Web services is rapidly becoming one of the most valued aspects of information technology services, as Web-based technological advancements continue to grow at an exponential rate. Web Services Research and Practices provides researchers, scholars, and practitioners in a variety of settings essential up-to-date research in this demanding field, addressing issues such as communication applications using Web services; Semantic services computing; discovery, modeling, performance, and enhancements of Web services; and Web services architecture, frameworks, and security.

"This book provides a comprehensive assessment of the latest developments in Web services research, focusing on composing and coordinating Web services, XML security, and service oriented architecture, and presenting new and emerging research in the Web services discipline"--Provided by publisher.

This volume provides an overview and an understanding of REST (Representational State Transfer). Discussing the constraints of REST the book focuses on REST as a type of web architectural style. The focus is on applying REST beyond Web applications (i.e., in enterprise environments), and in reusing established and well-understood design patterns when doing so. The reader will be able to understand how RESTful systems can be designed and deployed, and what the results are in terms of benefits and challenges encountered in the process. Since REST is relatively new as an approach for designing Web Services, the more advanced part of the book collects a number of challenges to some of the assumptions and constraints of REST, and looks at current research work on how REST can be extended and applied to scenarios that often are considered not to be a good match for REST. This work will help readers to reach a deeper understanding of REST on a practical as well as on an advanced level.

Within the past 10 years, tremendous innovations have been brought forth in information diffusion and management. Such technologies as social media have transformed the way that information is disseminated and used, making it critical to understand its distribution through these mediums. With the consistent creation and wide availability of information, it has become imperative to remain updated on the latest trends and applications in this field. Information Diffusion Management and Knowledge Sharing: Breakthroughs in Research and Practice examines the trends, models, challenges, issues, and strategies of information diffusion and management from a global context. Highlighting a range of topics such as influence maximization, information spread control, and social influence, this publication is an ideal reference source for managers, librarians, information systems specialists, professionals, researchers, and administrators seeking current research on the theories and applications of global information management.

The pervasiveness of the Internet has had a significant impact on global politics, economics, and culture. To create a truly effective product in such a saturated digital environment, developers must study what has come before and how they can utilize existing tools to even greater effect. Evaluating Websites and Web Services: Interdisciplinary Perspectives on User Satisfaction explores some of the various approaches to the study and assessment of Internet technologies, providing scholars, researchers, developers, and professionals with critical knowledge and an interdisciplinary perspective on e-services in a variety of functional areas, from government and commerce to social media and education.

Web Systems Design and Online Consumer Behavior takes and interdisciplinary approach toward systems design in the online environment by providing an understanding of how consumers behave while shopping online and how certain system design elements may impact consumers' perceptions, attitude, intentions, and actual behavior. This book contains theoretical and empirical research from expert scholars in a number of areas including communications, psychology, marketing and advertising, and information systems. This book provides an integrated look at the subject area as described above to further our understanding of the linkage among various disciplines inherently connected with one another in electronic commerce.

This book constitutes the refereed proceedings of the 33rd Conference on Current Trends in Theory and Practice of Computer Science, SOFSEM 2007, held in Harrachov, Czech Republic in January 2007. The 69 revised full papers, presented together with 11 invited contributions were carefully reviewed and selected from 283 submissions. The papers were organized in four topical tracks.