Review

Target Audience: Developers
Difficulty: Beginner - Intermediate

Who should buy this book?

Buy this book, if you know either Biztalk or Oracle BPEL and want to get a good reference to the BPEL langauge, or you want to get started with them. You should know Web Services, XML a bit of UML to understand this book fully.

Review Summary:

This book is a good introduction to BPEL. Anyone willing to learn more about BPEL or writing applications which deal with Business Processes and Web Services, will greatly benefit from this book. As there are very few books available in this category, this book forms a very valueable reference for the BPEL standards. Another good thing about this book is that it explains general BPEL concepts and then uses the Oracle BPEL Mangaer or Biztalk 2004 for specific examples and hands on activities.

As the book is essentially poised as a reference, it can be a bit boring and drag to read at times. This is an inherent disadvantage to any reference book. But it is still a bit manageable and readable and does serve as a good reference guide. It does provide a good overview of BPEL and arms you with the knowledge needed to tackle applications with complex business process needs.

Pros:

• Good reference to have
• Explained nicely with appropriate diagrams throughout the book.
• Examples cover both Biztalk 2004 and Oracle BPEL Manager

Cons:

• Does not cover advanced topics