WebMethods: B2B Trading Networks
December 20, 1999
Virginia-based webMethods began developing support for XML in February 1997.
Their Web Interface Definition Language (WIDL)
submission to W3C was a very interesting and forward-thinking use of XML.
With 120 companies as customers, webMethods addresses business-to-business integration.
Their focus is application to application protocols, cross enterprise, cross firewall products,
not delivery of content to browsers/clients.
An example is use by Dell.com,
discussed elsewhere in this conference report.
A great quote that I believe is attributed to the speaker who substituted for Charles Allen, is:
All life forms are carbon based. All applications will be XML based.
B2B integration is a distinct discipline, fundamentally different from EAI (Enterprise Application Integration).
There are four areas of B2B standards:
- EDI mappings to DTDs
- message encoding
- transactional model
- "discovery process" for services
There are many cross industry standardization efforts, such as
DISA,
ICE,
OAG,
OBI,
OMG,
XML.org,
BizTalk, etc.
In an October 1999
press release,
webMethods announced Dell's use of their B2B server:
Dell Computer Corporation (Nasdaq: DELL), the world's leading direct computer
systems vendor, will use webMethods B2Btm to provide the backbone
e-procurement transaction integration system for Dell's B2B Direct initiative.
See also the related
Dell/webMethods success story.
webMethods has defined a flow language which is a mapping of
content types like EDI, rather than something to do with workflow.
I haven't been able to find a link on their Web site, however.
The speaker maintained that neither the DOM or SAX
is appropriate for high volume, server side traffic.
Just as early uses of Java client side have shifted to server side,
he predicted that XML applications will be more server side.
(However, it seems to this writer that as browsers become more XML/XSL/DOM capable,
there will be a counter trend toward client-side XML applications.)
SAP has purchased
B2B servers
from webMethods and provides them to their customers.
MySAP.com portals use the B2B server, for example.
Although SAP to SAP translations are easy, SAP to other
ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning)
requires dynamic lookup using flows.
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