Description #
REXX (Restructured Extended Executor) is a high-level interpreted language known for its simplicity, readability, and ease of learning. It was designed for scripting and automating tasks, especially in IBM operating systems like z/OS, OS/2, and VM/CMS.
History #
REXX was developed by IBM’s Mike Cowlishaw in 1979 and officially released in 1981. It was created to be a human-friendly scripting language for both beginners and experienced developers, replacing more cryptic languages like EXEC and EXEC 2. REXX became a core scripting tool across IBM platforms.
Hello World Code #
say "Hello, World!"How to Run #
Option 1: Online
Option 2: Local
- Install Regina REXX or R4:
- Save code in
hello.rexx:
say "Hello, World!"Run it:
rexx hello.rexxKey Concepts #
- Designed for human readability
- Free-form syntax
- Interpreted scripting language
- String manipulation focus
- Built-in functions for file and system I/O
- Dynamic typing
- Extensive use in mainframes
- Supports structured programming
- Easily embeddable and extendable
- Available on many platforms
Try It Online #
Fun Facts #
- REXX is still used on IBM mainframes today.
- The Regina interpreter is the most popular open-source implementation.
- REXX was designed with one guiding rule: What’s easy to do should be easy to write.
