Abstract:
An extensible software framework is used for the development and customization of XML based Web service deployment descriptors. The framework may provide for the mapping and synchronization of XML data fragments in the XML files to user interface components, resulting in an interface that can be used for the development and customization of the Web service configuration. This mechanism may allow concurrent read and write accesses to the XML based Web service deployment descriptors. The mechanism may be extensible, providing for the mapping between the user interface and the XML data fragments to be customized. Additional extensibility may come from the ability of the framework to readily accommodate the situation where the complete configuration of the Web service is described in multiple XML files. The resulting editor may present one unified display of all of the information across multiple files.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to an improved data processing system and, in particular, to customization of Web services. 
     HyperText Markup Language is a document format used on the World Wide Web. Web pages are text documents built with HTML tags embedded in the text. HTML defines the page layout, fonts, and graphic elements as well as hypertext links to other documents on the Web. HTML is derived from the Standard Generalized Markup Language (SGML). 
     A subset of SGML is known as eXtensible Markup Language (XML). XML is used for defining data elements on a Web page and business-to-business documents. XML uses a similar tag structure as HTML; however, whereas HTML defines how elements are displayed, XML defines what those elements contain. HTML uses predefined tags, but XML allows tags to be defined by the developer of the page. Thus, virtually any data items can be identified, allowing Web pages to function like database records. 
     XML tags are defined in an XML Schema, which defines content type as well as name. XML tags can also be described in a Document Type Definition (DTD) format, since XML is a subset of the SGML language. HTML uses a rather loose coding style and is tolerant of coding errors while XML pages need to comply with rigid rules. 
     HTML and XML documents are primarily text documents. Therefore, HTML and XML documents can be created and edited using a simple text editor. In addition, specific editors may be used for creating and editing HTML and XML documents. These editors may be implemented in a variety of ways. For example, a stand-alone application may be provided. Web-based solutions may also be used. Such solutions do not require the author to install heavy software on the client and, theoretically, the editor may be supported by any computer with a Web browser application. Another way of making XML more readable is through commercially available tools based on eXstensible Stylesheet Language (XSL) technology. XSL provides a mechanism for customizing the display of the Web service configuration so that it is easier to read and interpret. 
     BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     According to one aspect of the present invention, a method for managing Web services deployment descriptors comprises parsing a deployment descriptor document to identify at least one data fragment, providing a user interface component, and providing an adapter. The adapter may be associated with the user interface component and the data fragment. 
     According to another aspect of the present invention, a computer program product for managing Web services deployment descriptors comprises a computer readable medium having computer readable program code embodied therein. The computer readable program code comprises computer readable program code configured to parse a deployment descriptor documents to identify at least one data fragment, computer readable program code configured to provide a user interface component, and computer readable program code configured to provide an adapter, wherein the adapter is associated with the user interface component and the data fragment. 
     According to yet another aspect of the present invention, an apparatus for managing Web services deployment descriptors comprises a parser, a plurality of user interface components and a plurality of adapters. The parser may divide at least one deployment descriptor document into a plurality of data fragments. Each of the plurality of adapters is associated with a respective one of the plurality of user interface components and a corresponding one of the plurality of data fragments. 
     According to a further aspect of the present invention, computer software is embodied in a propagated signal for managing Web services deployment descriptors. The computer software comprises computer readable program code configured to parse a deployment descriptor document to identify at least one data fragment, computer readable program code configured to provide a user interface component; and computer readable program code configured to provide an adapter, wherein the adapter is associated with the user interface component and the at least one data fragment. 
