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Wow a rare rpg reference. Everyone mentions COBOL (still rare) but you almost never see a reference to rpg anymore.

I spent a few years early in my career (early 2000s) coding in rpg for a casino and a major bank. I’m still impressed with myself that I was able to get my mind wrapped around the column nature of rpg.

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My dad was an RPG programmer until he got into web in 97. Always interesting to hear him talk about it.

I took a language survey course "back then". RPG was the only language that struck me as "lets see how goofy we can make things without them complaining." Although, I never programmed in APL, which also fits into this category: specialized type ball for symbols, and I think a differentiation between over- and under-strike. But it's also the only language that I saw a plotting program drawn in two lines: #1 plots, #2 function. And the lines weren't even that long...

Maybe RPG was invented to make COBOL look great?

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