REST web services
REST services were initially conceived to avoid the complex machinery of SOAP in simple cases such as calls to a service from the JavaScript code of a web page. Then, they gradually became the preferred choice for complex systems. REST services use HTTP to exchange data in JSON or, less commonly, in XML format. Simply put, they replace the SOAP body with the HTTP body, the SOAP header with the HTTP header, and the HTTP response code replaces the fault element and furnishes further auxiliary information on the operation that was performed.
The main reason for the success of REST services is that HTTP already offers most of the SOAP features natively, which means we can avoid building a SOAP level on top of HTTP. Moreover, the whole HTTP machinery is simpler than SOAP: simpler to program, simpler to configure, and simpler to implement efficiently.
Moreover, REST services impose fewer constraints on the clients. Type compatibility between servers and clients...
