IceCap was developed to modernize the most visible part of many IBM i applications: the traditional green-screen 5250 interface. The principle is simple: Change the interface - not the application.

The existing RPG, COBOL, and CL logic continues unchanged, while IceCap adds a modern, browser-based user experience on top. Today, IceCap has taken the next natural step and become one of the four high-performance engines that help power Sitemule.

If you have heard of IceCap, or have been using the solution for many years, you have come to the right place. We are System & Metode A/S, the Danish software company that has developed and supported IceCap from the very beginning. Today, the technology sits at the heart of Sitemule - our complete modernization ecosystem that runs natively on IBM i.

How we got here

IceCap was developed to address a challenge common to many IBM i installations: Business-critical RPG, COBOL, and CL applications continued to run reliably, but their user interfaces were often based on 5250 screens that no longer met users’ expectations.

The traditional solution was to rewrite the applications. We did not believe that should be the only option. Instead, IceCap works directly with the 5250 data stream and renders the application in a modern, browser-based interface - without changing the underlying program.

Your RPG programs continue to run. Your CL processes continue to perform their tasks. The IBM i platform’s security and authorization model is preserved. It is the user experience that changes - not the proven business logic.

The first version of IceCap was launched with a simple promise: An existing 5250 application should be able to appear in a browser in around ten minutes.

This straightforward path from green screen to web is a major reason why companies in industries including finance, insurance, manufacturing, wholesale, retail, and logistics have used IceCap in production for many years.

IceCap today

IceCap has not disappeared, and development has not stopped.

Together with the three other engines in Sitemule, IceCap now plays an expanded role:

• IceBreak powers web applications, APIs, and services

• IceCap modernizes screens and workflows

• BlueSeries handles business communications

• BlueNote monitors systems and operations

IceCap serves as Sitemule’s screen transformation engine and powers Sitemule Workspace.

Your existing solution continues

Nothing you depend on is going away. IceCap will continue to be available for installation and use as a standalone product. It will continue to be maintained and supported, exactly as you know it today. Your current installation can therefore continue unchanged, while giving you the option to take the next step with Sitemule.

From IceCap to Sitemule

Because IceCap is now an integrated engine in Sitemule, upgrading becomes a natural next step - not a major migration project. Sitemule brings together web applications, service-oriented architecture, screen transformation, communications, messaging, and monitoring into a single browser-based workspace that runs natively on your IBM i. So when you read about Sitemule Workspace or modernization without rewriting, you are reading about the continued evolution of IceCap.

More than a 5250 interface

IceCap is not simply a visual layer on top of an existing application. As the screen transformation engine in Sitemule, IceCap provides the foundation for a complete workspace environment that enables existing applications to be modernized both visually and functionally.

With IceCap and Sitemule, you can, among other things:

• Transform existing 5250 applications into responsive, browser-based user interfaces

• Choose between simple 1:1 rendering and fully redesigned layouts

• Adapt the user experience for desktop, tablet, and mobile

• Combine multiple 5250 screens into new, seamless workflows

• Simplify complex and time-consuming business processes

• Add modern field types such as dropdown menus, checkboxes, and date pickers

• Add validation and user guidance without changing the underlying program

• Make 5250 functionality available through REST services

• Integrate external web applications directly into existing workflows

• Connect IBM i with CRM, ERP, and other enterprise systems

Everything runs natively on IBM i and builds on the IceBreak engine. There is no middleware and no requirement for external application servers. The IBM i platform’s security and authorization model is preserved because IceCap operates at the interface layer - not in the underlying business logic.

Two ways forward

• You already use IceCap. Nothing changes in your day-to-day operations. Support and maintenance continue to be provided directly by us, exactly as before. At the same time, your existing IceCap installation means that a significant part of the foundation for further modernization is already in place. Contact us to learn more about the special upgrade offer for existing customers.
• You want to see the full platform. IceCap is one of the four engines in Sitemule. Explore how IceCap works together with IceBreak, BlueSeries, and BlueNote, and discover the modules built on top of the engines.