The Meta Group`s Metamorphosis conference at Caesars Gauteng in Kempton Park today focused on a 10-year roadmap for Web services (or dynamically interacting Web applications).
The research and consulting house foresees the first coming to fruition of this open vision of application provisioning within two years, with SA "starting to get there with large integration projects", according to Johan Jacobs, CRM practice leader, Meta Group SA.
Web services technology uses open standards like XML (extensible markup language) and SOAP (simple object access protocol, a message-based protocol based on XML for accessing Web services).
Says Barry Wilderman, senior VP and director, technology research services: "Since this makes for a fundamental change in application architecture, it might mean there is no further need for middleware adapters."
Middleware enables integration of disparate systems, and makes up another item looming large on customers` enterprise IT agenda over the next few years.
What immediately stands in the way of more widespread Web services acceptance, which otherwise is a certain feature on the IT landscape, are security standards and business process integration issues. "This should be resolved within two years or so," says Wilderman.
Using the Web effectively
Web services represent a vision of the Web as a mature medium which could be used not merely to inform or even transact, but to provision enterprise applications as Web services, instantaneously or near-instantaneously.
The end-vision is one of going beyond hardware- or software-dominated computing, defined by business virtualisation, where business is characterised by increasingly dynamic supply, production and distribution networks.
The "extensible Web" represents a view of the Web wherein its protocols and formats are generalised by XML. XML provides the value of interoperable XML networks over "object" software platforms, Wilderman continues.
"The extensible Web integrates and unifies content, applications and process across platforms. Just as one standard format in shipping containers acted as an industry-spanning phenomenon, making international shipping possible, so will the extensible Web span networks of all types and make Web services available."
By 2005, application integration will be achieved, with standards like those mentioned above. By 2006, databases will be universally available through standards like Xquery, application composition will be reality by 2007, causing workflow convergence and major refactoring of development environments like .Net and J2EE, which support these standards natively. User interaction will happen by 2006.
Off all the vendors supporting the drive, IBM has the clearest business vision of on-demand computing, with XML as a sub-set, the most experience with complex systems and the simplest IT vision, says Wilderman.
Microsoft has a tendency to offer proprietary technology in an increasingly open world, says Meta, but does embrace the SME market and commoditisation, Sun has Java brand equity but poor Web services strategy execution, and HP lacks middleware focus, but has a strong infrastructure management component.
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