【REVIEW】 This will be a change caused by the middleware. Middleware, the victim had been jokingly as "underwear" in the software category in recent years out of the "coat" is surrounded, as we have to focus. Their breeding grounds by a new architecture is also the sound of the software giant's cheering sections out of, not only more elegant, but also reveals a philosophy of taste, it is like a wise man, full of charm ideal country to use smooth IT application in the world of today's Xinchou old angry. This new architecture is SOA. In 2004, an industry figures have predicted: the next decade will belong to SOA.
SOA, where visitors?
Full name is the SOA service-oriented architecture (Service Oriented Architecture), say it is very new, it is not appropriate. As early as 40 years ago, it was suggested that a similar concept. As the nineties of last century the rise of the Internet, more and more people find this concept is ideal for the application to define the Internet Shang, thus was born the concept of Web services Zhege. The SOA is. COM hit bottom is when people talk about Web mere mention of a number of software vendors, middleware vendors, especially for Web services cleverly found a new "Blue Ocean" - the Web services architecture and traditional enterprise application integration, software applications, thus creating a new concept - service-oriented architecture (SOA). Since then, Web services are no longer confined to Internet applications, or beyond the number of enterprises has been a strong advocate of e-business applications to SOA as the "shape" to serve as "the", as we show a future software applications vision.
Noisy SOA Spring
Spring is the season people are busy with farming, the current industry where many people are busy sowing the seeds of SOA.
Almost every top manufacturers are involved in planting movement to SOA, IBM and BEA middleware biggest names bear the brunt of the two. IBM with WebSphere as the core, supplemented by four other family DB2, Tivoli, Lotus and Rational, and suggests a process, information, personnel integration program, and all are gathered in the focus integrated SOA, and made life-cycle management, enterprise integration concept, which phased, step by step realization of SOA.
BEA middleware to create areas that once the myth, the United States, led by the Chinese company is sparing no effort in the SOA area. In addition to proposed SOA-based "fluid computing" concept, BEA SOA products also enrich its Aqualogic product line is entirely designed for the realization of SOA, this series currently available products and future product roadmap is very exciting.
Torrent in the SOA movement, we can see that Microsoft, Oracle, Sun, HP figure. Software and hardware of the long-term partner, Oracle and HP in the SOA has come together on. The two will combine their respective areas of expertise together to build SOA solutions. HP also established a global SOA competency center, and introduced a set of SOA consulting services. But they seem in this publicity effort is not strong.
Sun in the SOA area despite publicity stint, but the attribution of J2EE natural to Sun is not underdogs, because at present most of the SOA applications are developed based on J2EE.
Microsoft is good at mobilizing people to appetite once again allow people to eagerly look forward to its long-Vista. The latest news, Vista going to be introduced early next year, but the reporter know, Microsoft Indigo to its integration into Vista, this will be the same as IE then integrated into Microsoft's free independent middleware vendors to combat the deadly knife? Indigo is Microsoft's SOA solutions on these issues, Microsoft is giving reporters the answer is: Microsoft is engaged in the global share of the software content into the software architecture to - that is put. NET, and so we will Indigo into. NET and WINFX in adhering to this idea is that there is no issue of who who wants to destroy.
At this point, Digital vice president and BEA Technical Director Xie Yun and Shi Lei, the Chinese manager of professional services allows us a lot easier, Xie Yun, said: "(Indigo integrated into Vista) should not be any threat. SOA is a be a very complex matter, Microsoft probably did not have that. "Benji said, SOA is not a simple matter, BEA will not be feeling threatened.
See the SOA market booming, many manufacturers have also jumped onto the integrated SOA wagon. In the U.S., even the one to name the company SOA SOA Software. The United States integrated with the name, perhaps just as active in the domestic Digital China, China United, Gao Yang, the record companies and other large Chinese integrated, as in the international arena is not well known, but I think SOA will give them new and additional opportunities. Xie Yun told reporters mentioned, our current application development are essentially based on the SOA approach, "optimistic that there will be a number of future production and application service components of the software company, integration vendor or user only need to buy components, will They assembled on it. "If there really is a day the software industry, especially software industry, you can go from the current popular workshops have great industrial age, which means the software industry to really take off come.
According to the United States to focus on software applications consulting firm Zapthink's report, the global SOA market size will be 4.4 billion in 2005 soared to 43 billion U.S. dollars in 2010, five years time, nearly 10 times of growth, Indeed, the gold hidden inside.
