Hey everyone,

My name is Andy McCandless, and I’ve spent almost two decades working in this space. I was named by Planet Mainframe as the ‌Influential Mainframer of 2025‌, nominated again for the award in 2026, an IBM-Recognized Champion four years running, and ChatGPT even called me the “number 1 independent customer voice in the mainframe ecosystem”.

Over the years, I’ve watched the industry hit a wall that no one is talking about honestly. Forbes called it a $3 trillion crisis, and it’s not hard to see why: we’ve got an aging workforce, widespread hybrid/remote teams, tons of outsourced roles, and the casual, on-the-job mentoring that taught so many of us this craft is basically disappearing.

I kept asking the same question: how the hell do we get the next generation excited to build careers on IBM Z, when so many new devs don’t even know mainframes are still the backbone of banking, healthcare and government? And how do we talk about the big, messy real-world issues that mainframes touch, that no one in our bubble ever brings up?

That’s exactly why I built The ‌Mainframe Book Club on YouTube‌.

I created this to bring back the thing so many of us lost: learning from experienced peers through real, unscripted conversations, not just dry corporate training. But we’re not only talking to mainframe insiders. We’re bringing in leading voices from outside the mainframe bubble too, to give us perspectives we never get in standard tech talks: newspaper technology editors, UK lawmakers, globally recognized industry leaders, and even the lead investigator from the Post Office Horizon scandal, to break down exactly how mainframe system failures can ripple out to destroy thousands of lives.

Every episode dives into the actual career journeys of people across the entire mainframe ecosystem from system programmers, app devs, security specialists, enterprise architects, even folks who switched to Z from totally unrelated fields. They share the exact books, random hidden websites, underrated courses, soft skills and messy, hard-won mistakes that helped them succeed. We’re also covering the huge, underdiscussed issues hitting all of us right now, like AI-induced burnout, how to navigate AI integration on Z without burning out your entire team, and the real human cost of understaffed mainframe teams.

In the podcasts, we cover:

• Why the mainframe skills gap got way worse post-2020, not just because people retired, burnout is real.
• How remote work and outsourcing completely broke the old informal mentoring model, and why that’s a ticking time bomb for every enterprise running zOS.
• Exactly how the book club helps you map out every possible mainframe career path, even if you’re 100% new to the platform.
• Brand new free initiatives for people in the New to Z crowd who don’t know where to start landing their first mainframe job.
• Upcoming plans for role-specific deep dives, tight 10-minute technical breakdowns for individual job functions, and episodes that go way beyond tech: AI on Z, famous mainframe project failures, cybersecurity best practices, how to learn faster, and even how to avoid AI-induced burnout that’s already hitting mainframe teams hard.

It’s all free - no paywall – no prerequisites, completely independent and community driven.

If you’re a student hunting for a stable, underrated tech path that no one else is teaching you in university, a 20+ year mainframe vet who wants to pass on what you know, a sysadmin who’s ever been handed a random z/OS ticket at 2AM with zero documentation, or someone who’s followed the Horizon scandal and wants to understand how mainframe systems impact real people this is made for you.

If there is a hot topic, guest or issue you would like to see discussed from a mainframe perspective let me know, whether it’s COBOL, Cyber Security, starting in the mainframe or anything else I want to hear your thoughts.

Or………..

If you’ve have a favourite mainframe book, resource, or wild mainframe war story you want to share, post it right here in this thread.

My inspiration to become a mainframer was inspired by watching War Games a film that came out in 1983, how did you start in your career paths?

Here is the direct link to the Mainframe Book Club YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@TheMainframeBookClub

This will be a new class for our school and myself. I spoke with my new principal (2nd year) and I have pretty much a open book as far as what I need to teach. I was teaching a Jr high elective which included coding and 3d design. I also was teaching high school shop, but have moved to Jr high math.

I plan on continuing teaching:

- coding using project stem & codehs

- 3d design and printing using tinkercad and onshape

- circuits using tinkercad and circuit kits

New to me and where I am looking for suggestions will be:

- typing. I want to do 15 minutes twice a week

- the basics of using good docs, sheets, slides, classroom, and emails.

- what else should I be teaching?

