Book review: Apache CXF Web Service Development

Z Jacek Laskowski - Wiki Projektanta Java EE

Apache CXF Web Service Development by Naveen Balani, Rajeev Hathi (Packt, December 2009)

The book hit the nail right on the head with Apache CXF's coverage

Taming Apache CXF and its support for SOAP and RESTful Web Services with JAX-WS and JAX-RS couldn't have been easier. I must admit it's not very often when a book gets its point across and fulfills all the claims. The book "Apache CXF Web Service Development" from Packt is a perfect example of a very concise yet comprehensive writing. I could find every aspect of CXF architecture explained in a highly comfortable manner.

If you need a book about CXF that's well-written and easy to comprehend, then the book suffices. You should however be prepared for a reading where a very rudimentary knowledge about XML Schema, Spring Framework, Apache Ant or even JAX-WS and JAX-RS helps. It's not to say that it's not explained - it was actually and there's also a dedicated appendix about Spring Framework, but the book forced the pace and the gut feeling tells me some experience might be of help. Apart from that, the book is certainly well suited for a CXF novice.

It stroke me how easy the authors guided me throughout the intricacies of Apache CXF. I could follow all the gory details about CXF without much trouble. There were figures and screenshots that eased the reading. The writing style was fluid and the chapters were laid out well that in turn developed my confidence in leveraging CXF in my projects.

The book gradually shows you what needs to be done for running a Web Service with CXF support for JAX-WS and JAX-RS which you can apply right away. It sets out to lead you through CXF with a series of introductory material followed by short examples. They're simple, runnable and clear to get point across. The chapters followed a very logical order and (with the exception of the chapter 7 which was very repetitive and therefore boring) I highly recommend to read the book from cover to cover. If however you're only interested in JAX-WS, the chapters 2-5 are enough; for JAX-RS the chapters 6-7 will do. The others described CXF without paying much attention to JAX-WS or JAX-RS and therefore should be read regardless of your choice.

I was constantly bursting to read one chapter more, and it was due to my inability to keep up for a long reading that I had to stop after one or two. Every page uncovered CXF so I constantly took notes throughout the entire book. I'm certain to come back to the book often, esp. while looking for answers or guidance regarding CXF.

I doubt if there was anything that could substantially diminish the value of the book. There're typos, text repetitions, code and configuration mistakes, the summaries added nothing to recap the main points of a chapter and moreover it valued how's over why's, but it all boiled down to just a minor issue - it brought enough knowledge of CXF to have me turned a blind eye to it.

I don't hesitate in recommending "Apache CXF Web Service Development" to anyone who's interested in Apache CXF and the technologies it embraces - JAX-WS, JAX-RS and Spring Framework. I love it!