Who is the ideal state of the stumbling block leading to SOA?
The seeds sown in spring bloom does not necessarily mean the summer, fall, some results.
Rome was not built in a day, to achieve the ideal state of SOA also will not be smooth sailing. Skills, safety, standards, business model transformation, etc. will become the stumbling block leading to SOA utopia?
Focus of debate 1 - Skills
Shanghai COSCO computer center for troops Tao R & D can be regarded as the first taste of domestic SOA crab license, he told reporters: "SOA concept of good, but it needs to enrich and enrich it. And people's awareness of different , also requires a knowledge and practice of process. "
Digital China, Xie Yun, also agreed that SOA approaches and ideas, he and Ma Tao has a similar view, Xie Yun that SOA will go forward, but will be very slow, and we will probably get another to replace the concept of SOA, as SOA alternative to the industry have advocated the same component-based architecture.
During our visit, one of their previous concerns - developer skills, and Xie Yun Tao Ma did not seem a problem, they say, their own staff in addition to already have a lot of SOA development capabilities needed, but also has a strong technological learning. IBM Software Group, Marketing Director, spoke to reporters had left Hong, IBM already has more than 10 SOA development capabilities with a partner. SOA relative to the real domestic demand, such skills have sufficient reserves. BEA's Miss Shi Lei also said, technology is not the cost of reserves, the user is also very receptive to the concept of SOA, but the integration, after all, is not familiar with the face of the new structure, so that some of them to accept is the need to spend time together .
Focus of debate 2 - standard
When an industry to mature, when, what will become the lifeblood of industrial development constraints? Yes, is the standard. Standard is the lifeblood of SOA.
On standards, Xie Yun, then moments bubbling out: "software technology too fast, so that the original specification is almost useless. My analysis is essentially the software space is infinite, in free space, it is not bound, and therefore the software is very primitive mode of production. "he interesting to mention Road, the current mode of production software is the farmer's production methods, rather than cars, gear, tires and other parts of the specification is unified, so cars can into the industrial age. Software production is too arbitrary, difficult to form a standard, and software update too fast, just regulate the formation of new and emerging technologies letting technology based on the original specification had closed thank-you.
COSCO currently involved in a cooperation with IBM, the standard does not seem to encounter the confusion, but Ma Tao does not rule out future SOA projects will encounter different standards brought by the integration difficulties.
It's understanding, the current number of SOA standards is not yet ripe, some not even be called a true standard, only the draft of instructions. If today's SOA applications, based on the draft of this note, it can ensure the future of the official standards-based SOA applications with existing SOA applications compatible? If not compatible, SOA's greatest advantage - a seamless connection with previous applications will be meaningless. Some people even said so: only a fool would choose now to enter to the SOA.
But having said that, there are a considerable number of people remain optimistic that the standardization of SOA will soon enter the fast lane, immature standards will be vigorously promoted the rapid development of SOA vendors who make the trip, and many look different standards-based applications If were based on J2EE and. NET framework, you can also exchange SOA architecture.
Contention between the 3 - Safety
Security, the number of SOA experts to foreign concerns, did not seem how projected onto the Mainland have. COSCON Ma Tao said: "Our application is currently only limited to internal SOA, security, no problem." Digital China Xie Yun also said: "Internal No problem, we have implemented SOA systems are proprietary, If open to the outside, you need to consider safe. "SOA products in the field are always walking in front of BEA this time ran in the front, said Shi Lei, BEA is the SOA for telecommunications enterprises project came to security considerations, She believes that, SOA security will be a big issue.
From the hands of foreign journalists present situation, SOA security issues in the next few years will become the focus of attention. Both of which require the efforts of our technical staff, but also implies a great deal of business opportunities.
Focus of debate 4 - business model
A major advantage of SOA is to closely integrate business and IT so that IT has greater flexibility to adapt to business. This allows journalists had this idea: SOA will take up with ERP, CRM implementation like?
To address this issue, Xie Yun sermon, the current three-tier enterprise applications, primarily (display layer, business logic and database layers; also been divided into four-tier structure: access layer, Web tier, application tier and database tier). Layer and database layer show relatively stable mature relationship with the business is not strong, the major work of enterprise application development embodied in the business logic layer. SOA to solve the problem focused on this level and, therefore, determined the extent of its association with the business. Flood that left IBM, middleware development today, must provide a way to change according to business "on demand" technology, and SOA just to do this. It is at this point, SOA and ERP, CRM and other similar places that need to be a good business understanding and modeling.
