"This book performs a valuable service for managers seeking to harness the business potential of Web services technology. Bringing a real practitioner's experience to the task, Anne carefully walks managers through the fundamentals of Web services technology. She does a superb job of helping managers understand this technology so that they can move with sure footing and avoid potentially harmful stumbles along the way."
--From the Foreword by John Hagel III and John Seely Brown Written for business and technology managers, Web Services: A Manager's Guide illuminates the potential of Web services for application integration. It describes the essentials of supporting technologies and shows how they can be built into a Web services infrastructure that is high-performance, robust, and cost-effective. Realistic in approach, this book offers a readable definition of Web services and non-technical explanations of key technologies and standards. The author explores the scenarios and applications that would benefit most from Web services and offers guidelines for making an informed decision about which Web services products are right for your company's needs. You will find detailed coverage of the following topics:

• The advantages of Web services over other middleware technologies

• Various Web services business models, including those used by Google, Kinko's, Amazon, UPS, and T-Mobile

• The basics of XML, XSLT, SOA, WSDL, UDDI, and SOAP

• How W3C, OASIS, and WS-I are standardizing technologies and defining guidelines for interoperability

• Web services standards for security, transactions, and portlets

• Powerful features of Web services, including dynamic discovery and dynamic binding

• Using Web services for heterogeneous integration, managing legacy assets, and B2B electronic procurement

• Web services core products and platforms

• Evaluating Web services offerings based on such requirements as scalability, extensibility, and security

Amazon.com® Reader Reviews (Ranked by Helpfulness)

Average Amazon.com® Rating:  Based on 12 Ratings

Heavily biased - 2003-09-21
Reviewer Rating:
This book overpromotes certain vendor web services offerings. This is more than likely caused by the authors day job as an industry analyst where they get paid to write nice things about vendors who offer suboptimal solutions.

I would encourage managers wanting to learn about web services to purchase a book targeted towards developers and only read the first several chapters. Developing Web Services and Java Web Services Architecture are two good books that fill this need.

An On Demand Integration Primer - 2004-01-14
Reviewer Rating:
I am so glad that this is the first book that I chose to read on Web Services. In our ever-changing world of IT, new technology and new terms pass by at dizzying speeds. We latch onto some and let others go in our attempt to stay current and relevant. The area of integration will be foundational for the new business models of the 21st century and Web Services is at the starting blocks to making it happen. As a technologist for one of the main players in IT Consulting & Services, I was looking for an unbiased (non company-oriented) and comprehensive view of the components, applications and issues surrounding Web Services. I found it in this book. Like one of the other reviewers, this was one of the most enjoyable business technology books that I have read and it exceeded my expectations. I also agree with the comment that this book should not be limited to managers. Even those who work deep in the details need to have a good understanding of the big picture from a business viewpoint to create the kind of value required. My thanks to Addison-Wesley and Anne Thomas Manes.

Biased book - 2004-07-11
Reviewer Rating:
I have been involved into web services technology for a while. When I picked this book...expected an unbiased high-level outlook on Web services. But it does not help at all...the author is more biased to define all of the pieces of web services technology. With that said, this was a difficult book to read because the writing style is very abrupt, does not flow, and reads like an product brochure trying to impress some vendor and confuse others. I've read more high-level technical books that were easier to understand because they explain their subjects in more natural prose.

Lucid, comprehensive book close to the software market - 2004-12-10
Reviewer Rating:
This book is incredibly clear and dense at the same time. Anne Manes accomplishes to show in a vendor neutral way an entire market of products in an emerging industry. I am thoroughly impressed.

This book is not for the faint of heart. It does not contain source code, but still requires a lot of technical understanding from the reader. An excellent book also for developers.

An outstanding Web services resource for IT/MIS managers - 2003-10-08
Reviewer Rating:
This book should be required reading for all IT/MIS managers getting involved with Web services. It clearly explains the past, present, and likely future value of Web services, putting key concepts in clear context, and cutting through the hype to explain:
1. How Web services relate to earlier distributed computing and enterprise application integration models -- lineage, Web services advantages, and integration considerations
2. What's practical with today's Web services tools and standards -- criteria for determining which applications to start with, as well as Web services product evaluation criteria and overviews (ranging from .NET and the Java platform to specialized/niche offerings)
3. Why and how Web services and the XML-based service-oriented architecture will productively impact most application development endeavors over time
4. Which of the myriad Web services-related standards initiatives are most significant

Anne Thomas Manes has a unique industry-insider perspective on the subject domain, having worked on pioneering distributed computing products, as an industry analyst, and as an influential contributor in many standards-related initiatives. She's also an excellent writer who can demystify complex technology topics and present pragmatic advice for readers seeking to understand and exploit new technologies.

Browse Similar Topics

Top Level Categories:
Internet/Online

Sub-Categories:
Internet/Online > Web Services