About

How We Put The Book Together

Since the SOA agenda covers a variety of different topics, no single person is authoritative across this wide spectrum. The approach, therefore, was to maximize the contributions of the book by leveraging the experience of different experts in each specific topic. Also, we went beyond those who create the basic standards and assembled a group of writers who understand the standards, the theory behind the leading technologies and products, and the issues with implementations. As a result, the book is stronger than if any one person were to author it.

Given the importance of the writers and their busy schedules, we did not attempt a group writing effort. Instead, we put together a ’compendium’ of information, with each chapter standing alone. As such, there are minor differences of opinion that can be found in the book. Hopefully, this makes the book richer, and doesn’t introduce confusion. You will find that in many areas there is no absolute answer to the questions. The different perspectives and focuses contained within are very much in alignment, but on some topics we felt that the reader is better served by exposure to differing points of view. In the final analysis, the more complex the issue, the more the reader will have to interpret and adapt the input here to their specific situation.

There is no such thing as an "SOA cookbook".

How To Study The Book

Each chapter deals with a major topic that is important to your SOA implementation. Some effort has been expended to introduce topics in the general order that you need to understand them. However, each chapter is independent, so you can use the book as a general reference, and read each chapter as your interest turns to that topic. Therefore, the book is not a novel with a continuous story line that runs between the chapters. It is more of a reference guide. The many recommendations in the book are put forward for your consideration.

Much more is learned by actually ‘doing’ than by reading books (including this one). One of our biggest challenges therefore was to keep the book short. There’s a lot more that could be said. But practicality was a top goal, so brevity was prioritized. In fact, even if you don’t read the book, take a look at the key recommendations on the first page of each chapter, which are also summarized in the conclusion. Every attempt has been made to get to the most important points as soon as possible.

The contents of this book are the result of years of experience by experts. To achieve the goal of being succinct, much of the background has been omitted. As you gain your own experience with SOAs you will better understand the recommendations herein. It is hoped that this book can be a frequent reference, as well as an initial tutorial.

What’s Not In The Book

A book such as this needs to be tightly focused and not too long. As such, there are topics that are beyond the reach of our efforts here. We have oriented our writing toward those that are starting their SOA efforts to help them overcome the initial learning curve. There is not enough space to deal with several of the advanced topics. If you move beyond the level of this book and become frustrated by its incompleteness, while frustrating to you, it would signify success of a sort for the authors. Should you find yourself in such a state, you now know where to find us to get more help.

As you build your SOA system, it will enable and support a wide variety of uses and application types. As tempting as it is, we have avoided expanding into the ‘application arena’. You may, for example, be interested in providing readable information to users through portals, collating and calculating information in a business intelligence (BI) report, propagating and synchronizing information between systems through application integration (EAI), or automating a set of business tasks through business process management (BPM). All of these areas (and others) will find your SOA infrastructure enormously enabling. Unfortunately, dealing with these topics alone would constitute a complete book in its own right. We have therefore had to set aside these topics for another time and place.

Despite its limitations, this book not only provides a significant amount of factual information, but conveys principals and methodology. If you maintain the discipline described herein, you can go far beyond what we have written and create your own chapters as extensions to ours.

Conclusion

No one thinks it all through at once. No one puts all of the pieces in place perfectly. But once on the right path, it is more straightforward than it first seems, and additional pieces fall into place logically. Don’t let anyone overwhelm you by trying to teach you everything at once. Do as much as you can digest, learn from it, and then add to it. Regardless of the distance you travel, you will have accomplished a lot. Mostly though, you will have instantiated a system that others can extend. The days of calcified IT systems are numbered.

Whether you are planning a major overhaul of your large scale IT system, or you want to create a few services using the new standards, a couple of hours of study and preparation may help avoid common pitfalls and propel you toward success. If so, then our efforts here will be rewarded.