XML: Java 1.3 Automates SOAP Calls

Automate SOAP Calls in Java with the Proxy Pattern: Learn how to leverage the power of SOAP and the proxy pattern to develop scalable applications by Henry Bequet. JavaPro Journal, Jan 2002.

SOAP is the standard for web services interfaces. Java 1.3 automates it. Need I say more?

Bequet summarizes:
"When you're programming an application in which remote computers need to exchange objects over the Web—for example, an n-tier application in which the client sends requests to the server over HTTP—you have a choice of approaches. A prime candidate for the content of the requests is XML. However, generating and parsing the XML, both on the client and on the server, can be tedious and error prone. An alternative is to use remote method invocation (RMI). But RMI has its own drawbacks—it forces all callers to be Java compliant, and it compromises scalability by requiring a "live" remote object. A better solution for this type of situation is the Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP). SOAP is a powerful tool that can solve communication problems between remote computers."