2024 is a bit of a special year here at iTech-Ed Ltd. It was our 20th anniversary on 1 February. I thought you might be interested in some of the changes that have taken place in that time.
Before we set up iTech-Ed Ltd, I had worked for Xephon for 18 years. Xephon ran briefings on mainframe topics, ran surveys on mainframe topics, and created user guides to things like databases. In 1986, they decided to try a small publication by CICS professionals for CICS professionals. They called it CICS Update. It sold very well – remember there was no Google or Internet in those days, and it was difficult to easily get your hands on working bits of code and alternative solutions to common problems. VM Update followed in 1987, and then a whole range of mainframe-based publications. I was there at the very beginning and over the next 18 years edited most of them.
In 2004, Xephon sold the name and the publications to TCI publications. We set up iTech-Ed Ltd, and we got the contract to edit around five or six of these Updates each month. My first activity, at one minute after midnight on 1 February 2004, was to upload the new issues to the Web site.
Over the next three and half years, iTech-Ed was responsible for encouraging technical people to write articles, editing and checking them to produce each edition every month, paying contributors, and sending the publications to the printers and putting them on the Web site. A small team of experts checked the text for punctuation and grammar as well as technical accuracy.
At the same time, iTech-Ed was carrying out consultancy work and producing technical documentation that was used in-house by a number of well-known companies. And we also started blogging at Mainframe Update using Blogger and Mainframe World on IT Toolbox.
Towards the end of 2007, the Updates ceased publication, and the very first Virtual IMS user group meeting was held using Webex. The user group was immediately very popular and was sponsored by NEON Enterprise Software. That year also saw a growth in number of companies using our Web design and development services.
In 2008 the company took its first steps in offering advice on social media and how organizations could use it both to get their message out there and also to interact with customers in a positive way. I also qualified as a Microsoft Office Specialist Master Instructor – MOS MI – and ran a number of on-site training courses. And in 2010 I attended Microsoft SharePoint Administrator and Developer training.
iTech-Ed Ltd also started publishing the Arcati Mainframe Yearbook – the de facto reference work for mainframers. In 2024, Planet Mainframe took over the production and publication of the Yearbook, and the current edition is available here.
I was first made an IBM Champion in 2009 and have been a champion every year since. I have had numerous articles published in a variety of Web-based and printed publications, such as Enterprise Tech Journal, zJournal, Mainframe Executive, Technical Support, and others. I started blogging regularly on Destination z in July 2011, and now writes for TechChannel. He has also been a regular writer Planet Mainframe.
In 2011, Fundi Software took over as sponsor of the Virtual IMS user group and we then launched the Virtual CICS user group. Both of them enjoy regular meetings and newsletters and have over 600 members. In 2023, the Virtual Db2 user group was launched. I chaired and organized all three of these user groups until Planet Mainframe took over most of the heavy lifting.
Over recent years, we’ve published guest blogs, I’ve ghost written blogs for many other blog sites, and I’ve written articles for other sites including Experfy and the AIOps on IBM Z site. I also wrote for Spiceworks (which was Toolbox) for a number of years. And I’ve created podcasts for a number of different companies.
I’ve spoken at the Guide Share Europe (GSE) UK conference for a number of years, speaking about mainframe security and, more recently, artificial intelligence (AI). I’ve been awarded the IBM Z and LinuxOne Influencer badge over the past few years.
So, here we are – 2024. 20 years in business. If you want to get in contact with us, our website is itech-ed.com or you can email mailto:trevor@itech-ed.com. You can Like us on Facebook at fb.com/itech-ed, follow me on Twitter at @t_eddolls or Instagram at @t_eddolls, and Threads @t_eddolls. You can also connect on LinkedIn at linkedin.com/in/teddolls.
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