Introduction
The regular readers of my blog probably know my standing towards TechEd. Ever since my first in 2007 I have really enjoyed the unique atmosphere of this event as mention in my recaps of Impressions from TechEd'07 Munich and Impressions from TechEd'08 Berlin. As such, I really felt a little left-out last year when I couldn't be there for multiple reasons. However, this time I'm coming... and even better... I'll have the unique opportunity to make it a double-header: both Berlin and Las Vegas. :smile: And I do not come open-handed, of course not. In fact, I'm really excited to be speaking and (co-) hosting sessions about the topic of developing loosely coupled Composites with SAP NetWeaver Composition Environment.
Loose-coupling in Action
I assume that most of the readers are familiar with the concept of loose-coupling and why it is a fundamental characteristic/quality for timeless software. Looking at the complex and heterogenous system landscapes in enterprises and the need for short innovation cycles, it gets quite obvious why the ability to quickly (re-) compose and adapt the software that drives human-centric processes is vital. Such environments are the natural breeding grounds for Composite Applications, as their natural ability to adapt to change allows for agile development resulting in fast time-to-market.
It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is the most adaptable to change! - Darwin
CD301 - Advanced Composite Patterns in SAP NetWeaver Composition Environment
This is where my very own lecture comes into the picture. SAP Custom Development has been developing Composite Applications since 2004, and through-out the years the design of the applications we built for customers have evolved as did the Java EE server and SAP NetWeaver Composition Environment. The session "Advanced Composite Patterns in SAP NetWeaver Composition Environment" is all about exchanging best practices in developing Composites and to provide a closer view on some key design and communication patterns.
We'll start with a recap on componentization and components models used to define and execute applications. After that we have a closer look on so-called Technical Composition, which refers to the concept of encapsulating all data-access operations and separating it from the business-process logic processing (as done in traditional multi-tier architecture.) I'll then illustrate a common use-case scenario for technical composition and then I'll put my faith in the hands of the demo gods and launch a real application (residing in the cloud and connected to the ES Workplace backend systems.)
Next on the agenda are aspects and their value proposition to our extensibility and agility needs. I'll demonstrate how-to develop/mimic aspects using EJB 3.0 functionality and the resulting encapsulation and separation of cross-cutting concerns (SoC). The third pillar will be my favourite topic... you guessed it right - extensibility. I'll quickly highlight the main drivers and benefits of developing an application in an extensible manner and then present several techniques that can be used for the manner such as:
- Instantiating a custom implementation of an extension point via standard Java Reflection API and Classloading
- Dynamic EJB invocation based on configurable/dynamic JNDI names
- Using a WebService Interface (WSDL) and dynamic endpoint/port determination
- Dynamic WD Component Usage binding to load custom implementations at runtime (e.g. for Customer sub-screens etc.)
- the new Extensibility Configuration Framework introduced with SAP NetWeaver Composition Environment 7.20
At the end, we'll wrap up by listing some typical use-cases that can be solved with the presented techniques. While the sessions has been categorized as 'advanced' I tried to keep a fair balance between high-level and technical details and I'm thinking about tailor-fitting it based on the audience. So, what do you say... sounds interesting to you? Looking forward to seeing you there...
Session Info: Berlin | Las Vegas
PMC360 - Architecture Guidelines for Composite Applications in Practice: Loose Coupling with Events [by Volker Stiehl]
To make things even better, there's another session that strikes the same bell and will empower you to build loosely-coupled Composites using BPM and events. Chief Solution Expert volker.stiehl/blog has compiled a very interesting hands-on session called "Architecture Guidelines for Composite Applications in Practice: Loose Coupling with Events". It picks up on design principles elaborated on the popular book "Best-build Applications (BBA)" and shows how-to apply them in practice. I'm really excited about the unique opportunity to be co-hosting the session with him and daniel.kuenstel/blog, william.li/blog and peter.mcnulty/blog. I've always admired Volker for his passionate and enthusiastic presentations and I cannot recall a single one where he didn't had me completely sold (I'm glad he doesn't sell insurances! ;)). I'll try my very best to adequately fill in the host role in Las Vegas.
So, let's just have a closer look at the content. The 4h session will kick off with a short overview about Composite applications and the tool set provided by SAP NetWeaver Composition Environment to develop such applications followed by a deep dive into loosely-coupling and its importance for SOA. (That's the part from which I snagged the Darwin quote.) Then we'll have a closer look at the difference between business & technical composition and why it is recommended to decouple these two aspects!
The presentation part continues with an introduction to the Business Process Modeling Notation (BPMN) and then heads on to a concrete example scenario in which an asynchronous write operation and (callback) events (so called Intermediate Event Messages) are used to build a loosely-coupled composite. After that you should all be eager and ready to 'get your hands dirty' and we let you go through the exercise. What can I say... Volker really did a great job of setting up a simple (which is a compliment!) walk-through and it certainly empowers you to apply the underlying design concepts to your next project. Don't miss out on that session if you're curious about BPM!
Session Info: Berlin | Las Vegas
Strong bonding
But TechEd is not just technical education, there's more to it! As mentioned in my TechEd reports, this annual event is also the best place for networking and as such I have always enjoyed the former Community Days to the fullest. The SAP Community Network really lives up to the word "community" and having the chance to mingle with some of the most knowledgeable and experienced experts is an opportunity you should not let pass by. In fact, this year the TechEd team has really taken it to the next level in more than one way:
Who's coming directory?
"The 'Who’s Coming?' directory will allow all attendees to find out who else will be attending SAP TechEd 2010 Berlin and Las Vegas. The system helps attendees connect with the colleagues, experts, and peers they follow on Twitter and LinkedIn that are also registered for TechEd. In addition, attendees can identify their interest areas using social tagging and then connect with others that have similar interests." - Chip Rodgers
Expert Networking Sessions
All speakers have been asked to register expert networking session to intensify the dialogue about the topic of choice. Typically these sessions should be highly interactive and dynamic and result a bi-directional communication and ultimately a pleasant discussion/great time. I've already registered two sessions (one at each location) to reach out to all those interested in 'Exchanging Experiences in developing Composite applications'. I'm looking forward to the discussions!
Innovation Weekend
Last, but definitely not least - marilyn.pratt/blog. I was really excited to hear from marilyn.pratt/blog about their (Marylin Pratt, craig.cmehil/blog and jason.cao/blog) ideas of putting together a new community event as never seen before. In a nutshell the idea revolves around bringing together the most brilliant minds from all the sub-communities of SCN (BusinessObjects, BPX and SDN) and let them take a business case from idea to prototype in just 30 hours! Wan't to find out more? Here are link to an introduction Innovation Weekend: Harmonizing Communities @SAPTechEd 2010and the WIKI page. See you there!
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