     Other aspects and features of the present invention, as defined solely by the claims, will become apparent to those ordinarily skilled in the art upon review of the following non-limited detailed description of the invention in conjunction with the accompanying figures. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  depicts a pictorial representation of a network of data processing systems in which the present invention may be implemented; 
         FIG. 2  is a block diagram of a data processing system that may be implemented as a server in accordance with one aspect of the present invention; 
         FIG. 3  is a block diagram of a data processing system in which the present invention may be implemented; 
         FIGS. 4A and 4B  depict a framework for developing and customizing Web services deployment descriptors in accordance with an aspect of the present invention; 
         FIG. 5  is a block diagram depicting initialization and operation of an editor for development and customization of XML based Web services deployment descriptors in accordance with an aspect of the present invention; 
         FIG. 6  is a timing diagram illustrating the operation of the framework for development and customization of XML based Web services deployment descriptors in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIGS. 7A-7D  illustrate example XML deployment descriptors and corresponding user interface components for a web services descriptor document in accordance with an aspect of the present invention; 
         FIGS. 8A and 8B  illustrate example XML deployment descriptors and corresponding user interface components for Web service security extensions deployment descriptors in accordance with an aspect of the present invention; 
         FIGS. 9A-9D  illustrate example XML deployment descriptors and corresponding user interface components for Web service bindings deployment descriptors in accordance with an aspect of the present invention; 
         FIG. 10  is a flowchart illustrating the operation of initializing an editor framework for development and customization of Web services deployment descriptors in accordance with an aspect of the present invention; and 
         FIG. 11  is a flowchart illustrating the operation of an editor framework for development and customization of Web services deployment descriptors in accordance with an aspect embodiment of the present invention. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     As will be appreciated by one of skill in the art, the present invention may be embodied as a method, system, or computer program product. Accordingly, the present invention may take the form of an entirely hardware embodiment, an entirely software embodiment (including firmware, resident software, micro-code, etc.) or an embodiment combining software and hardware aspects all generally referred to herein as a “circuit” or “module.” Furthermore, the present invention may take the form of a computer program product on a computer-usable storage medium having computer-usable program code embodied in the medium. 
     Any suitable computer readable medium may be utilized. The computer-usable or computer-readable medium may be, for example but not limited to, an electronic, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductor system, apparatus, device, or propagation medium. More specific examples (a nonexhaustive list) of the computer-readable medium would include the following: an electrical connection having one or more wires, a portable computer diskette, a hard disk, a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM or Flash memory), an optical fiber, a portable compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), an optical storage device, a transmission media such as those supporting the Internet or an intranet, or a magnetic storage device. Note that the computer-usable or computer-readable medium could even be paper or another suitable medium upon which the program is printed, as the program can be electronically captured, via, for instance, optical scanning of the paper or other medium, then compiled, interpreted, or otherwise processed in a suitable manner, if necessary, and then stored in a computer memory. In the context of this document, a computer-usable or computer-readable medium may be any medium that can contain, store, communicate, propagate, or transport the program for use by or in connection with the instruction execution system, apparatus, or device. 
     Computer program code for carrying out operations of the present invention may be written in an object oriented programming language such as Java7, Smalltalk or C++. However, the computer program code for carrying out operations of the present invention may also be written in conventional procedural programming languages, such as the “C” programming language. The program code may execute entirely on the user&#39;s computer, partly on the user&#39;s computer, as a stand-alone software package, partly on the user&#39;s computer and partly on a remote computer or entirely on the remote computer. In the latter scenario, the remote computer may be connected to the user&#39;s computer through a local area network (LAN) or a wide area network (WAN), or the connection may be made to an external computer (for example, through the Internet using an Internet Service Provider). 
     The present invention is described below with reference to flowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams of methods, apparatus (systems) and computer program products according to embodiments of the invention. It will be understood that each block of the flowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams, and combinations of blocks in the flowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams, can be implemented by computer program instructions. These computer program instructions may be provided to a processor of a general purpose computer, special purpose computer, or other programmable data processing apparatus to produce a machine, such that the instructions, which execute via the processor of the computer or other programmable data processing apparatus, create means for implementing the functions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram block or blocks. 
     These computer program instructions may also be stored in a computer-readable memory that can direct a computer or other programmable data processing apparatus to function in a particular manner, such that the instructions stored in the computer-readable memory produce an article of manufacture including instruction means which implement the function/act specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram block or blocks. 
