The term service can mean many things - but for the purposes of developing the e-Framework, it is used in the sense of a technical service that promotes interoperability between systems. For the e-Framework this term is always used in conjunction with other terms to define the core technical components used within the e-Framework:
The e-Framework has developed a model which describes the relationships between these core concepts.
The e-Framework builds on a number of technical trends associated with the development of web-based infrastructure:
- In the 1990's the development of service-oriented approaches (soa) to the integration of disparate systems and specifications. Examples include DCOM, CORBA, and Java RMI.
- The more recent emergence of Service-Oriented Architectures (SOA) as a means of describing or representing collections of services that need to operate together based upon clearly defined business requirements.
- The emergence of Web Services as a means to enable Web-based applications to interact with each other using the basic communication protocols of the Web based upon open standards such as HTTP and XML. Examples include SOAP, UDDI, and WSDL.
In the e-Framework, emphasis is given to a service-oriented approach that identifies, documents, and makes available resources to help an institution 'service-enable' its IT infrastructure. The e-Framework does not mandate the use of Web Services. Other technical approaches are permitted where appropriate (e.g., where existing standards are already in use (such as LDAP or Z39.50), or where Web Services (SOAP or REST) do not yet meet performance or functional requirements such as for streaming large data sets or for secure transactions). The aim is to promote an iterative process rather than advocate the design and implementation of a complete Service Oriented Architecture.
Last updated 30 January 2008