Realities about SOAP

Design is open on several axes

• The Switzerland of Languages
  Implementaions Java, Perl, Python, PHP, etc
• Multiple transport protocols
  HTTP, SMTP, etc
• Vendor independent
  Axis/IBM/Macromedia, Microsoft, Cape Clear
• 'Swiss' Objects
  Each language has its own object implementation but their SOAP implementations should play nicely with each other

If you have closed system implemented in a particular language and you're managing both ends of the data (production and consumption), you probably don't need SOAP. I lump IBM and Macromedia with Axis since they're both packaging Axis up with their application server products.