     The computer program instructions may also be loaded onto a computer or other programmable data processing apparatus to cause a series of operational steps to be performed on the computer or other programmable apparatus to produce a computer implemented process such that the instructions which execute on the computer or other programmable apparatus provide steps for implementing the functions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram block or blocks. 
     The present invention provides a method, apparatus, and computer program product for development and customization of XML based Web services deployment descriptors. The data processing device may be a stand-alone computing device or may be a distributed data processing system in which multiple computing devices are utilized to perform various aspects of the present invention. Therefore, the following  FIGS. 1-3  are provided as exemplary diagrams of data processing environments in which the present invention may be implemented. It should be appreciated that  FIGS. 1-3  are only exemplary and are not intended to assert or imply any limitation with regard to the environments in which the present invention may be implemented. Many modifications to the depicted environments may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. 
     With reference now to the figures,  FIG. 1  depicts a pictorial representation of a network of data processing systems in which the present invention may be implemented. Network data processing system  100  is a network of computers in which the present invention may be implemented. Network data processing system  100  contains a network  102 , which is the medium used to provide communications links between various devices and computers connected together within network data processing system  100 . Network  102  may include connections, such as wire, wireless communication links, or fiber optic cables. 
     In the depicted example, server  104  is connected to network  102  along with storage unit  106 . In addition, clients  108 ,  110 , and  112  are connected to network  102 . These clients  108 ,  110 , and  112  may be, for example, personal computers or network computers. In the depicted example, server  104  provides data, such as boot files, operating system images, and applications to clients  108 - 112 . Clients  108 ,  110 , and  112  are clients to server  104 . Network data processing system  100  may include additional servers, clients, and other devices not shown. 
     In accordance with an aspect of the present invention, server  104  provides an editor to clients  108 ,  110 ,  112 . More particularly, server  102  may provide access to XML based Web services descriptor files in storage  106 , for example. Thus, a user may access the XML based descriptor files directly using a simple and well-known text editor. 
     In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, a dynamic framework is provided for developing a graphical user interface (GUI) for reading and editing Web services deployment descriptors. This framework involves the development of user interface (UI) components for XML data fragments in the deployment descriptors and adapters responsible for synchronizing between these UI components and XML data fragments. This framework may be provided through an editor mechanism on server  104  in the depicted example. The UI components may be accessed, for example, using a browser client application on one of clients  108 ,  110 ,  112 . Alternatively, the deployment descriptor documents may be accessed directly using a text editor, for instance, on one of clients  108 ,  110 ,  112 . 
     A two-way synchronization is also achieved using the adapters. Updates in an UI component will result in a corresponding change in the deployment descriptors. Similarly, changes that are made directly to the deployment descriptor documents may be reflected in the UI components. Thus, the editor mechanism of the present invention allows both reading and editing of XML documents. The editor mechanism of the present invention also allows disjoint deployment descriptors to be presented together as one logical unit. The editor mechanism of the present invention also allows continual synchronization between UI components and XML documents. 
     In the depicted example, network data processing system  100  is the Internet with network  102  representing a worldwide collection of networks and gateways that use the Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) suite of protocols to communicate with one another. At the heart of the Internet is a backbone of high-speed data communication lines between major nodes or host computers, consisting of thousands of commercial, government, educational and other computer systems that route data and messages. Of course, network data processing system  100  also may be implemented as a number of different types of networks, such as for example, an intranet, a local area network (LAN), or a wide area network (WAN).  FIG. 1  is intended as an example, and not as an architectural limitation for the present invention. 
     Referring to  FIG. 2 , a block diagram of a data processing system that may be implemented as a server, such as server  104  in  FIG. 1 , is depicted in accordance with an asspect of the present invention. Data processing system  200  may be a symmetric multiprocessor (SMP) system including a plurality of processors  202  and  204  connected to system bus  206 . Alternatively, a single processor system may be employed. Also connected to system bus  206  is memory controller/cache  208 , which provides an interface to local memory  209 . I/O bus bridge  210  is connected to system bus  206  and provides an interface to I/O bus  212 . Memory controller/cache  208  and I/O bus bridge  210  may be integrated as depicted. 