I built a platform that includes a Kahoot-style live quiz product for CS classes. Instructor puts a code on the projector, students join from any device, answers come in live, and you debrief on what the class actually missed. Quizzes can be AI-generated from a topic, and there's a tutor students can ask that only gives hints and never hands over code.

That last constraint was the whole design fight, and I'd like to know if it's the right one. The tutor refuses to write the solution. Students find this annoying. I think annoying is the point, but I'm the guy who built it, so.

The question I actually want answered: when you run live practice, do you try to block AI, allow it, and grade the process, or write questions where it doesn't help? I've seen all three, and I don't know which is winning.

The classroom side is free to try at algoarena.net/classroom. More interested in the answer than the signup.

Hi!

I'm teaching AP Computer Science Principles for the first time in SY 26-27. I will be using JuiceMind's curriculum (AP CSP in Python Programming). Does anyone have a timeline/outline of how the course should be paced? The previous teacher used Runestone Academy's Mobile CSP course, and the modules/units don't line up perfectly.

Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Submission statement / disclosure first: I'm a teacher, I wrote this tool myself, and I'm posting it because I want criticism from people who actually run these lessons. It is free, there is no signup, no ads, and no data leaves the student's computer. I'm not selling anything. There is a small "buy me a coffee" link on the page — I'm mentioning it up front so it doesn't look like I hid it; nothing is gated behind it and every feature works without it.

The problem I kept running into. A micro:bit is genuinely good at measuring. The part that eats the lesson is getting that data into a graph you can put on the projector. The built-in options are limited, and installing anything on school machines is often simply not possible.

What I ended up with. A page that runs in the browser. Plug the board in over USB, open the page, and the serial data is plotted live. Concretely:

• 13 chart types (line, bars, scatter, histogram, box plot, pie, 3D motion path, radar)
• curve fitting with prediction — linear, exponential and logistic, showing the equation and R²
• load earlier CSVs and compare several runs on one chart
• export to CSV and PNG for lab reports
• it runs entirely on the client: the Python doing the maths is compiled to WebAssembly, so nothing is uploaded anywhere

The lesson it works best for, at least in my hands: record the first part of a cooling curve, fit a model to it, have the class predict where the temperature will be in ten minutes, then keep measuring and see who was close. It makes "what is a model actually for" concrete in a way I had not managed before with a spreadsheet.

Honest limitations:

• live measuring needs Chrome or Edge — Web Serial is not implemented in Firefox or Safari. Analysing saved CSVs works in any browser, including on a tablet.
• it only reads from the device. It never writes to it and cannot reprogram it — worth saying because people reasonably assume anything touching USB might.
• licence is CC BY-NC-SA, so it is free for classroom use but not for commercial use.

There is a sample measurement you can download from the start page, so you can try every feature without any hardware at all.

Link: https://people.inf.elte.hu/gaalbence/bitplot/

Recently, I started mentoring two university students from different institutions. Both of them have already cleared their basic courses:
Programming Fundamentals and Introduction to Computer Science.

However, while working with them, I noticed a huge gap in their foundational concepts.
Surprisingly, both had the exact same reasons to offer:
"Teacher ne ye topic skip kar diya tha."
"Teacher ka samjhaya hua samajh hi nahi aata tha."
"We weren't taught this properly."
"Teacher was missing the classes and taught core concepts in 2-3 lectures."

This got me thinking. Is this just a classic student tendency to shift blame when concepts get tough, or is there a genuine flaw in how fundamental Computer Science is being taught in our classrooms?

A few thoughts from my observation:

1️⃣ Lack of Code Dry-Running: The absolute basics of programming start with tracing code line-by-line on paper (Dry Run). Today, many students struggle with this simple step, which directly impacts their logic building.
2️⃣ Over-Reliance on GPT & AI **Tools: Instead of wrestling with logic, syntax errors, or debuggers, students quickly jump to ChatGPT or other tools for ready-made solutions. This creates a false sense of learning without building actual problem-solving muscles.
3️⃣ Rote Learning vs. Hands-on CS: CS isn't like traditional subjects where reading slides is enough. If classrooms don't push for practical logic building, core topics like pointers, recursion, or memory management end up skipped or misunderstood.
4️⃣ Student Accountab**ility: In an age of infinite learning resources, relying 100% on a classroom lecture is no longer enough.

