When you think of a web service, you need to think small.  This is not a killer application in and of it self.  What it is, is a small piece of the larger software solution.  Think about things like getting an account balance, or sending an order request to a vendor.  That’s it, that’s about the actual scope of a web service.

Web services are all about leveraging existing protocols and playing well with commonly existing standards.  I know that can be a bit of a stretch for you anti-MS readers in the crowd.  But it’s true.  Web services  work well with UDDI, SOAP, WSDL and HTTP.  These protocols all exist to facilitate communication between applications.  HTTP (Hypertext Transfer PRotocol), XML (eXtensible Markup Language), SOAP (Simple Object Access Protocol), WSDL (Web Services Description Language),  and UDDI (Universal Description, Discovery and Integration) can all be communicated with using .NET web services.

The nice thing about web services, is their agnostic approach to different operating systems.  Meaning, basically that they don’t really care if there talking to Unix, Linus, Windows or MVS.  Because they communicate using the above mentioned communication protocols they allow for different machines using different operating systems to speak with one another.

The advantages of Web Services should be obvious to just about anyone.  Communication is the biggest hurdle to overcome between computers and machines, and web services tackles that solution first and foremost.  Because of the size of the services, it makes deployment and development inexpensive and quick.  Patches and new features can be implement in a timely and effective manner.  Plus, once a service is developed for one application, it can be shared across multiple machines, platforms, and applications.

An important concept behind the implementation of .NET is standardization.  One of the most important aspects of any web application, is their ability to communicate with other web applications.  Flexibility and interoperability are essential on the internet, and in demand by savvy software users.  Standards like XML, SOAP, and UDDI help facilitate this, and it’s essential that .NET work with those standards to make communication seamless between them all.

Going mobile with our computers in the for of smartphones, cell phones, and handheld gaming presents an interesting dilemma to software retailers and developers.  Where should the information used by these devices be used, and how many places should it be stored.  Not to mention, how will it be stored, and later accessed.  .NET address many of these questions, and provides solution through  databases like SQL Server, NTFS and other services.

If there’s one thing that the internet has taught software solution providers, it’s to deliver updates rapidly and frequently.  We like to know that our software is the latest version available, without of course dealing with buggy software.  .NET allows for rapid delivery of application upgrading, on whatever platform the software needs to run.  That includes mobile devices, as well as desktop based workstations.

Apart from green technologies, identity theft has to be one of the major touch points when it comes to technology.  Being mobile and dynamic in our use of technology is great but it also opens up a lot of avenues for the unscrupulous to enter.  Tougher authentication services are key to a successful .NET application.  Not so much that we inconvenience the valid user, but to the point that they feel comfortable trusting their personal date to the applications.

Communication is certainly key to some of the biggest and most successful applications out there.  Often known as killer apps.  The first of those being obviously eMail.  Who would have predicted at the beginning of the internet boom, that something as simple and plain as eMail would be the most widely used application online.  That has of coursed blossomed into other useful communication tools like chatting and texting.  You know .NET can be relied on to support these types of communication tools.

While calendaring in my opinion has never been successfully solved by any application on the market.  Free or paid for.  They always seem cludgy to work with.  That’s no reason to ignore them, and tools like Outlook will continue to try and fix these problems as part of the building blocks of .NET.