SOAP: Cross Platform Web Services Development Using XML [Paperback]

Scott Seely (Author), Kent Sharkey (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 17, 2001

SOAP will be the universal "application glue" for tomorrow's widely distributed systems. It's simple, based on widely deployed standards such as XML and HTTP, and will enable virtually any business software to communicate across the Internet. SOAP: Cross Platform Internet Development Using XML offers a practical, hands-on introduction to SOAP that demonstrates how to leverage this technology on multiple platforms, using virtually every leading programming language. Seely begins by reviewing the history of distributed computing, and demonstrating how SOAP solves distributed computing problems that DCOM and CORBA failed to solve. He presents basic introductions to XML, and then to SOAP's syntax -- including SOAP's use of HTTP headers, the SOAP payload, error handling, data types, encoding structures, and more. You'll walk through building a simple SOAP server for Windows; then discover how SOAP can be extended to support multiple platforms and programming languages. SOAP: Cross Platform Internet Development Using XML contains detailed chapters on utilizing SOAP with each of five leading programming languages: C++, Perl, Python, Visual Basic, and Java. The book concludes by reviewing today's leading SOAP servers. For all developers and system integrators constructing Internet applications, applications written in multiple programming languages, or applications that integrate diverse enterprise systems; and for any IT professional evaluating SOAP.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

Leverage the power of SOAP on any platform, with any leading programming language!

• Integrate your enterprise applications across the Web!
• The platform-independent guide to SOAP
• SOAP programming with C++, Perl, C#, Visual Basic, and Java
• Build an industrial-strength SOAP system from scratch
• CD-ROM: SOAP for Windows, Linux and Unix, plus extensive source code library!

Technical Reviewers:

Yves LaFon, Chair of the SOAP W3C Committee
John Montgomery, Lead SOAP Developer, Microsoft
Kent Sharkey, .NET Frameworks Technical Evangelist, Microsoft

SOAP is the universal "glue" that can integrate virtually any distributed system, helping enterprises streamline processes and communications across the Internet as never before. SOAP: Cross Platform Web Services Development Using XML is the practical, hands-on introduction to using SOAP on Windows, Linux, and UNIX platforms, using any of five leading programming languages. Discover how SOAP leverages key Internet standards such as XML and HTTP to solve distributed computing problems that DCOM and CORBA can't! Coverage includes:

• All the XML you need to get started with SOAP
• SOAP's basic syntax: HTTP headers, SOAP payloads, error handling, data types, encoding structures, and more
• Extending SOAP to support heterogeneous and legacy environments
• SOAP programming with C++, C#, Perl, Visual Basic, and Java
• Comparing today's leading SOAP servers

The last six chapters of this book present a start-to-finish SOAP case study application-from requirements and design through coding.

Whether you're constructing Internet applications, integrating existing applications within or between enterprises, or simply evaluating SOAP, this book contains the insights-and practical examples-you're looking for.

CD-ROM INCLUDED

The accompanying CD-ROM contains complete SOAP implementations for Windows, Linux, and UNIX, plus all source code from the book.

About the Author

SCOTT SEELY has written extensively on Windows and UNIX/Linux programming, as well as on C, C++, and Visual C++, and he has recently joined Microsoft. He is author of Windows Shell Programming (Prentice Hall PTR).

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 416 pages
• Publisher: Pearson Education (August 17, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0130907634
• ISBN-13: 978-0130907639
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.9 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #179,358 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #1 in Books > Computers & Technology > Programming > Cross-platform Development
  • #34 in Books > Computers & Technology > Programming > Languages & Tools > XML

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Cross platform makes sense, November 14, 2001

By 

Tom Wiekowski (Eau Claire, Wisconsin) - See all my reviews

This review is from: SOAP: Cross Platform Web Services Development Using XML (Paperback)

My boss wanted me to show him that something complex could be done using XML Web Services. I took about a day and a half to setup the case study from this book (case study is an auction web site that has a Linux box talking to Windows servers running both the SOAP toolkit and VS .NET Beta 2). He and his boss were amazed that something like that could be put together using XML. As an added bonus, the explanations of SOAP, WSDL, and the rest made it easy for me to explain what was going on under the covers.

Scott has some great stuff on MSDN as well. To get a feeling for his writing style, just look for his name there.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Good book/not for beginning programmers, February 14, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: SOAP: Cross Platform Web Services Development Using XML (Paperback)

This is a really good book and I learned a lot from it. After reading some of the reviews, I noticed that people seem to run hot and cold on this book. Since I loved it, I thought I could put in this word of warning: make sure you have done some actual development before grabbing this book. Scott assumes that you understand how to write code and glosses over a lot of that stuff. He does assume you know nothing about XML or SOAP and does an excellent job bringing the reader up to speed.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Web Services coverage!, January 12, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: SOAP: Cross Platform Web Services Development Using XML (Paperback)

I've read the other positive reviews on this topic and they already say quite a bit about the book-- explains SOAP well, good XML primer, yadda yadda yadda. I learned quite a bit from this book. The thing this guy does that many authors don't do is he explains all the basics (fairly common) and then shows how everythiing works across C#, VB 6, and Java on *nix and Windows. Most authors cop out and stick with only Linux or only Windows. None of the books I've seen build an example that crosses the bridge.

Before buying this title, I highly recommend that you check out the At Your Service column on MSDN. Scott's a co-author on that column. If you like the writing style in his columns, you'll love the book. For more in depth writing, consider searching for his name and look for more articles. That's what I did.