BeanStork
BeanStork at Flashline.com
With the advent of JAXP and the ongoing Xerces project, it really has gotten easier to work with XML. However, there are some tasks that are best automated. One of them is converting a specific XML schema to Java classes that allow you to access XML documents in your Java applications. BeanStork does this for you. In all honesty, BeanStork isn't really a component, it's a component maker.
You can use either the command-line tool or a GUI-based tool. Just specify your XML Scheme Document (XSD) and BeanStork does all the code generation. You also have the choice to create JavaBeans representations of the XML schema or to create a set of classes that represent the XML data. Either way, your classes will marshal the XML into Java and also save your edits back to an XML file.
In order to use BeanStork, you will need to have the Bean Scripting Framework (BSF) jar file from IBM developerWorks. The component is $47.50.
CeXBean/Web Service
Duzine.com Web Site
Appropriately named, this sexy tool is where Web Services just might take us in the future. Actually, Cex is short for currency exchange, which is what this component does. If you think about it, what is so difficult about currency exchange? It's a simple multiplication of the amount in one currency multiplied by the exchange rate. The trick here is getting the exchange rate. That is why this component is revolutionary. You can subscribe to duzine.com's daily feed of exchange rates (note: the first year is free if you purchase the bean/feed version), which are delivered via a Web services model (or through a feed, your choice).
Now you can easily add the ability for people from all parts of the globe to purchase your products in their own currency, trusting that the exchange rate will be up to date. If you subscribe to the Web service, you can use .NET, PHP or whatever to access it and they allow developer access for free.
While the CexBean is marginally cool, what is really cool is the possibility to purchase/subscribe to component Web Services combinations that can enable your applications to include functionality with rotating logic. On the downside if Duzine.com LLC goes out of business or has a server problem, you're screwed. This is the Achilles' heel of this type of component.
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