Cursusbeschrijving: Assembler Language Coding Workshop

This classroom provides an introduction to the mainframe Assembler language. Hands-on labs are designed to develop the skills appropriate to write programs based on Assembler Language.

Mainframe programming continues to require Assembler skills in order to support various application as well as systems programming environments. Many routines, application exits and software packages are indeed written in Assembler and require Assembler skills to be maintained. A good understanding of Assembler and machine instructions is also an asset for debugging programs written in any high-level language.

Emphasis is placed on enhancing skills in problem resolution through program check interruption analysis and dump reading.

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This workshop is for both systems and application programmers who need to code, maintain and debug application support programs or subroutines written in Assembler language.

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You should have a working knowledge of a z/OS environment (TSO/ISPF and JCL). Also you should have programming skills, it means have a good knowledge of either a high-level (e.g. COBOL or PL/I) or a procedural (e.g. CLISTs or REXX) language.

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You should be able to write and debug programs using basic Assembler language instructions.

You should also be able to:

• Recognize architectural features, such as instruction formats, data representation, storage addressing, which are significant to program analysis
• Identify point of program interruption, using the formatted system dump and elements of information such as the PSW, the ILC (Instruction Length Code), and the program’s base register(s)
• Identify appropriate standards for Assembler programs in terms of program organization, register conventions, and coding practices
• Comply with the standard linkage conventions using Save Area chaining
• Define and use various types of data definitions, including fixed point binary, character, hexadecimal, and packed decimal
• Employ standard macros such as CALL, SAVE, RETURN
• Use various Assembler language statements such as CSECT, EQU, COPY, END
• Use data literals appropriately, and explain the use of LTORG

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• Numbering systems
• Mainframe architecture
• Storage organization
• Assembler syntax
• Overview of instructions: LA, LR, LTR, MVC, DS, DC
• Data definition statement
• Fixed-point binary instructions
• Addressing, comparing, and branching
• Data movement instructions
• Assembler pseudo-instructions
• Program checks
• Program status Word (PSW)
• Boundary alignment
• Reading dumps
• Packed decimal processing
• Miscellaneous instructions

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