WEB SERVICES

1
WEB SERVICES

• Casey Bauer
• Hannah McMahon
• John Walls
• William Hunter
• Mary Daniel

2
What is a Web Service?

• Collection of functions that are packaged as a
  single entity and published to the network for
  use by other programs.
• Building blocks for creating open distributed
  systems, and allow companies and individuals to
  quickly and cheaply make their digital assets
  available worldwide.
• Basically, a standardized way for multiple
  machines to communicate via Web-based
  applications.

3
Why was it developed?

• To provide a reliable and more user-friendly way
  for different computers to communicate and access
  information across the Internet
• A way to allow organizations to communicate data
  without intimate knowledge of each others IT
  systems behind the firewall.

4
How does a Web Service operate?

• Extensible Markup Language (XML)
• XML tags the Data
• Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP)
• SOAP transfers the data (similar to an envelope)
• Web Services Description Language (WSDL)
• Describes the services available
• Universal Description Discovery and Integration
  (UDDI)
• Lists the businesses available

5
Microsoft and .NET

• Microsofts version of Web services is .NET
• .NET uses the .NET platform platform which allows
  it to be used on any device, any time, any place.
• Only problem is that .NET does not have the
  ability to run on any operating system
• (Haag and Cummings, Information Systems
  Essentials, 2006.)

6
Platforms

• A platform may be any application server software
  that supports a Web Service.
• Microsofts platform - .NET Platform
• Microsofts entire suite of tools, technologies,
  and services that support Microsofts vision of
  connected applications.
• (Haag and Cummings, Information Systems
  Essentials, 2006.)

7
Existing Platforms

• Microsoft.NET servers from Microsoft
• Java Web Services Development Pack from Sun
  Microsystems
• DotGnu from GNU Project
• Mono development platform form Novell
• NextAxiom Service Runtime Environment from
  NextAxiom Technology
• OpenEdge Platform from Progress Software

8
Examples of Web Services

• Yahoo! - maps, traffic
• Google - web search, maps
• GoogleEarth
• Fed Ex - shipment tracking
• Amazon.com - search products, cart system, wish
  list, product information
• Ebay - auction search, bidding, auction creation
• Microsoft (MSN) - Virtual Earth

9
Advantages Provided by Web Services

• Interoperability
• Open standards and protocols
• Low Barrier to Entry
• Integrated Services
• Reduced Costs
• Distributed approach to application integration
• Ubiquity
• Industry Support

10
Challenges faced by Web Services

• Discovery
• Reliability
• Security
• Transactions
• Scalability
• Manageability
• Accountability
• Testing

11
Disadvantages of Web Services

• Still in development
• Poor performance compared to other distributed
  computing approaches
• Text-based formats
• Neglect toward conciseness of encoding and
  efficiency of parsing
• Fortunately, all of these are temporary
  problems that are already being rectified.

12
Progressive Improvements

• Most vendors have committed to the OASIS
  standards to implement the Quality of Service
  aspects of their products.
• XML Infoset standard
• Binary representations promise to improve the
  wire efficiency of XML messaging

13
Benefits to Businesses

• Time-saving possibilities
• Peer-to-Peer Communication
• Conversion of multiple web sites and services
  (Mash-up)
• Expansion of Customer Base
• Just In Time Inventory

14
Recap

• What is a Web Service?
• Features
• Benefits
• Future of Web Services