.NET Web Services Solutions offers just what its title states: practical solutions to the real challenges you face as you use .NET to create applications that communicate with web services and-more to the point-to build and deploy web services of your own. By the time you're done, you'll understand how the web services platform works, because chapter by chapter you get the hands-on instruction, detailed examples, and inside advice you need to make your project succeed.

For example, you'll learn to connect to a database using ADO.NET operations, carry out the exchange of binary files, and extend the reach of your web service so that it touches e-mail, fax machines, mobile devices, and remote PCs. You'll master techniques for making your web service available to other programs-but you'll also discover ways to control its availability through authentication and encryption.

Kris Jamsa's expert coverage goes above and beyond by providing advanced optimization tips, including instructions for implementing asynchronous operations. He also shows you a neat trick for calling a web service from within an HTML page using JavaScript. Want an even neater trick? Check out the section on making money with your web service, where you'll find a billing model that will work for you. The final chapter brings it all together, walking you through a cohesive, highly functional example of an employment web service.