RE: [soa-rm] What Is A "Metaservice"?

["Matt MacKenzie" <mattm@adobe.com>]

A random (...well, not really) though here.  Instead of metaservice, why
not think in terms of a pattern we all know and love (or should...)

I read one of Wes' posts about managing multi-lingual /
multi-jurisdiction services.  How we often deal with this kind of thing
in the object oriented world is via the factory pattern.

Consider the following pseudo code...

Class AddressChangeServiceFactory {
  AddressChangeService getAddressChangeService("locale",
"jurisdiction");
}

Class QuebecFrancaisAddressChangeService {
	locale = "ca_FR";
	juris = "quebec";
	...
}

This kind of thing could translate into web services, for example, in a
couple of ways...

1. Proxy.  The factory service could serve as a proxy, observing in
headers (HTTP or SOAP) what locale and jurisdiction is being requested,
and forward the request onto the proper handler service.

2. UDDI.  The service could be selected at bind-time.  A symbolic
service named AddressChangeService is registered as a category, with
regional services categorized beneath it.

3. A servlet that feeds out wsdl reads the HTTP query string...
http://wsdl.ccra.gc.ca/addressChange.wsdl?locale=ca_FR&juris=qc


-matt

-----Original Message-----
From: Bashioum, Christopher D [mailto:cbashioum@mitre.org] 
Sent: Monday, February 13, 2006 11:31 AM
To: Chiusano Joseph; soa-rm@lists.oasis-open.org
Subject: RE: [soa-rm] What Is A "Metaservice"?

Is that like "super-size that service please"?  ; )

I guess a more pertinent question for the RA is: would distinguishing
between an atomic service and a "meta-service" (or super service, etc)
be helpful in the RA?

-----Original Message-----
From: Chiusano Joseph [mailto:chiusano_joseph@bah.com] 
Sent: Monday, February 13, 2006 11:09 AM
To: soa-rm@lists.oasis-open.org
Subject: RE: [soa-rm] What Is A "Metaservice"?

> That being said, Joe's original comment to the SOA-RM list 
> about a metaservice being a "service about services" would 
> also have another name, depending on what it did.  E.g., an 
> aggregation service, an orchestration service, etc.  To call 
> it a metaservice doesn't really describe what it does.  

Super-service? (just throwing it into the ring)

Kind Regards,
Joseph Chiusano
Associate
Booz Allen Hamilton
 
700 13th St. NW, Suite 1100
Washington, DC 20005
O: 202-508-6514  
C: 202-251-0731
Visit us online@ http://www.boozallen.com
 

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Bashioum, Christopher D [mailto:cbashioum@mitre.org] 
> Sent: Monday, February 13, 2006 11:00 AM
> To: Rex Brooks; McGregor.Wesley@tbs-sct.gc.ca; 
> soa-rm@lists.oasis-open.org
> Subject: RE: [soa-rm] What Is A "Metaservice"?
> 
> I just now read the actual blog, and I think Dave L. is 
> right-on with regard to the overall intent of better 
> describing services in a consistent way.  In fact, I've been 
> working on such a meta-description for services for the DoD 
> for a number of months now.  My problem is with the term.  I 
> made the following post to his blog
> 
> <Post>
> Agree with the article, but not the term metaservice.  We are 
> using the term "service definition framework" for the added 
> information used to describe the services.  
> 
> I would submit that most of this additional information 
> should exist within the WSDL framework, most of it in the 
> abstract portion.  In WSDL-2.0, it would generally be 
> children of the Interface element.
> 
> My problem with the term "metaservice" is that it sounds more 
> like a type of service (like a stock quote service, or a 
> weather service).  It does not communicate what you are 
> looking for.  A better term might be meta-description, or a 
> meta-interface, or something like that </Post>
> 
> That being said, Joe's original comment to the SOA-RM list 
> about a metaservice being a "service about services" would 
> also have another name, depending on what it did.  E.g., an 
> aggregation service, an orchestration service, etc.  To call 
> it a metaservice doesn't really describe what it does.  On 
> the other hand, any service that uses other services may be a 
> "type" or "class" of service that uses other services.  In 
> which case a service that is itself an aggregation of other 
> 'lower-level' services would be a metaservice.  This might be 
> helpful in distinguishing between atomic services and metaservices. 
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Rex Brooks [mailto:rexb@starbourne.com]
> Sent: Monday, February 13, 2006 10:39 AM
> To: McGregor.Wesley@tbs-sct.gc.ca; soa-rm@lists.oasis-open.org
> Subject: RE: [soa-rm] What Is A "Metaservice"?
> 
> Good point Wes,
> 
> Would it make an errata? Just to pre-empt the obvious.
> 
> Regards,
> Rex
> 
> P.S. What would the equivalent be in a bus or a fabric? Can I 
> build a server for it? Does it do Windows?
> 
> At 9:57 AM -0500 2/13/06, <McGregor.Wesley@tbs-sct.gc.ca> wrote:
> >Hi Joe,
> >
> >The definition of "meta-service" would be dependent on the 
> context in 
> >which it is used IMHO.
> >
> >I would note however that some company will define it soon, 
> publish it, 
> >and that definition (even if erroneous) may be THE definition.
> >
> >To simply ignore the inevitable is to put our heads in the sand.
> >
> >A service about services seems logically equivalent to data about
> data.
> >
> >Do we need to say more?
> >
> >Regards,
> >
> >Wes
> 
> 
> --
> Rex Brooks
> President, CEO
> Starbourne Communications Design
> GeoAddress: 1361-A Addison
> Berkeley, CA 94702
> Tel: 510-849-2309
>