What good is XML-RPC?

[W13]

(I'm sure this has been asked before, so excuse me for asking again)
I tried the search, but it said no results for "XML-RPC" and "XML-RPC API" has a 3-letter word.

So can anybody tell me what good is XML-RPC in IPB? (there's a setting in ACP).

[Louis M.]

Its a standard for issuing remote procedure calls using XML. I would suggest look at wikipedia to learn more.

[W13]

Its a standard for issuing remote procedure calls using XML. I would suggest look at wikipedia to learn more.

I did, but I don't understand how it relates to IPB.

In layman's terms, what can an IPB user do with it?

[Mat Barrie]

A user can do nothing with it. Now, a developer. They could really use it.

[W13]

A

user

can do nothing with it. Now, a developer. They could really use it.

How? Can you give me a few examples?

[Mat Barrie]

How? Can you give me a few examples?

Converge. The entire Converge application is one big XML-RPC mess. I should note that I don't like XML-RPC. I think it's a terrible idea, and should never be used. I'll likely "reinvent the wheel" so to speak and write a replacement for Converge for my own sites because I loathe XML-RPC so much, and because it's hopelessly difficult to implement in any non-PHP language. Especially ASP.NET.

[Matt]

I respect your loathing for a transport method, but I object to you calling IP.Converge 'a mess'.

XML-RPC is a well supported, well documented and easy to work with transport method which is why we chose it.

[Mat Barrie]

I respect your loathing for a transport method, but I object to you calling IP.Converge 'a mess'.

XML-RPC is a well supported, well documented and easy to work with transport method which is why we chose it.

I apologise. That's not the intent there, I use the term "mess" loosely to apply to any application of XML-RPC (as I can't understand why people'd use it, let alone how to use it. It'd be rather difficult for me to call IP.Converge itself a mess when I can't see it's source code, wouldn't it?).

In case you didn't guess, I'm from the "throw XML across the internet and let the server deal with it" camp.

[Matt]

We did consider using SOAP. I wrote a first implementation using SOAP but we felt like it was like using a sledgehammer to drive home a thumb tack so switched to XML-RPC as it is a much simpler transport method.

We want people to quickly and easily write Converge applications. XML-RPC fit the bill nicely.

[Mat Barrie]

I can definitely sympathise with that, I don't get much good from SOAP either - used to work as a web developer, we just used XML (no encapsulation, just XML) and we found it it our bill better than anything else. Lightweight, no overhead, and if you really must you could apply a schema for data type validation.

[bfarber]

XML-RPC effectively is XML - with the intention of defining what it can do.

<methodCall>  <methodName>examples.getStateName</methodName>  <params>    <param>        <value><i4>40</i4></value>    </param>  </params></methodCall>

<?xml version="1.0"?>

This might be the content of an XML-RPC call. From looking at this, we know the requested method is examples.getStateName and the parameter passed is an integer with the value of 40.

On your end you can parse the XML just like regular XML - it's no different really. XML-RPC just adds the benefit of being able to use a standardized syntax/structure to make it easier for other developers to pick up what is going on quicker.

No, to the original poster (W13_Zybez) - the XML-RPC stuff you are seeing in the ACP is new functionality in IPB 2.3.2+ designed to be used with Nexus. In due time, we hope to have documentation out to assist you in utilizing it (even outside of Nexus), but for now you can largely ignore it (or sift through the source code, if you feel like doing so)