Week 7: Web Services

Week 7's topic has been a very interesting and relevant one.  I enjoyed learning about Web Services (WS), something that I did know about before but didn't have a name for or a clear understanding of.  A WS uses Extensible Markup Language (XML) -- a format that is readable to both humans and machines -- to enable machine-to-machine interaction across a network.  I found one of our readings for week 7, "Introduction to Web Services," produced by Library Technology Reports, fascinating in its affirmation that not all computer-to-computer communications qualify as Web services, because Web services must follow a "specific architectural framework" that involves specific standards and protocols (7).  I hope we'll have a chance to revisit WS later in the semester.