--- /dev/null
+Title: GnuCOBOL, a free platform to learn and use COBOL - nice free software
+Tags: english, debian, nice free software
+Date: 2020-04-29 13:10
+
+<p>The curiosity got the better of me when
+<a href="https://developers.slashdot.org/story/20/04/06/1424246/new-jersey-desperately-needs-cobol-programmers">Slashdot
+reported</a> that New Jersey was desperately looking for
+<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/COBOL">COBOL</a> programmers,
+and a few days later it was reported that
+<a href="https://onezero.medium.com/ibm-rallies-cobol-engineers-to-save-overloaded-unemployment-systems-eeadf13eddce">IBM
+tried to locate COBOL programmers</a>.</p>
+
+<p>I thus decided to have a look at free software alternatives to
+learn COBOL, and had the pleasure to find
+<a href="https://sourceforge.net/projects/open-cobol/">GnuCOBOL</a> was
+already <a href="https://tracker.debian.org/pkg/gnucobol">in
+Debian</a>. It used to be called Open Cobol, and is a "compiler"
+transforming COBOL code to C or C++ before giving it to GCC or Visual
+Studio to build binaries.</p>
+
+<p>I managed to get in touch with upstream, and was impressed with the
+quick response, and also was happy to see a new Debian maintainer
+taking over when the original one recently asked to be replaced. A
+new Debian upload was done as recently as yesterday.</p>
+
+<p>Using the Debian package, I was able to follow a simple COBOL
+introduction and make and run simple COBOL programs. It was fun to
+learn a new programming language. If you want to test for yourself,
+<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GnuCOBOL">the GnuCOBOL Wikipedia
+page</a> have a few simple examples to get you startet.</p>
+
+<p>As I do not have much experience with COBOL, I do not know how
+standard compliant it is, but it claim to pass most tests from COBOL
+test suite, which sound good to me. It is nice to know it is possible
+to learn COBOL using software without any usage restrictions, and I am
+very happy such nice free software project as this is available. If
+you as me is curious about COBOL, check it out.</p>
+
+<p>As usual, if you use Bitcoin and want to show your support of my
+activities, please send Bitcoin donations to my address
+<b><a href="bitcoin:15oWEoG9dUPovwmUL9KWAnYRtNJEkP1u1b">15oWEoG9dUPovwmUL9KWAnYRtNJEkP1u1b</a></b>.</p>