an integration mechanism for bringing in cloud data and apps?
  39. Where can I learn more about Classpath, the Java class loader, JDK tools and utilities?
  40. What are the key technical advantages of isCOBOL?
  41. Does isCOBOL run on Linux on System z?
  42. Why do I get the error java.lang.NoClassDefFoundError: com/iscobol/rts_n/StopRunException?
  43. Why do I get the error message "Native call not found" and how do I fix the problem?
  44. Can Veryant recommend a good Web site to find 3rd party JavaBeans?
  45. How do I compile fixed (ANSI) format source that COPYs terminal format source or vice versa?
  46. What compile option should I use for ICOBOL compatibility?
  47. What algorithm does isCOBOL use to load framework properties (runtime config variables)?
  48. Can isCOBOL access a DLL or .so that is in a JAR file?
  49. Can I use directory paths in CALL names?
  50. How can I make my isCOBOL program to be called instead of a C routine when both have the same name?
  51. How do I configure file locations with environment variables?
  52. Is your runtime library backward compatible?
  53. Does isCOBOL APS run on z/OS?
  54. How do I specify which file status codes I want to use?
  55. How do I set iscobol.file.index.FileName with variable file name assignments?
  56. Does isCOBOL support C$REDIRECT?
  57. Is there any equivalent to COPY RESOURCE?
  58. I still get the error : "Missing License: The license key is missing, invalid or has expired!" I can't figure out why
  59. How do I print to a spooler in Unix?
  60. How do I write my own replacement for a C$ library routine?
  61. Is isCOBOL backward compatible?
  62. What should I use for USAGE HANDLE items instead of NULL?
  63. Is there a way to have single set of source code that will compile with both ACUCOBOL and isCOBOL?
  64. What is the best way to profile an isCOBOL program?
  65. Can you derive isCOBOL object classes from Java and vice versa?
  66. How can I tell what changes were made in the isCOBOL latest update?
  67. Why do I get the error message “java.lang.UnsatisfiedLinkError: no ### in java.library.path?
  68. I've heard there is a problem passing pointers to C functions. What is it?
  69. Can the file system (iscobol.file.index) be set programmatically?
  70. Is there any way to use isCOBOL with SCO 5.0.6 (JDK 1.3)?
  71. How do I get more information when I get java.lang.reflect.InvocationTargetException?
  72. Does isCOBOL support Crystal Reports or other Report Writers?
  73. How can I avoid the "java.lang.OutOfMemoryError: PermGen space" error?
  74. How can I monitor a jvm started on a remote computer box?
  75. How do I suppress multiple reserved words with the -rw compiler option?
  76. Why do I get the error message "java.lang.ArrayIndexOutOfBoundsException" ?
  77. Why do I get the error message "java.lang.NullPointerException" ?
  78. Can I call an RMCobol program passing parameters to it?
  79. How can I avoid, in execution, the "java.lang.OutOfMemoryError: Java heap space" error?
  80. What does mean the error NO X11 DISPLAY?
  81. How do I resolve the error "java.lang.NoClassDefFoundError" or "java.lang.ClassNotFoundException"?
  82. Why do I get the error "Could not load the main class" ?
  83. Is there any way to direct the output from the “Print Screen” keyboard key directly to a printer?
  84. Did you know that in a string you can replace a text with a new one with a different length by using the C$REPLACE_ALL routine?
  85. Did you know you could set properties to configure the PDF'S generation while printing?
  86. Did you know how to write custom information inside isCOBOL log file?
  87. Did you know you can encrypt the communication with the isCOBOL Server?
  88. GIT Server (Linux) - Install and Configuration
  89. Activating and Check the isCOBOL License
  90. How to search by key with case insensitive on ISAM files
  91. May I create my own type definitions and reuse them?
  92. How do I point my installed isCOBOL to a different Java location?
Article Information Additional Information
Article Number: 28
Created: 2009-08-28 3:59 PM
Rating: 1 Star
 
Article Options Article Options
Print Question Print this Question
Email Question Email Question to Friend
Export to Adobe PDF Export to PDF File
Export to MS Word Export to MS Word
Bookmark Article
Subscribe to Article Subscribe to Article
 
Search Knowledge Base Search Knowledge Base

  Knowledge Base Home


 
 

© Veryant - All Rights Reserved
Veryant and isCOBOL are trademarks or registered marks of Veryant in the United States and other countries. All other marks are the property of their respective owners.