15.1. Accessing server-side data

RIA architects often find themselves bewildered when faced with the dilemma of choosing a web service infrastructure. Knowing the technology that’s available in this area is critical, because the wrong decision could be catastrophic. Table 15.1 is a high-level overview of the services that are available to you and can be used as a reference when making infrastructure design decisions.

Table 15.1. Web service protocol matrix

Communication Server support	Application	Benefits
HTTP (includes REST and RPC hybrids)
- All	Simple widget-based applications; speed and real-time UI updates aren’t required.	Easy implementation via the HTTPService object; RPC hybrid protocols can be invoked using RemoteObject.
SOAP/WSDL
- All	Data aggregation from external web services.	Easy implementation; pull data from multiple outside resources regardless of platform.
AMF
- BlazeDS & LiveCycle Data Services (LCDS): Java, - .NETZend: PHP - AMFPHP: PHP - WebOrb: .NET, Ruby, PHP	Approaching enterprise level; speed is important; data is usually pulled from server by polling.	Binary data compression makes communications 12 times faster; strong data typing; multiplatform support.
RTMP
- LiveCycle Data Services (LCDS), - Flash Media Server (FMS)	Enterprise level, messaging, instantaneous UI updates; data can be pushed to the client; streaming media content; data-intensive RIAs.	Integrates into existing J2EE infrastructure; document management, rapid data transfer, clustering, data tracking, syncing, paging, and conflict resolution.
Flash Remoting
- Native to ColdFusion	Robust, enterprise platform for client/server Flex communications; native.	Seamless integration with the Flash platform; removes the need for an intermediate code library to do data type mapping and data serialization.
JSON
- All (JavaScript data objects are serialized and transferred in binary form.)	AIR applications that use AJAX or Flex applications that use the ExternalInterface API.	Easy implementation with the HTTPService object; part of the AS3CorLib library.