     Peripheral component interconnect (PCI) bus bridge  214  connected to I/O bus  212  provides an interface to PCI local bus  216 . A number of modems may be connected to PCI local bus  216 . Typical PCI bus implementations will support four PCI expansion slots or add-in connectors. Communications links to clients  108 - 112  in  FIG. 1  may be provided through modem  218  and network adapter  220  connected to PCI local bus  216  through add-in connectors. 
     Additional PCI bus bridges  222  and  224  provide interfaces for additional PCI local buses  226  and  228 , from which additional modems or network adapters may be supported. In this manner, data processing system  200  allows connections to multiple network computers. A memory-mapped graphics adapter  230  and hard disk  232  may also be connected to I/O bus  212  as depicted, either directly or indirectly. 
     Those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the hardware depicted in  FIG. 2  may vary. For example, other peripheral devices, such as optical disk drives and the like, also may be used in addition to or in place of the hardware depicted. The depicted example is not meant to imply architectural limitations with respect to the present invention. 
     The data processing system depicted in  FIG. 2  may be, for example, an IBM eServer™ pSeries® system, a product of International Business Machines Corporation in Armonk, N.Y., running the Advanced Interactive Executive (AIX™) operating system or LINUX operating system. 
     With reference now to  FIG. 3 , a block diagram of a data processing system is shown in which the present invention may be implemented. Data processing system  300  is an example of a computer, such as client  108  in  FIG. 1 , in which code or instructions implementing the processes of the present invention may be located. In the depicted example, data processing system  300  employs a hub architecture including a north bridge and memory controller hub (MCH)  308  and a south bridge and input/output (I/O) controller hub (ICH)  310 . Processor  302 , main memory  304 , and graphics processor  318  are connected to MCH  308 . Graphics processor  318  may be connected to the MCH through an accelerated graphics port (AGP), for example. 
     In the depicted example, local area network (LAN) adapter  312 , audio adapter  316 , keyboard and mouse adapter  320 , modem  322 , read only memory (ROM)  324 , hard disk drive (HDD)  326 , CD-ROM driver  330 , universal serial bus (USB) ports and other communications ports  332 , and PCI/PCIe devices  334  may be connected to ICH  310 . PCI/PCIe devices may include, for example, Ethernet adapters, add-in cards, PC cards for notebook computers, etc. PCI uses a cardbus controller, while PCIe does not. ROM  324  may be, for example, a flash binary input/output system (BIOS). Hard disk drive  326  and CD-ROM drive  330  may use, for example, an integrated drive electronics (IDE) or serial advanced technology attachment (SATA) interface. A super I/O (SIO) device  336  may be connected to ICH  310 . 
     An operating system runs on processor  302  and is used to coordinate and provide control of various components within data processing system  300  in  FIG. 3 . The operating system may be a commercially available operating system such as Microsoft® Windows® XP, which is available from Microsoft Corporation. Microsoft and Windows are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation. An object oriented programming system, such as the Java™ programming system, may run in conjunction with the operating system and provides calls to the operating system from Java™ programs or applications executing on data processing system  300 . “JAVA” is a trademark of Sun Microsystems, Inc. 
     Instructions for the operating system, the object-oriented programming system, and applications or programs are located on storage devices, such as hard disk drive  326 , and may be loaded into main memory  304  for execution by processor  302 . The processes of the present invention are performed by processor  302  using computer implemented instructions, which may be located in a memory such as, for example, main memory  304 , memory  324 , or in one or more peripheral devices  326  and  330 . 
