# Presentation: 551104

## Architecture & Infrastructure Committee:Web Services Initiative

**Madhu Siddalingaiah**
**June 11, 2002**

## Goal:  Understand Web Services’ Potential

- Proposal at March, 2002 AIC meeting to consider new initiative on Web Services technology
- Chairs wanted more information before deciding
- AIC authorizes preparation of demo and educational presentation
- For XML WG, AIC and then maybe CIO Council
- Today’s agenda: CIO-level issues
- What problem do Web Services solve?
- What should CIOs do now?
- USITC prototype:  HTS Web Service

## About the Presenter

- Java & XML consultant
- Started with Java in 1995
- Clients include Fairchild Space & Defense, Blue Cross/Blue Shield, Sun Microsystems
- Published author
- XML and Web Services Unleashed, 2002, Sams Publishing
- Numerous articles for JavaWorld, Internet.com, Network World
- Presented papers at conferences all over the world
- JavaOne, SIGs conferences in Munich, London, New York, Evolve conference in Sydney
- B. Sc. Physics, University of MD

## The issue:  Unleashing B2B (and G2B!)

- Most Web apps are for business-to-consumer (B2C): person at browser
- Still too hard to build distributed applications that connect businesses
- Risk losing customers if you provide URL links to a partners' website
- Business-to-business (B2B) apps have been highly touted, but suffered for the following reasons:
- Isolation of business processes because of incompatible systems
- Microsoft's DCOM,  Sun J2EE's
- Bridges available but app server vendor specific
- Solutions were too costly or too complex to implement
- EDI, SET etc.
- Business relationships change such as mergers and acquisitions
- Accelerated pace of change in technology and standards
- ASP 2.0, ASP 3.0, ASP.NET
- EJB 1.0, EJB 1.1, EJB 2.0
- Need a simple, standard framework for B2B applications

## How Web Services Helps

- Cross-platform, cross-language support
- Java, .NET, PHP, Perl, Python
- Based on industry standards (W3C)
- Catches the XML wave
- XML, SOAP, WSDL, UDDI
- Supported by many vendors
- Unlike CORBA
- Relatively easy to implement
- Service publication and lookup
- Conduct business without prior relationship
- Loosely coupled
- Low demands on network quality
- Based on request/response model
- Enables public/private cooperation on information products

## Challenges to Web Services Implementation

- Complete set of tools and specifications not yet available
- Sun's web services specs in beta; MS .NET not fully delivered
- Few established 3rd-party tools
- Security & payment specs still being worked
- Educating business executives and IT staff
- Understand where W-S fits in to the big picture
- Identify good W-S opportunities
- The FUD of war:  Microsoft and Sun
- Shortage of trained Web programmers

## What Are Web Services?

- A web service is a software component
- Exposes a business function/service/chunk of data
- Can be accessed by another application over Internet
- Messages are exchanged using a standard XML format

**Application Server (J2EE or .NET)**

**Business logic**

**Web Service**

**Web Application**

- Business

- Agency

**<xml>**

**<xml>**

**<html>**

**<html>**

## Where Web Services Fit into IT Strategy

- Federal E-Gov Strategy—Quicksilver initiatives
- Three of the four portfolios (G2B, G2G and Internal) are candidates for Web Services as a delivery method
- Agency E-Gov (GPEA) plans
- Look beyond the browser as the main (only) Web model
- Consider Web Services wherever the customer or partner is a business or other government organization
- Natural role for Government as a provider of “raw” data in standard format (XML schemata) to private sector, who add value
- Also consider Web Services as a solution to legacy integration problems
- May replace CORBA, MQ, proprietary EAI solutions

## Getting Started with Web Services

- Start out small with an internal project that provides value
- Web service for read-only access
- Find a partner that will use your service!
- Validate interopability & business value
- Provide XML and Web services training to development team
- Identify business functions available as existing software components:  EJB or COM
- Turn a Web application into a Web service
- Candidates for web services
- Free services
- Non-sensitive data
- Real time access to authoritative information
- Wherever machine to machine communication is valuable

## Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTSUS)

- Official lists of duty rates (tariffs)
- Applicable to goods imported into the United States
- Applies to 20,000 or so line items in HTSUS classification
- Okra, steel, transistors, etc.
- Information published in three ways by USITC
- Hardcopy
- PDF format (downloadable from USITC Website)
- Unofficial browser accessible Web form
- Application is a good candidate for Web service
- Data is free, authoritative, non-sensitive
- Builds on existing web/database app
- Data will be consumed by customs brokers business apps

## Current vs. Web Service Workflow

- USITC

- Customs

- Brokers

- Walmart

- General Motors

- Corporate importers

- HTSUS hardcopy
- manually re-keyed

- Data tape

- Customs

- Brokers

- Web service

**<xml>**

**<xml>**

**<xml>**

- USITC

- Walmart

- General Motors

- Corporate importers

## Prototype Architecture

*Prototype Architecture*

- J2EE server
- Java Web services development pack (JWSDP)
- _[http://java.sun.com/webservices](http://java.sun.com/webservices)_
- Includes Tomcat server
- Exposes two methods
- getProductList(String description)
- Generic query for products matching description
- getProductDetail(String productCode, String beginDate)
- Returns tariff data for specific product

- Web service

- JWSDP/Tomcat

- JDBC

**<xml>**

- Web form

- IIS/ASP

**<html>**

- ODBC

## References

- World Wide Web Consortium
- Source of specifications
- _[http://www.w3.org](http://www.w3.org/)_
- Case studies
- _[http://www.microsoft.com/net/use/casestudies.asp](http://www.microsoft.com/net/use/casestudies.asp)_
- _[http://www-3.ibm.com/software/solutions/webservices/casestudies](http://www-3.ibm.com/software/solutions/webservices/casestudies)_
- _[http://dcb.sun.com/practices/webservices](http://dcb.sun.com/practices/webservices)_
- Xmethods
- Great list of interesting Web services
- _[http://www.xmethods.com](http://www.xmethods.com/)_
- Soapclient.com
- Dynamic web client for Web services