Zen and the Art of Integration
Inspired by the book “Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance,” Tym Lawrence bought a motorcycle. It took seconds to register it in his homeland, Australia. Suddenly Tym felt a state of bliss. No, he wasn’t zipping down the road, hair blowing in the wind. His Zen moment came from the realization of what had just happened. Twenty years ago, it would have taken weeks to register a vehicle in Australia; he had just done it with the click of a button.
Tym calls the Australian motorcycle registration system a wonder of the world.
Middleware made Tym’s Zen state possible. Like water or air, many people aren't aware of middleware. Or know what it is. Middleware is software that connects other software. That might sound redundant or even nonsensical. Why should I use software to connect software? In this post, Tym describes the maze of software systems needed to register a motorcycle in Australia:
Tym’s information is sent from the Australian Transportation Authority to local service centers. Middleware connects the government website with local motorcycle inspection software, workshop management software, and registration systems.
Australian insurance companies receive data about Tym’s bike, license, and address. Then, they connect Tym’s data to their internal billing and claims management systems.
Middleware communicates to the Australian police, fire, border protection agencies.
Middleware navigates this maze thousands of times a day for 25 million Australians. It does it safely, securely, and in real-time. Indeed, the art of integration is a technological wonder of the world.
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