1.7 The Fortress as a Unit of Interoperability

The software fortress is a natural unit of interoperability. Software fortresses are connected through drawbridges. Drawbridge technologies are independent of the technologies used inside fortresses . Drawbridges thus shield each fortress from technological decisions made by other fortresses, even when the fortresses have treaty relationships with each other. Organizations are therefore free to choose fortress technologies solely on the basis of the specific needs of the fortress for which they will be used.

Many organizations, for example, are debating between using Java and .NET technology. Each has strengths and weaknesses, yet Java and .NET do not play together well. Enterprise JavaBeans, for example, do not inter operate well with either COM+ components or Microsoft presentation technologies. How does an organization choose between Java and .NET?

The answer is to use both. Use Java technologies where they make sense and .NET technologies where they make sense. I will discuss the advantages of each throughout the book. The important point here is that the choice between Java and .NET need not be made at the organizational level; it can be made at the fortress level. At the organizational level, choose drawbridge technologies that will connect to either Java or .NET fortresses. As long as the Java and .NET systems are encapsulated in a fortress architecture, interoperability becomes a matter of choosing appropriate drawbridges.