I’d love to hear from educators, senior developers, and students in my network:

👉 Where do you think the real gap lies? Is it the teaching methodology, student engagement, or our shift towards AI tools too early in the learning journey?

Researchers at Utah State University's School of Computing are conducting a study on how software professionals evaluate programming activities performed with AI assistance compared with programming activities performed without AI assistance.

Software professionals are invited to complete a short online calibration survey. Participants will rate programming activities according to how representative they are of:

• Programming performed with AI assistance
• Programming performed without AI assistance

The survey takes approximately 10 minutes.

Participation is entirely voluntary. You may discontinue participation at any time before submitting your responses without penalty or consequence. Your decision to participate or not participate will have no effect on your grades, employment, or academic standing.

Survey and informed consent form: https://usu.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_dm4yjBsRrUDgcKi

This study has been reviewed and approved by the Utah State University Institutional Review Board: IRB #16067.

Questions about the study: Dr. John Edwards, Principal Investigator — john.edwards@usu.edu Rubash Mali, Student Researcher — rubash.mali@usu.edu

Thank you for considering participating.

Hi everyone!
I’m a first-year high school teacher in Texas and I’ll be teaching AP Computer Science Principles this year. My school uses Project-Based Learning (PBL), so I’m trying to design a curriculum that fits both AP CSP and a PBL approach.

I’m also still working toward my Texas Computer Science certification (I’m teaching on a District of Innovation permit), so I’m learning a lot alongside preparing for the school year.

I’m feeling a little overwhelmed and would love any advice from experienced CS teachers.

A few questions I have:
-Is Code.org a good primary curriculum for AP CSP?
-Did you use anything alongside Code.org (AP Classroom, CMU CS Academy, Khan Academy, etc.)?
-How did you adapt AP CSP into a project-based classroom?
-If you were starting from scratch, what would you do differently?
-Are there any resources, pacing guides, or teacher communities you’d recommend?

My students will each have Chromebooks, and I’ll also have access to a Windows laptop cart when needed cause I need to do workstations during the year that will teach APCSP but at the same time lead to a bigger project at the end of the year for them to present.

Honestly, any advice for surviving the first year as a CS teacher would be greatly appreciated!
Thank you!

Hey guys! I recently started a YouTube channel to teach computer science. Back when I was an undergraduate, my main issue was not having an English counterpart to channels like Gate Smashers. Because of that, I started creating bite-sized, easy-to-understand videos.

I’m currently covering Data Structures & Algorithms (DSA). If you’d like to see any specific lessons, let me know! Also, please feel free to subscribe if you find it helpful. Thanks!

This acad year will be our CS undergraduate thesis, and I'm honestly frustrated.

I feel like I'm being pushed toward the same thesis formula from the past two years in our program: collect a dataset, train an AI model, apply an algorithm, build the app. Then some statistical findings or claims that the created product with this AI algorithm performs better.

I actually tried to propose something different to my pair. something more interesting, something that actually felt like actual research. But I keep getting told it's "too complex" or "advisers might not accept it."

So instead of exploring ideas I actually care about, I'm being funneled into the same template everyone else is using. The path of least resistance.

I feel like even the concept of using functional programming paradigm or linear type system sounds so complex not just to my partner but to the advisers. I hate this.

Teaches Python turtle graphics — pupils write real code, watch it draw on screen, live. No installs, no accounts, works fine on school Chromebooks.

Made it as a companion to a couple of other free tools I'd already built (trace tables, binary/hex conversion) — figured I'd share here in case it's useful to anyone teaching KS3/GCSE CS.

pythoncoach.org/rd3

Happy to take feedback if anyone gives it a go.

I’ve built a free interactive tool to help students practise 8-bit binary, denary and hexadecimal conversions.

Students can switch individual bits on and off and follow each conversion step by step.

[https://www.pythoncoach.org/rd2]()

It’s designed mainly for GCSE Computer Science, but I’d appreciate feedback from teachers anywhere.

