We are planning to use XMLBlaster to share state police incidents with other state agencies. The incidents are represented by XML messages (specifically, the CAP protocol). Some have suggested that XMLBlaster is the wrong way to go and that Jabber (XMPP) should be used instead. Their primary reasoning is that XMLBlaster has "failed to gain the support, following and independent implementations necessary for it to become a standard or even documented in an informational RFC." Yet what XMLBlaster does provide is a ready system with the features we need to develop with. I would be very much interested in hearing how some might respond to the implication that XMLBlaster represents "effectively a proprietary solution". I would also be interested in any information of how XMLBlaster (or its users) are participating in standards efforts.
Thanks in advance, David Robison
There are currently no standards efforts undertaken from which i know of. XmlBlaster has a proprietary protocol, but this is specified by a simple and open CORBA idl. XmlBlaster is open source and anybody who whishes to use it 'as is' is welcome or even may extend it to their needs.
To embed this discussion into other contexts:
o Linux is also not 'standard' but half the word uses it. o MS-Windows or MS-Word is no standard but half the world uses it without questioning it (no detailed RFC around). o MQ_Series (WebSphere MQ) is also a MOM product from IBM but probably all huge companies on this world use/depend on it. o JMS, the pure Java MOM approach is even worse: Only the client API is 'standarized' (by a company called SUN) but the protocol is not 'standardized' at all, it is a secret implemented by each company differently - this makes it very bad: once you have installed one JMS product in a real distributed environment it is very difficult to change the company. For example the european air traffic control agency has implemented a JMS server in the central location for a specific service. Now ALL european countries are *forced* to buy the JMS product by the same vendor and are tied to this company 'forever'.
I'm interested to hear the cons from your collegues, reading the first quoted statement in your mail will fail for all of the above examples (Windows,Linux,etc.). I wonder which OS you choose :-)
best regards,
Marcel
-- http://www.xmlBlaster.org