Adding to our series of developer tutorials, the new "Getting started with Web Services with UIQ 3 and gSOAP" tutorial describes how to use the gSOAP (Simple Object Access Protocol) package to enable Web services consumption on the UIQ 3 platform and therefore Sony Ericsson's three UIQ 3-based phones, the P990 smartphone, M600 messaging device and W950 Walkman.

Unlike the Java ME Platform using JSR 172, the UIQ 3 platform offers no default stub generator. However, by using the popular open-source gSOAP package created by Robert A. van Engelen, it is possible to consume Web services in a similar manner to the Java ME Platform.

gSOAP 2.7.8c is a cross-platform development environment for C/C++ Web services and this new tutorial introduces the subject area, gives set up advice and then takes you through how to create a Google example application.

Download Getting Started with Web Services with UIQ 3 and gSOAP tutorial>>

Explaining Web services

A Web service is a collection of functions that are brought together into a single entity and exposed to clients over a network. Typically, Web services are assumed to function under the technology umbrella of CORBA, DCOM or RMI, primarily because of being labeled "distributed", which refers to the ability for multiple computing nodes to interact across networks. Common to all these technologies are interoperability issues which are addressed through Web services which employ a stack of open, standardized technologies leading to language, operating system and transport independence.

In essence, Web services are designed to transfer XML documents between systems using standard Internet protocols. This simplicity helps Web services achieve the primary goal of interoperability.

The high level Web services model consists of:

• WSDL: A Web Service Description Language (WSDL) file describes how the Web service is operated and how other software applications can interface with the Web service.
• XML: Extensible Markup Language (XML) messages provide the common language by which different applications can talk to one another over a network. To operate a Web service, a user sends an XML message containing a request for the Web service to perform some operation. In response the Web service sends back another XML message containing the results of the operation.
• SOAP: Typically XML messages are formatted according to SOAP syntax. SOAP specifies a standard format for applications to call each other's methods and pass data to one another. Note that other non-SOAP forms of XML messages are possible, depending on the specific requirements of the Web service. (The type of XML message and the specific syntax required is given in the Web service WSDL file).
• HTTP: To make Web services accessible to other applications across networks, Web services receive requests and send responses using widely used protocols such as Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP).

Other tutorials currently available from Sony Ericsson Developer World include:

• Getting Started with On-device Debugging for NetBeans tutorial>>
• Getting Started with Web Services, JSR 172>>
• Getting Started with Macromedia Flash Lite 1.1 for mobile applications in Sony Ericsson phones>>
• Formatting audio for local playback>>
• Formatting video for local playback>>

If you have a suggestion for another tutorial subject area, please login and add your idea to the "Add comment" option at the end of this article.

More information:

• Download Getting started with Web Services with UIQ 3 and gSOAP tutorial>>
• Download UIQ 3 SDK here>>
• gSOAP 2.7.8c website>>