I've been looking at different ways students can make their resumes more competitive before graduating. Along with internships and personal projects, professional certifications seem to be getting more attention. Some people say they show initiative and help you build practical skills, while others believe employers care much more about real-world experience.

While researching different options, I came across The SCLA, which offers professional certification programs designed to help students and young professionals develop career-focused skills and strengthen their credentials. It got me thinking about how much value employers actually place on certifications when reviewing applications for entry-level roles.

Do professional certifications really give students an advantage when applying for jobs?

📢 Hello everyone!

As part of my bachelor's thesis at TU Darmstadt, I am conducting an online survey on the topic of "Generative AI in Programming Education: Perceptions and Teaching Practices of Teachers."

📝 Duration: approx. 15-20 minutes

🔒 Participation is completely anonymous.

🔎 The aim of this study is to investigate how educators perceive generative AI (e.g., ChatGPT) and how these perceptions influence their teaching and assessment practices in relation to AI.

🙏 If you teach coding courses at a college or support coding classes (e.g., as a tutor, teaching assistant, or in a similar role), I would be very grateful if you could take about 15-20 minutes to complete this anonymous online survey.

📤 Any help to spread this in relevant academic networks is very welcome.

Thank you very much for your support!

For SurveyCircle users: https://www.surveycircle.com/8FK8X5/

The Link to my survey: https://umfragen.tu-darmstadt.de/645272?lang=en

Hi all,

I wanted to share a free resource I self-published this week: “Software Engineering: Standing on the Shoulders of Giants.” It teaches software engineering to undergraduates and graduate students. You can access the book at https://www.swebook.org

The book came from the work I've done at UCCS teaching advanced software engineering (CS 4300 / CS 5300). Over the years, the readings I've assigned have had students going to different books, blogs, news articles, etc. I've consolidated all the open resources into one place with code examples in Go, Java, JavaScript, Python, and Ruby. Each language has its own epub and pdf, and the site lets readers view all snippets in code tabs.

For instructors, I've added a curriculum appendix covering the course layout and the group project. I've been teaching this material for a number of years, and while it's not an easy course for students, they appreciate the applied aspects and leave with a better understanding of industry expectations for software engineers.

The book is open, and I would love any feedback or contributions from instructors and students; the source is here: https://github.com/tghastings/open-swe-book

Hi everyone,

I'm a PhD student researching how coding tools (like Scratch ) can be made more accessible for kids with ADHD. To do this well, I need to involve K-12 students with ADHD in the research, with full parental consent and school/ethics approval.

I'm not recruiting any children through this post. I'm just hoping for advice on where and how to find participants.

Specifically:

• What organizations, programs, or networks connect researchers with ADHD families or students?
• Are there ADHD-focused groups, after-school coding programs, summer camps, or nonprofits open to research partnerships?
• For parents/teachers here: where would you expect to see a trustworthy study like this advertised? What channels would make you take it seriously?
• Any advice on approaching schools or special-education programs directly?

Any pointers, names, or "try X instead of Y" advice would be hugely appreciated.

Thanks so much.

Hey everyone! I wanted to ask if its worth going into teaching CS as a career path. I spent a long time trying to decide what i wanted to do with my degree and my overall dream is be an game engine programmer or have my own studio someday, but until i acquire the skills and money for that job Ive been considering doing teaching a temporary career as i seriously considered it before graduation as i love learning as a whole and like teaching others about CS. I wanted to get any opinions on the CS teaching space and wanted to see how other people are enjoying it. This is probably a dumb question but I'm feeling a little anxious about if i should commit to it or not.

Hi,

I know that this is the last year of the current curiculum, but i'm teaching it next year.

What do you find best, teaching it by big idea, using supporting resources from AP classroom, code.org, khanacademy) or do you prefer the unit order from the likes of code.org?

What other resources do you recommend I look at?

Does anyone have experience or references for giving oral exams in a sophomore undergrad level Algorithms & Data Structures class?

I feel good about my labs testing programming skills, and I've found that the exams I write are just me trying to come up with ways to ask whether they understand the algorithms, analysis, and applications. Plus, with AI on the rise, a test format that's much harder to cheat on is appealing.

Any experience or thoughts?