Tuesday, July 15, 2008

Futile arguments about REST and Web Services

It's ongoing. It's not going to stop until the battle is over and Web Services inventors acknowledge their defeat and apologize to the WEB community at large for the damage they've done to the Web.

Many REST practitioners have stopped their campaigns a long time ago and moved on to implement the real specifications and applications - there's no point in trying to argue all the time. Atom and AtomPub, Microsoft Astoria and Google GData, Atom-based repositories and JAX-RS - a number of successful examples is growing. They speak and convince better than bitter arguments.

Likewise, many Web Services practitioners have just moved on with their work. There's no point to keep arguing non-stop.

Where camp do I belong to ? As it happens I didn't have a need to work practically with real Web Services for the most part of the last 2 years or so. Is it a strong enough reason for me to believe that Web Services have no real and practical use now that I know I can do an awful lot and more with plain REST ? I don't think so, not yet.

For the REST advocates who can't stop arguing : relax, REST is getting the momentum it deserves and sooner or later many developers will come to it - if it proves an ultimately better technology then it's just a matter of time. Just give people some time.

For the Web Service advocates who can't stop arguing : relax, Web Services have proved they can work - they can be overused like any other technology but they can deliver. And learn REST with open eyes and see what it can bring to you - don't ignore it.

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