Web Services and Service-Oriented Architectures

This site will help you get started with Web Services and service-oriented architectures. It features free articles, services, and product listings that can be used to develop a service-oriented architecture using Web Services.

	Online articles that provide an extensive overview of Web Services, related standards, and technologies that can be used in service-oriented architectures. There are nearly 400 pages of articles.
	Services to help your organization decide how to use Web Services in a service-oriented architecture.
	Product listings to connect you to the vendor sites for each of the technologies.

Example enterprise Web Services architecture

The following diagram is an example of a service-oriented architecture using Web Services. Click on the yellow boxes below to obtain more information on a subject.

Getting started

It is difficult to keep up with the rapid changes in technology. The advent of Web Services and service-oriented architectures makes "keeping up" all the more important, because these technologies are fundamentally changing the way we build our internal systems—those that support our organizations—and how internal and external systems will interact.

We are on the cusp of building "plug-compatible" software components that will reduce the costs of our software systems at the same time increasing the capabilities of the systems. Sure, you have heard that promise more than once before. And more than once, the delivery fell short of the promise. But, as with such promises, they will come true some day. That time is now.

Online articles

There are nearly 400 pages of online articles. These free articles covers the type of service-oriented architecture and related technologies shown in the above figure:

Service-oriented architecture articles

	Service-oriented architecture (SOA) definition
	Web Services specifications and organizations
	XML background, specifications, and vocabularies

Application server articles

Database articles

	Database concepts and standards
	Relational databases
	Object-relational mapping
	Object-oriented databases
	XML databases
	XML middleware

Services

We help prepare organizations for moving to service-oriented architectures:

	Consulting on software architectures and products. This helps you quickly make fully informed decisions concerning the use of software products for various architectures. More...
	Mentoring on technical issues. These sessions make it easier for managers and project leads to get up-to-speed on architectural considerations. More...
	Speaking on topics of advanced software architectures and how such architectures can be used in organizations. This is a great way to communicate the value of using various types of software architectures to larger groups. More...

Products

Lists of product vendors along with links to their respective sites:

	Web Services
	Application servers
	Relational databases
	Object-relational databases
	Object-relational mapping
	Object-oriented databases
	XML databases
	XML middleware

Web Services book

Doug Barry has prepared the material on this site. He is also the author of a book that explains Web Services and service-oriented architectures in an easy-to-understand, a non-technical manner. More on Doug Barry...

Web Services and Service-Oriented Architectures: The Savvy Manager's Guide
by Douglas K. Barry

	Sample pages and more information on this book: click here.
	Latest updates on the specifications mentioned in this book: click here.
	Free Webcast discussing one of the chapters of the book: click here.
	Stencils so you can create your own force-field analysis or service-oriented architecture diagrams: click here.

This book is part of the Savvy Manager's Guide series. The series is intended to help IT managers deal with technological change. Doug Barry is also the series editor for this series. Click here for more information on this series.

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