Cloud Computing Chapter 11
Cloud Computing Chapter 11
Learning Objectives
Define and describe SOA. Compare and contrast the roles of web services and web pages. List common examples of web services. Discuss the benefits of treating a web service as a black box. Discuss governance challenges in using web services. Discuss the role of the Web Service Description Language (WSDL) to describe a web service and its methods.
Coupling
Describes the degree of dependence between a calling program and the web service. Ideally, to use a web service, a program only needs to know the location of the web service (its URL), the name of the functions (methods) the web service provides, and parameters the program can pass to the functions. In this way, programs and web services are said to be loosely coupled.
Coupling Continued
Because of a programs loosely coupled relationship to a web service, it is possible for a developer to update a web service with a newer version (perhaps a faster version) and for programs that use the service to use the new version immediately without requiring any modifications.
WSDL Continued
Behind the scenes, the web service uses a Web Service Description Language (WSDL) file to describe the web service and its methods. Programs that use the web service will use the WSDL file to determine the available functions, parameter types, and more.
Key Terms
Chapter Review
1. Define software architecture. 2. Define and describe SOA. 3. Compare and contrast a web page and a web service. 4. Search the Web for companies that offer web services and then describe three to five web services that programmers might integrate into the applications they create. 5. Discuss what it means for a web service to be interoperable.