Latest News from Eric Newcomer

How To Allow Services to Talk with Each Other Across Multiple JVMs

Mon, 04 Aug 2008 09:30:00 EDT

The goal of distributed OSGi is to extend the OSGi framework for distributed computing capabilities by configuring an existing distributed computing software system (such as Web services, CORBA, or Eclipse ECF) behind an OSGi service. The demo showed a Web services solution using Apache CXF as the distribution software, but the design should work with any distributed computing system.

SOA World - Abstraction and Control in REST vs RPC

Mon, 28 Jul 2008 08:15:00 EDT

One of the biggest debates in the software industry is about getting the level of abstraction right. By this I mean a level of interaction with computers higher than binary code or machine language - in other words, anything that presents humans with a more natural or intuitive abstraction of a CPU's instruction set and binary data storage format.

SOA World - More on the Software Assembly Question

Thu, 12 Jun 2008 15:00:00 EDT

One aspect of the debate over software productivity and assembly is whether or not visual tools can help. I think that they do - visual abstractions can be very meaningful - but I do not know of any visual system that actually solves the complete problem (i.e none have solved the customization/round trip problem). UML tools are furthermore too object oriented for some applications - such as services and REST.

SOA Viewpoint: Have We Got It All Backwards with Software Assembly?

Mon, 19 May 2008 13:45:00 EDT

Back in the 90s I was on a big project to standardize enterprise software. We wrote a few papers about it, and a chapter in a book. We often used the 'Henry Ford' analogy, which relates to the impact standards for interchangeable parts had on hard goods manufacturing. The Henry Ford analogy says that the hard job in mass assembly is getting the interchangeable parts standardized - thereafter creating the moving assembly line is the easy job.

SOA Web Services Journal: SCA Update

Thu, 03 Aug 2006 09:00:00 EDT

This week the new SCA website went live and in addition to an update on the work we've completed since we kicked it off in January, we announced new partners, including Cape Clear, Interface21, Primeton Technologies, Progress Software (formerly Sonic Software), Red Hat, Rogue Wave Software, Software AG, Sun Microsystems and Tibco Software.

Thinking in Services: Why Successful SOA Requires a New Way of Thinking

Mon, 05 Jun 2006 10:00:00 EDT

Eric Newcomer's SOA Blog: This Year's JavaOne Announcement?

Mon, 08 May 2006 10:30:00 EDT

Sun has been regularly and consistently challenged to make Java more relevant (e.g. to XML and Web services) and more open (i.e. release control of the JCP and/or open source Java) but so far what we have seen amount to half measures at best.

Eric Newcomer's SOA Blog: "Two Years Before the Blog - Comments/Pings Off"

Sun, 16 Apr 2006 02:00:00 EDT

I started blogging about two years ago with this entry, which was typed during the initial WS-CAF face to face meeting. This might give you some idea of what attending these type of committee meetings is like. Everyone around the room with laptops out, surfing the Web, checking e-mail, or sometimes even paying attention to the discussion at hand, especially when it turns to something of interest.

Eric Newcomer's SOA Blog: A Great Definition of "Software Architecture"

Mon, 27 Mar 2006 06:30:00 EST

During a conversation over dinner with SOA Web Services Edge speaker and SOA Web Services Journal author, Eric Newcomer, Microsoft MVP Beth Massi defined software architecture in a way that resonated strongly with Newcomer. Here he shares it with readers of his blog.

"Thinking in Services": Why Successful SOA Requires a New Way of Thinking

Sun, 05 Feb 2006 11:00:00 EST

SOA is all about an approach to IT - a design encompassing all IT assets, and the design has to be mapped to technology. Historically, companies used CORBA or messaging systems such as WebSphere MQ to implement their SOA designs. Today, the preferred SOA infrastructure software is Web services based, including ESBs. This presentation will help attendees begin thinking in services, leading to more successful SOA deployments. One of the most important parts of an SOA project is the change in thinking it represents. To generate the most strategic benefit from SOA, companies need to think about their IT departments as corporate assets, not simply as implementers of individual application solutions. The trend toward wider adoption of SOA is in large part due to the fact that SOA encourages companies to think this way.

Eric Newcomer's SOA Blog: RPC vs Doc Literal

Fri, 09 Dec 2005 19:15:00 EST

One example I use to illustrate the difference is one that I learned during those long XML Value conference calls and meetings. One of the XML folks from IBM used the analogy of HTML frames to illustrate the point about processing only what you understand of the data (or message). Today frames are pretty much taken for granted, but five years ago it was easy to remember when some versions of browsers didn't support them. But those browsers still displayed the HTML that they could understand, ignoring the frames since that was part of a newer version of HTML that they didn't understand.

Eric Newcomer's SOA Blog: SYS-CON.TV SOA Panel Out

Tue, 06 Dec 2005 14:15:00 EST

An easy blog entry to write. The SOA 'Power Panel' article and video are up on the SYS-CON site. If you get a chance to watch, let me know what you think, both of the content and the form.

The Integration Challenge

Tue, 21 Jun 2005 13:00:00 EDT

In the early days of business computing, little attention was paid to the concept of sharing application logic and data across multiple machines. The big question faced by an organization was how to develop computer systems to successfully automate previously manual operations such as billing, accounting, payroll, and order management. Solving any one of these individual problems was challenging enough, without considering the possibility of basing all of a company's systems on a common, reusable architecture.

WS Track - So You Want An SOA?

Wed, 15 Dec 2004 00:00:00 EST

Replacing complex, monolithic applications with nimble applications built from exposed services promises increased developer productivity, greater flexibility, and ultimately reduced cost.

So You Want An SOA with Web Services

Wed, 13 Oct 2004 00:00:00 EDT

There is no question that service-oriented architecture (SOA) is quickly becoming one of the hottest trends in enterprise computing. IT departments are inundated weekly, if not daily, with the claims and marketing messages of vendors announcing myriad technology and service offerings that will magically transform the way business gets done.

Keynote Panel: Asynchronous Web Services: Unlocking the Promise of Mobile Productivity

Tue, 24 Feb 2004 00:00:00 EST

Learn how to take advantage of the proliferation of mobile and wireless devices, in this insightful panel discussion.

WS-CAF: Standardized Web Services Transactions and Composite Applications

Tue, 24 Feb 2004 00:00:00 EST

Who better to explain about the Web Services Composite Application Framework - a collection of three specs designed to solve problems that arise when multiple Web services are used in combination - than Eric Newcomer, co-author of WS-CAF?

Can Software Cross the Standards Divide?

Thu, 27 Feb 2003 00:00:00 EST

No standards movement in the history of the software industry has garnered as much attention or support as Web services. After the previous decade's failed attempts to reach unity, the industry has lauded the promise of more flexible, open, and interoperable software as a revolution and a breath of fresh air.

Web Services Edge 2002 East Keynote Eric Newcomer, CTO, IONA, Cites Data Independence as Prime Benefit of Web Services; Security

Sat, 01 Jan 2000 00:00:00 EST

(May 17, 2002) - WSJ recently caught up with Eric Newcomer, chief technology officer of IONA, and spent a few moments discussing trends in the industry. A member of the XML Protocols and Web Services Architecture working groups at the W3C, Eric is a respected industry expert, and will be one of the featured Keynote speakers at the Web Services Edge 2002 East conference, June 24-27, at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center in NYC.