Service Oriented Architecture: An Integration Blueprint Review

Service Oriented Architecture or SOA plays an integral role in many online business transactions. Developing an online application used to be a big challenge for businesses, web developers and programmers because they have to be built from the ground up. This type of development requires time and resources which could mean lost revenues and opportunities. Through SOA, developers will be able to build an application faster in order to cater to the demands of clients.

But the biggest advantage of Service Oriented Architecture is the ability to integrate certain functions “on the fly.” Instead of a complete revamp of the online application, developers simply plug-in the function. SOA has allowed developers to create websites that would allow implementation of different functions that can communicate with each other even though functions are gradually introduced online.

This book will try to tackle the basics of SOA by providing detailed instructions on what to look for when building an online application that supports SOA. It has a particular focus on Trivadis Integration Blueprint but it extensively discusses the general scenario for SOA. The challenges as well as precautions every developer has to consider before developing an application will be discussed in this book.

About the Authors

Guido Schmutz – with more than 20 years of experience in IT industry, Guido Schmutz has spent the latter part of his career working on SOA. Aside from working with different companies for software development and architecture, he has also written other books for PackT that focuses on software architecture.

Peter Welkenbach – a software developer who has worked with different business industries, Peter Welkenbach understands the business end of software development. He is a known evangelist for Java and related technologies in Europe. He is currently focused on software architecture for different industries.

Daniel Liebhart – a professor and an IT manager for businesses in various industries, Daniel Liebhart has used his 20 years of experience in the development of IT for enterprise use. He has also authored books related to the IT industry.

First Impression

Service Oriented Architecture: An Integration Blueprint is an average sized book from PackT. It comes with 240 pages and five main chapters that discuss different points in SOA. It might a bit challenging to the authors to limit their discussion to five chapters considering that it’s a broad subject, but their table contents provide something interesting for the readers. Various topics related to SOA are extensively discussed in the book and one chapter is even focused on something unique that only the authors can discuss.
The Chapters

Chapter 1: Basic Principles

The name of the chapter says it all – this chapter will provide the basics of SOA for software developers. The good thing about this book is that it doesn’t spend much on introductions with regards to history and philosophy of SOA. The book directly provides instructions on how to effectively use SOA in order to build an impressive online application. This is a very important chapter because it provides the groundwork on integration. Take note of the XTP or extreme transaction processing discussion as this generally answers question on how to deal with on site improvement with massive data transactions.

Chapter 2: Base Technologies

While the first chapter lays the foundation on how to work with SOA, this chapter deals with various tools and technologies for SOA. This chapter can actually be divided into two parts: the first part deals with the general types of technologies and what to get from each technology. The second part discusses each popular SOA related to the types of technologies discussed. This chapter practically provides the much needed “pros and cons” of each technology for SOA.

Chapter 3: Integration Architecture Blueprint

This chapter shows the authors experience with a specific learning tool for SOA. The integration architecture blueprint is simply a tool developers should use when building an application heavily based on SOA. The authors have extensive experience with an IT company called Trivadis and they extensively discuss the Trivadis’ method for SOA integration. This might look like a very specific discussion that might not be useful in other scenarios, but, the integration architecture blueprint can be implemented on any online software development.

Chapter 4: Implementation Scenarios

This chapter provides extensive information on how to use SOA in real world. The authors decided to discuss common situation for businesses who wanted to use SOA as part of software development. But aside from general SOA setting, they have also discussed different variations that might be encountered. Their ideas on data integration and on how to ensure smooth operations for XTP should not be missed as they show a practical solution on dealing with data intensive online applications. They have also discussed the Trivadis Architecture Blueprint and on how to take advantage of this method to easily implement SOA.

Chapter 5: Vendor Products for Implementing the Trivadis Blueprint

This chapter is very useful for developers that are interested in Trivadis Architecture Blueprint and its technologies. Each technology that can be used with this blueprint is extensively discussed and on how to take advantage of each technology. The most interesting part of this chapter is on taking advantage of Spring framework which is a very powerful and useful framework for developing online application. Along with Spring framework, the authors also discussed on using open source tools for SOA. Other technologies discussed are from IBM, Oracle and Microsoft.

Unique Focus on Trivadis Blueprint

Trivadis is not a popular name in the IT industry in North America but it is a leading IT company in Europe. They have offices in Germany, Austria and Switzerland and have worked with various companies in improving their IT department. The three authors decided to use what they know and used in Trivadis in order to show real world scenarios and problems combined with real world solutions through SOA. It’s a very specialized discussion on Trivadis but this can also be used in different settings in different industries that require extensive online services through SOA.

Explanation through Visuals

The most impressive feature of the book is on their extensive use of visuals in each chapter. While SOA can be easily explained through words, the authors made sure that their point is understood by adding visuals. The visuals are usually focused on how to integrate certain functions such as dealing with data and communication between functions. By using visuals, the authors have provided extensive explanation on how SOA work in real time especially when they are accessed by end users. The visuals can actually be considered as their “blueprint” in explaining how things should be done with SOA.

Book’s Intended Readers

This book is intended for software developers or anyone in the IT industry interested in Service Oriented Architecture. As the authors have focused on basics which is already familiar to experienced software developers, they have also discussed some scenarios that might be encountered based on current IT setting. This can be used as a reference book for those who are already experienced and a must for those who are learning SOA. Because the book caters to beginners to the experienced, Service Oriented Architecture: An Integration Blueprint is a highly recommended book. The book is a perfect primer for SOA with real world scenario.

This book is available for purchase at packtpub.com

Read Sample Chapter 3 Integration Architecture Blueprint