     Those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the hardware in  FIG. 3  may vary depending on the implementation. Other internal hardware or peripheral devices, such as flash memory, equivalent non-volatile memory, or optical disk drives and the like, may be used in addition to or in place of the hardware depicted in  FIG. 3 . Also, the processes of the present invention may be applied to a multiprocessor data processing system. 
     For example, data processing system  300  may be a personal digital assistant (PDA), which is configured with flash memory to provide non-volatile memory for storing operating system files and/or user-generated data. The depicted example in  FIG. 3  and above-described examples are not meant to imply architectural limitations. For example, data processing system  300  also may be a tablet computer, laptop computer, or telephone device in addition to taking the form of a PDA. 
       FIGS. 4A and 4B  depict a framework for developing and customizing Web services deployment descriptors in accordance with an aspect of the present invention. More particularly, with reference to  FIG. 4A , GUI component  410  is generated based on XML data fragment  430 . A GUI component may include one or more GUI controls for displaying data and capturing user input. In the depicted example, GUI component  410  includes text field control  412 , list control  414 , and other controls (not shown). 
     XML data fragment  430  may be a portion of an XML file, a portion of another XML data fragment, or a collection of XML data fragments, for example. There may be one adapter and one GUI component for each identified data fragment. Adapter  420  keeps track of the mapping and synchronization between the GUI component  410  and XML data fragment  430 . When a user makes a modification in GUI component  410 , adapter  420  is informed of this modification and updates XML data fragment  430  accordingly. Similarly, if any changes occur in XML data fragment  430  from another source, adapter  420  is informed of the changes and updates GUI component  410  accordingly. Another source may originate from the same or a different computer. As an example, a user may develop XML based Web services deployment descriptors using the GUI components and, in another window, edit the XML descriptors using a simple text editor. Alternately, one user may develop or customize the Web Services deployment descriptors on one computer while another user directly accesses the XML file(s) on another computer. 
     In addition to displaying the Web services configuration in a way that hides the underlying XML, this framework also displays the data in a way that hides file boundaries from the user. Multiple files may be registered, by name, with one editor and, as long as the mapping between the GUI components and the XML data fragments contained in the files is complete, the contents of the registered files are made available in the editor. 
       FIG. 4B  illustrates an adapter for synchronizing Web services deployment descriptors with GUI components in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention. Adapter  470  includes listeners to GUI components  472 , listeners to the data fragment  474 , GUI component routines/handlers  476 , and data fragment routines/handlers  478 . Adapter  470  contains a reference to GUI component  460  and data fragment  480 . 
     When listeners  472  are notified that changes are made through GUI component  460 , data fragments routines/handlers  478  are invoked. Data fragments routines/handlers propagate these changes to data fragment  480 . Similarly, when listeners  474  are notified that changes are made to data fragment  480 , GUI components routines/handlers  476  are invoked. GUI components routines/handlers  476  propagate these changes to GUI component  460 . 
       FIG. 5  is a block diagram depicting initialization and operation of an editor for development and customization of XML based Web services deployment descriptors in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention. Editor  510 , in client  560  opens XML descriptors  502 . Editor  510  parses XML descriptors  502  to identify or divides the XML descriptors into data fragments. As described above, an XML data fragment is a portion of an XML deployment descriptor file or files. A data fragment may be a portion of another data fragment or, conversely, a data fragment may be a collection of other data fragments. Many techniques may be used for parsing the XML descriptors; however, the manner in which XML deployment descriptors are divided into data fragments is not the focus of the present invention. 
     There is an adapter type for every GUI component and editor  510  creates an adapter instance for each instance of GUI components  512 . Each instance of adapters  514  registers an association between one of GUI components  512  and a data fragment in XML descriptors  502 . 
