Designing a Web service that delights your customers
Customer-Focused Web Service Design: This free Intel article will discuss a real-world example of a web services design process. If you are serious about learning about Web Services, read this article now.

by Michael Perry, president and consultant, Mallard Software Designs Inc. Intel Corp.

This article begins a six-month journey during which we will develop a customer relations Web services solution that can be offered as a service to business clients. Our plan is to host the application on the Web and charge clients a regular fee for its use. We will not position this service as a business-to-business solution, because it is to be used only within a company. The success of our service offering does not depend upon companies changing their business models. Instead, the service will support the existing business model of a client company. Let's take a look at the current business environment and how we got here.

How we got here
The World Wide Web is a set of technologies charming in their simplicity and inspiring in their potential. It was born of academic necessity, but piqued the interest of software moguls, venture capitalists, and entrepreneurs. It created a frenzy of activity, if not a great deal of value, during the last half of the 1990s. The invention of the browser made the Internet easy. Before HTTP, users of the Internet had to memorize a set of arcane keystrokes to access email, FTP, Gopher, and Telnet. The Web browser presented the casual user with a simple point-and-click interface to linked documents. Even though the browser was less powerful than the other Internet clients, it broke down the barriers between people and information. Because it was so easy to browse from one site to the next, users experienced no friction.

If you're interested in this topic, these articles may be helpful:

Why is SOA taking so long?
by Jason Bloomberg, senior analyst, ZapThink LLC ...
Wireless application security: what's up with that?
from Intel Corp. The world of mobile data presents many uniqu...
How the Network Becomes Your Beeline to Customers
The network has forever changed the landscape in which services are de...
Customer service v. customer screw up
I bought a G5 at the SouthPark (really) Apple store a couple of days b...
Web services: the powerful tenets of SOA
by Jason Bloomberg and Ron Schmelzer, senior analysts, ZapThink LLC ...

Related Jobs:

Lead Software Development Engineer #151682 - WA - Redmond - Microsoft Corporation
Do you like working with compilers, networking and distributed computi...
Information Technology Specialist 5 - WA - Tumwater - Washington State Department of Labor and Industries
Division: Information Services, Data Management Location: ...
Software Development Engineer #146658 - WA - Redmond - Microsoft Corporation
Can YOU make Web Services work for enterprise customers? The XML Enter...
Middleware Software Engineer (Adapter) #2296 - NC - Charlotte - S1 Corporation
Job Description: S1 Corporation Job Description Job Title...
Security Technologist #769 - TX - Houston - RCG Information Technology
Description: All applicants must have a minimum of 3 years IT Industry...
Earthlink Operations Center Technician #3230 - GA - Atlanta - EarthLink, Inc.
Earthlink Operations Center Technician posted 10/19/05 Requ...
.Net Developer and .Net Architect #2516656 - TX - Houston - Ajilon
Description : If you're an IT professional looking for exciting, new...
Ethical / Professional Hacker - CA - Napa - ScanAlert
Do you have a passion for security? Are you seeking an opportunity whe...
Network Operations Center Engineer #06-548-000034 - GA - Atlanta - EarthLink, Inc.
Network Operations Center Engineer 06-548-000034 posted 01/19/06 ...
Sr.SW Eng (Mid-Tier Server) #059298 - TX - Houston - Symantec Corporation
Job Requisition # : 059298 Job Title : Sr.SW Eng (Mid-Tier Server) ...