ATHABASCA UNIVERSITY APPLICATION MASHUPS IN THE ENTERPRISE BY DAVID COYNE An essay submitted in partial fulfillment Of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF SCIENCE in INFORMATION SYSTEMS Athabasca, Alberta January, 2010 © David Coyne, 2010 DEDICATION For past and future: to my Dad (whose values are so important to me, especially now) and my children (whose abilities I believe in with all my heart). i ABSTRACT Mashups are composite web applications, combining data and processing from multiple underlying applications, and presenting it in new and sometimes innovative ways. The popularity of mashups on the Internet has increased in recent years, with improvements in enabling technologies and availability of usable data sources. Within enterprises, mashups have yet to take hold. The approach has the potential to make better use of an organization’s service- oriented investments, and allow users to create some of their own applications – thus helping IT to address any development backlog. It may also help address the need for specialized situational applications, providing more opportunity for enterprises to innovate. This essay summarizes current published research, and articles, white papers, and other documentation made available by companies active in promoting mashup products. In addition, an example of a currently available mashup platform for the enterprise – the IBM Mashup Center – is installed and used to solve a series of possible business problems. The literature outlines numerous areas for concern, including the performance and quality of the solutions produced, management of the environment and the applications, and significant issues of user motivation and competence. Testing the example product showed how some of these issues are being addressed, but also revealed first-hand the difficulties of producing useful mashup applications. The research shows that the technology and approach is not mature, but still offers some return on investment. It is also evident that IT’s workload would likely increase significantly, along with its responsibilities. Issues of business user ii participation are discussed, and whether user-created mashups are a realistic goal. Finally, we contend that a paradigm shift is needed in how we provide solutions for enterprise application needs, if the mashup vision is ever to be fully realized. iii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would not have been able to complete this essay without the help and support of many people at Athabasca University, especially Dr. Mahmoud Abaza, who acted as my essay supervisor, and the knowledgeable and always courteous administration staff – particularly Linda Gray (and Jackie Terrien in the early years of my program). My thanks go to them and numerous other professors and staff who have advised and guided me during my program. I would also like to thank my wife and children, for their tolerance and accommodation while I worked through the program – it affected them more than I ever anticipated, but they always allowed me the space I needed! iv TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER I - INTRODUCTION.................................................................. 1 Statement of Purpose ......................................................................... 1 Research Problem .............................................................................. 2 Assumptions and Limitations............................................................... 3 Organization of Remaining Chapters .................................................. 3 CHAPTER II – REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE .............................. 5 Mashups.............................................................................................. 5 Definitions........................................................................................ 5 Composite Applications ................................................................... 6 Enablers.............................................................................................. 7 Rich Internet Applications................................................................ 7 Ajax ................................................................................................. 7 Web Feeds ...................................................................................... 8 Web 2.0 ........................................................................................... 8 Service-Oriented Architecture.......................................................... 9 Web Services ................................................................................ 11 REST............................................................................................. 11 Enterprise Development Needs ........................................................ 11 v The Long Tail................................................................................. 11 Situational Applications.................................................................. 13 Mashup Platforms and Tooling.......................................................... 14 Projects.......................................................................................... 15 Runtime Structure.......................................................................... 17 Development Structure and Roles................................................. 18 Issues and Challenges...................................................................... 20 Lack of Standardization ................................................................. 20 Application Quality......................................................................... 20 Performance.................................................................................. 21 Data Quality................................................................................... 22 Data Availability ............................................................................. 23 Management.................................................................................. 24 Security and Sensitive Data........................................................... 25 User Expectations ......................................................................... 26 User Tendencies and Abilities ....................................................... 28 Enterprise Mashup Products............................................................. 29 Summary........................................................................................... 31 Mashups........................................................................................ 31 vi Tooling........................................................................................... 32 Issues ............................................................................................ 32 CHAPTER III – PRODUCT AND INVESTIGATION METHODOLOGY .... 34 IBM Mashup Center .......................................................................... 34 InfoSphere MashupHub................................................................. 34 MashupHub Feeds ........................................................................ 35 MashupHub Catalog...................................................................... 35 MashupHub Feed Mashups........................................................... 36 Lotus Mashups .............................................................................. 37 Lotus Mashup Widgets .................................................................. 38 Lotus Mashup Pages..................................................................... 40 Evaluation Approach ......................................................................... 40 Scope ............................................................................................ 40 Exercises....................................................................................... 41 CHAPTER IV – RESULTS AND ISSUES................................................. 44 Installation......................................................................................... 44 Initial Impressions and Considerations.............................................. 45 Interfaces and Facilities .................................................................... 46 MashupHub ................................................................................... 46 vii Feeds............................................................................................. 48 Feed Mashups............................................................................... 49 Lotus Mashups .............................................................................. 51 Exercise 1 ......................................................................................... 56 Objective........................................................................................ 56 Steps Taken .................................................................................. 57 Issues and Observations ............................................................... 58 Exercise 2 ......................................................................................... 60 Objective........................................................................................ 60 Steps Taken .................................................................................. 61 Issues and Observations – Lotus Mashups................................... 63 Issues and Observations – MashupHub........................................ 64 Exercise 3 ........................................................................................