In addition, a multi-year tracking middleware vendors told reporters the industry, ERP is basically a first take the operational framework, after the technology; SOA technical and business are difficult to completely separate, which requires technical personnel to understand business, and technology itself needs to continue to streamline, easy to use technology to business people. SOA simple design and close integration with the business to become a bridge between technology and business.
No matter how SOA concept is simple, how accessible, modular business applications or components of, or must do. On BEA's Miss Shi Lei told reporters: "Right now our biggest problem was not technical, but the application of the sort." Peking University in a recent "service computation of (Service Computing)" academic report at the meeting, a from the University of Wisconsin School of Business professor introduced him to aspects of SOA business modeling studies, shallow science reporter heard a little knowledge of his theories, but you will come from, SOA business modeling is a quite learning to do. For example, a large cut into small pieces how the system components (or services), which relates to SOA, the particle size of the problem. Particle size too large, will not achieve the role of SOA; particle size is too small, the system is too complicated.
COSCO's Ma Tao, spoke with reporters, COSCO implemented SOA integration project, including more than 40 services, is entirely their own independent design, because he believed that only they know best their business, and therefore only they themselves can best achieve good cutting operations.
Xie Yun in this area with confidence. He preached, Digital field of taxation in China, has 10 years of experience, their current development plan to the tax system is based on SOA architecture, but also by the application of segmentation of Digital China to help users to complete.
But Xie Yun also frankly stated that the current SOA is only the initial stage, it does not show the real benefits that only accumulated a certain number of SOA services, to see the value of SOA. Reporter, and only then, the service granularity can really see the outcome good or bad design.
One of the world are being leveled
Technology has never been isolated, SOA's has its historical inevitability, then it will be the future of IT in the world of what the far-reaching impact?
When we observe the technology development process, they often find some interesting phenomena. Economic, cultural, organizational, technical ... ... like tying ropes in a few bells, each bell will ring vibration caused a few other bells echo, the echo delay or long or short. Economic globalization, East-West cultural interpenetration, the flattening of organizational structure, technology integration and contingency ... ... While these represent different trends in the field, but you may find the previous mentioned four areas appear in a kind of degree, echoes.
Pulitzer Prize-winning New York Times columnist Thomas L. Friedman, in his visit to India's industrial park, the Indian information technology business, a CEO of his sermon: "The playing field is being leveled. (Arena is be tied.) "means the CEO of India and other developing countries are using IT technologies to narrow the gap between the developed countries, the West no longer represents the strength of the East no longer represents the weak, the global network eliminate the physical barriers so that the companies can take advantage of the world's most advanced technology to develop future technologies. It is thus distinguished Friedman Hua deduce "The world is flat. (This world into a flat.)" Conclusion, of course, his achievements in the socio-political class of the same name in 2005 bestseller "The world is flat".
Friedman's conclusions reveal to us out of this world, including economic, cultural, organizational, technical or ... ... what is what is leveled leveled.
This let's think of the industry in the two popular technologies: SOA and virtualization. Foreign Moujun virtualization in the blog will be extended to VOA (Virtualization Oriented Architecture) for virtualization solutions. SOA and VOA is a concern of different software, hardware, another concern; and the same is both concerned about the integration of resources utilization. They allow resources to a more reasonable manner throughout the computer network system, mobile, eat too much, the point of absorption to the hungry, they do not precisely a "leveling" of the action it? Reporter, as a "leveling" IT in the world one of the tools, SOA is not only a need to know the technical activities, it is a thinking activity. As Xie Yun said, to do SOA, but also the system architect has a far-sighted vision and foresight of the future world.
Interpretation SOA
Have a loosely coupled, highly distributed application architecture is not only a dream today, but the SOA is the first time allow people to have this dream at the same time get rid of the proprietary, complex and costly.
SOA's vision is, in the open standard system, all applications can be connected, transmission of information. New applications can be quickly connected to the existing SOA systems; and old applications can also be added to the new SOA architecture in. Like the computer in the system bus, all devices can be connected up to exchange data, SOA application seeks to allow all countries in the SOA ideal barrier to dialogue with each other. In specific implementations, SOA will be cut into small enterprise application modules, each module in the SOA application is considered as an ideal state services, business services can be combined as needed to complete a business needs.