You can use a wide variety of programming languages and techniques to develop application programs for DB2® for z/OS®. In addition, several methods are available for communicating with DB2.

You can choose among the following programming languages:

• APL2®
• C
• C++
• C#
• COBOL
• Fortran
• High-level Assembler (part of the z/OS operating system)
• Java™
• .NET
• Perl
• PHP
• PL/I
• Python
• REXX
• Ruby on Rails
• Smalltalk
• SQL Procedure Language
• TOAD for DB2
• Visual Basic

You can use any of the following programming methods:

Static SQL

The source form of a static SQL statement is embedded within an application program that is written in a traditional programming language. (Traditional programming languages include C, C++, COBOL, Fortran, PL/I, and Assembler.) Static SQL is a good choice when you know what statements an application needs to execute before the application runs.

Dynamic SQL

Unlike static SQL, dynamic statements are constructed and prepared at run time. Dynamic SQL is a good choice when you do not know the format of an SQL statement when you write a program. It is also a good choice when the program needs to generate part or all of an SQL statement based on input from its users.

ODBC

ODBC is an application programming interface (API) that C and C++ application programs can use to access relational databases. ODBC is well suited to the client/server environment.

SQLJ and JDBC

Like ODBC and C++, the SQLJ and JDBC Java interfaces let you write portable application programs that are independent of any one database product.

• SQLJ application support lets you write static SQL applications in the Java programming language. With SQLJ, you can embed SQL statements in your Java applications.
• JDBC application support lets you write dynamic SQL applications in the Java programming language. JDBC is similar to ODBC, but it is designed specifically for use with Java.