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7.5 Business Logic/Middle-Tier
While the pipeline processing system
produces data products and files and the user only sees the Java
interface, all connections between the two other layers are made
by the so called `Business Logic' or middle-tier. The use of a
middle-tier has a number of advantages. It isolates the interface
from the rest of the system and deals with most of the application
business logic and complexity. This has the benefit of making the
interface lighter and faster and it also means that a number of
changes don't require the users to get a new version of the
application. All data transfers between the interface and the
middle-tier are compressed which makes the system run faster. This
business logic layer is also the way other archives or
applications can access the ISO data products and extra files
without being required to go through the standard user interface.
This has made very easy any inter-operability of IDA in the
context of the Virtual Observatories.
Another great advantage has been brought by the use of Java in
this open 3-tier architecture. The IDA design and code has been
re-used to develop other ESA scientific mission archives (e.g.
the XMM-Newton Science Archive, first released in April 2002;
Arviset et al. 2002, [6]).
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Up: 7. The ISO Data
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ISO Handbook Volume I (GEN), Version 2.0, SAI/2000-035/Dc