     In operation, GUI components  512  are provided to client  560 . GUI components  512  may be presented to a user at client  560 . GUI components  512  may be, for example, Java™ Standard Widget Toolkit (SWT) classes that include controls, such as text fields, drop-down boxes, lists, radio buttons, tables, buttons, and the like. These controls may be used to develop and customize the Web services without being exposed to the potentially complicated XML deployment descriptors. Thus, users need not know the language and syntax of the XML descriptors, just the details of the Web services they wish to deploy or configure. The user may then use editor  510 , in which the GUI components are rendered, to navigate GUI components  512  and send changes to adapters  514 . In turn, adapters  514  listen for these changes and effectuate appropriate changes to XML descriptors  502 . 
     Adapters  514  also listen for changes to data fragments within XML descriptors  502 . A user at client  550  may directly access XML descriptors  502  using, for example text editor  552 . Responsive to changes being made directly to XML descriptors  502 , adapters  514  propagate these changes to GUI components  512 . 
       FIG. 6  is a timing diagram illustrating the operation of the framework for development and customization of XML based Web services deployment descriptors in accordance with an aspect of the present invention. The framework operates as follows:
         1. A user initiates reading or editing of the Web services deployment descriptors by opening an editor. The editor serves as the GUI for the deployment descriptors.   2. The editor parses the deployment descriptors and identifies the XML data fragments.   3. As part of the editor&#39;s initialization, the editor creates all the UI components for each of the identified XML data fragments.   4. The editor creates the adapters.   5. The editor registers the UI components with the adapters.   6. The editor registers the corresponding data fragments with the adapters. The registration process adds listeners to both UI components and XML data fragments.   7. The user initiates an update to the deployment descriptors via the GUI.   8. The update triggers the listeners to notify the adapter.   9. When the adapter receives this notification, it invokes the routines/handlers that are responsible for updating the corresponding XML data fragments. The XML data fragments may reside in disjoint documents.   10. Similarly, any updates in the deployment descriptors trigger the listeners of the affected XML data fragments.   11. The updates trigger the listeners to notify the adapter.   12. The adapter invokes the routines/handlers that are responsible for updating the corresponding UI components. The user then sees the most up-to-date data in the deployment descriptors and a two-way synchronization is achieved.   13. Registration for XML data fragments with adapters is not restricted to being performed only in the initialization process. At any point in time, registration for XML data fragments may occur. An example of this scenario is when a user selects an item from a list to be added, which may result in new XML information.   14. The GUI component then registers the XML information with the adapter.   15. The adapter, in turn, updates the GUI component.       

     As seen above, the framework achieves a two-way synchronization between GUI components and the corresponding XML deployment descriptors. The framework is dynamic, allowing changes to GUI components and data fragments to be propagated throughout the framework. Thus, a user may develop or customize Web services without being directly exposed to the XML deployment descriptors, while still interacting with an up-to-date user interface. 
       FIGS. 7A-7D  illustrate example XML deployment descriptors and corresponding user interface components for a web services descriptor document in accordance with an aspect of the present invention. XML descriptor file  700  is parsed to identify XML data fragments. The GUI components shown in  FIGS. 7B-7D  correspond to the data fragments identified in XML descriptor file  700 . 
     More particularly, as shown in  FIG. 7B , GUI window  710  includes controls for the Web services. For example, text fields  712 ,  714  correspond to the description and display-name tags in XML descriptor file  700 .  FIGS. 7C and 7D  show GUI components that correspond to other XML information in XML descriptor file  700 . 
       FIGS. 8A and 8B  illustrate example XML deployment descriptors and corresponding user interface components for Web service security extensions deployment descriptors in accordance with an aspect of the present invention. XML descriptor file  800  is parsed to identify XML data fragments. The GUI components shown in  FIG. 8B  correspond to the data fragments identified in XML descriptor file  800 . More particularly, as shown in  FIG. 8B , GUI window  810  includes controls for the Web service security extensions. For example, UI components  812  correspond to the port component binding data fragment in XML descriptor file  800 . 
       FIGS. 9A-9D  illustrate example XML deployment descriptors and corresponding user interface components for Web service bindings deployment descriptors in accordance with an aspect of the present invention. XML descriptor file shown in  FIGS. 9A and 9B  is parsed to identify XML data fragments. The GUI components shown in  FIGS. 9C and 9D  correspond to the data fragments identified in the XML descriptor file. 
