When programmers learn to wrap SOAP envelopes around legacy protocols and build new software using a services-oriented architecture, new challenges arise. How do they deliver these services and empower people to use them effectively? The browser makes a poor digital dashboard. SOAP-enabled Office, Win32, Java, .Net, and Flash clients can be more effective, and these avenues are being explored. Also, vendors such as Altio, Digital Harbor, and Fourbit are pioneering a new kind of “smart-client” technology: A Java-based run time, deployed to the desktop, fetches XML descriptions from the network and renders them as interactive GUI applications with widgets that talk locally to one another and remotely to Web services. Because they are purely XML-driven, the Java rendering engine could (with some elbow grease) be replaced with a .Net (or other) renderer. The three technologies — Altio’s AltioLive, Digital Harbor’s PiiE (Professional Interactive Information Environment), and Fourbit’s Fablet — use XML not only to describe application behavior and local/remote componentry, but also to normalize data drawn from disparate sources into a common pool that can be locally sorted, queried, and stored. Each uses a proprietary storage scheme, but all are well-positioned to use — and could help drive the market for — embedded XML databases. All three include GUI toolkits tuned for the construction of applications that search, display, and interact with complex data, including tables, records, and images. AltioLive features native controls for categorizing and grouping data; basic multidimensional analysis is a core feature of the platform. With PiiE, users can create hyperlinks that query components so that, for example, clicking on a name will simultaneously find a map in a GIS (Geographic Information System) widget and an address in a directory widget. These platforms abstract away the details of GUI construction and encourage developers and users to focus on information architecture. That’s exactly the right approach. XML, after all, is not simply a universal messaging format. When the Web services plumbing is in place, the real endgame comes into view: contextualizing information so that people can immediately understand and act on it. These smart-client technologies can reduce the programming burden, but IT must still embrace XML data management disciplines to make the most of the opportunity. Our survey shows that’s happening: 23 percent of respondents deploy XML-based applications, 14 percent are building with XML, and 19 percent plan to do so within the next year. Software Development