Chapter Summary


Again, it is important to remember that the purpose of Web services is to foster cross-platform program-to-program communications. Interoperability, not the choice of development-language environment, is what is important in Web services.

Why do people choose one language approach over the other? In the case of Java, there is a promise that Java-language programs can be written on one platform environment and easily moved to another. (This promise is sometimes fulfilled, depending upon the application's complexity and whether the application took advantage of custom extensions on the originating platform that may or may not be available on the target platform.) In the case of Microsoft, cross-platform program transportability is not featured. When you write to .NET, you are writing programs that will run in a Windows-only environment (but thanks to Web services, these programs will interoperate with other programs, including Java-based programs, quite readily).

In choosing a .NET or Java development environment, business executives and application developers should look closely at:

  • The breadth and depth of the development environment your vendor offers (with extensions for application compilation, business process integration, security, and other integrated add-ons);

  • The availability of the key Web services protocols and services you need (such as UDDI registries and WSDL/SOAP protocols);

  • The skill set of your existing development organization; and

  • The computer-systems mix in your existing IT infrastructure.

Remember, too, that in a world where one vendor claims to have implemented Web services protocols and directories while another vendor has not implemented them, nobody wins. Being a market leader with early implementations does little to provide the wide-ranging interoperability between vendors that Web services is all about. Only when the major vendors all support Web services protocols and directories does the IT buyer really win because at that point cross-platform program-to-program communications is assured.

A lot of confusing information can be found in news articles and on Web sites, portraying the forthcoming Web services battles as being between Microsoft and Sun. In fact, the real battles will be fought between Microsoft (with its Visual Studio suite of Web services development products) and companies that offer similar tools using the Java development language. What this means is that Web services buyers will be making choices based on:

  1. The completeness of the Web services product suites (language environments, development tools, and additional tools and utilities that help create complete Web services solutions); and,

  2. The actual language of choice (Microsoft will be pushing the C# language all the remaining competitors will be pushing J2EE Java language approach).

Choosing an appropriate Web services approach does not necessitate a Microsoft versus Sun battle. It's an applications and development tools battle that will be won by the companies that offer the best integrated product suites for easily and completely building and deploying Web services based solutions.



Web Services Explained. Solutions and Applications for the Real World
Web Services Explained, Solutions and Applications for the Real World
ISBN: 0130479632
EAN: 2147483647
Year: 2002
Pages: 115
Authors: Joe Clabby

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