     More particularly, as shown in  FIG. 9C , GUI window  900  includes button control  902  for adding descriptor information and button control  904  for removing descriptor information. As shown in  FIG. 9D , GUI window  910  includes button control  912  for editing descriptor information. Selection of buttons  902  and  912  may result in further GUI components being created or presented for the development or customization of XML deployment descriptors. It follows that interaction with these GUI components may result in further data fragments being created. Selection of  904  may result in GUI and corresponding data fragments being removed. 
       FIG. 10  is a flowchart illustrating the operation of initializing an editor framework for development and customization of Web services deployment descriptors in accordance with an aspect of the present invention. Operation begins and the editor parses the XML descriptors to form a list of data fragments (block  1002 ). The editor then identifies data fragments and corresponding GUI components (block  1004 ). 
     For each data fragment in the list (block  1006 ), the editor instantiates the appropriate GUI component (block  1008 ), instantiates an adapter (block  1010 ), and registers the GUI component and corresponding data fragment to the adapter (block  1012 ). If the current data fragment is not the last data fragment in the list in block  1014 , the loop returns to block  1006  to initialize the editor framework for the next data fragment. However, if the current data fragment is the last data fragment in block  1014 , operation ends. 
       FIG. 11  is a flowchart illustrating the operation of an editor framework for development and customization of Web services deployment descriptors in accordance with an aspect of the present invention. Operation begins when an editor is activated by a requesting client, such as a Java™ SWT editor. The editor renders the GUI components to the requesting client (block  1102 ). A determination is made as to whether an exit condition exists (block  1104 ). An exit condition may exist, for example, when the requesting client closes the editor or when the server providing access to the editor application shuts down. If an exit condition exists, operation ends. 
     If an exit condition does not exist in block  1104 , a determination is made as to whether there is a change to a GUI component (block  1106 ). If an adapter is notified of a change to a GUI component, the editor reflects the changes to the appropriate data fragment (block  1108 ). Thereafter, operation returns to block  1106  to determine whether an exit condition exists. 
     If an adapter does not receive notification of a change to GUI component in block  1106 , a determination is made as to whether there is a change to a data fragment (block  1110 ). If an adapter is notified of a change to a data fragment, the editor reflects the changes to the appropriate GUI component (block  1112 ). Thereafter, operation returns to block  1104  to determine whether an exit condition exists. If an adapter is not notified of a change to a data fragment in block  1110 , operation returns to block  1104  to determine whether an exit condition exists. 
     The flowchart and block diagrams of  FIGS. 1-5  and  10 - 11  illustrate the architecture, functionality, and operation of possible implementations of systems, methods and computer program products according to various embodiments of the present invention. In this regard, each block in the flowchart or block diagrams may represent a module, segment, or portion of code, which comprises one or more executable instructions for implementing the specified logical function(s). It should also be noted that, in some alternative implementations, the functions noted in the block may occur out of the order noted in the figures. For example, two blocks shown in succession may, in fact, be executed substantially concurrently, or the blocks may sometimes be executed in the reverse order, depending upon the functionality involved. It will also be noted that each block of the block diagrams and/or flowchart illustration, and combinations of blocks in the block diagrams and/or flowchart illustration, can be implemented by special purpose hardware-based systems which perform the specified functions or acts, or combinations of special purpose hardware and computer instructions. 
     The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the invention. As used herein, the singular forms “a”, “an” and “the” are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It will be further understood that the terms “comprises” and/or “comprising,” when used in this specification, specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements, and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, and/or groups thereof. 
     The description of the present invention has been presented for purposes of illustration and description, and is not intended to be exhaustive or limited to the invention in the form disclosed. Many modifications and variations will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art. The embodiment was chosen and described in order to best explain the principles of the invention, the practical application, and to enable others of ordinary skill in the art to understand the invention for various embodiments with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated.