A Rush and a Push and Visual Studio.NET Is Here |
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By Tyler McDaniel, Director
19 Mar 2002 | Hurwitz Group, special to searchWebServices |
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Market Commentary
A Rush and a Push and Visual Studio.NET Is Here
The software world has been waiting since the first rumblings of C# and .NET began to ripple out from Redmond to see how Microsoft would change the world with its Web Services ideas. The delivery of the .NET family of enterprise servers and of the latest version of Windows have been steps along the way that have sketched out the emerging .NET architecture to the disciples, pundits, and competitors who have been wondering and postulating what .NET is or isn't. Naturally, while all this has been swirling in the background and on the front page, other software vendors have delivered Web Services development support and accompanying visions of architecture and interoperability. But perhaps the real issues of Web Services will now be able to be fully sorted out as Microsoft has delivered its reigning champion of development.
February 13, 2002. Microsoft gives the green light to Visual Studio.NET, its newest development environment positioned to populate the rising .NET architecture with hordes of Web Services.
In a Microsoft world, if the .NET servers are the bones, then Visual Studio.NET is how developers will put meat on those bones. In other words, now we have something to chew on. New Web Services development is still a nascent idea, but an idea that enterprise developers are prepared to traverse.
THE HURWITZ TAKE: What the release of Visual Studio.NET has stimulated is indeed a trend. Across the provider landscape this week have been announcements of support for VS.NET from those that want to be the next generation of Web Services platform providers. These platform providers are positioning to be the place for Web Services made with VS.NET or with any other Web Services development environment work with existing application assets.
One of the things that this means is that as we push deeper into the world of Web Services, we can more tightly couple integration with development early in the life cycle of applications. At Microsoft this is recognized through the ability of BizTalk Server to utilize Visual Studio.NET objects and combine them in process-oriented fashion with other application assets. Instead of having to wade through the complexity of integration after applications are deployed and have been running, enterprises can begin executing on integration strategy alongside development and deployment. This is one of the theories of Web Services now beginning to meet reality.
In the bigger picture, the industry can stop wondering about "what if" questions regarding Microsoft's Web Services strategy. Now the industry can more comprehensively understand substantive questions about how developers are using Web Services, what their ongoing needs are, and what complications arise from the use. One thing is for sure, because of the flexibility of Web Services, enterprises will have a lot of business choices to make as they mature and grow their efforts.
Copyright 2002 Hurwitz Group Inc. This article is excerpted from TrendWatch, a weekly publication of Hurwitz Group Inc. - an analyst, research, and consulting firm. To register for a free email subscription, click here.
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