I have recently been invited to join the Microsoft Cloud Advisory group and have just spent the last week at an SDR getting to understand all the wonderful cloud stuff. Unfortunately I'm under NDA until PDC but it is looking good.
On the topic of the cloud and BizTalk I came across a blog by Lori MacVittie (http://devcentral.f5.com/weblogs/macvittie/archive/2008/10/06/how-microsoft-is-bursting-into-the-cloud-with-biztalk.aspx)
that really has got it all wrong. The blog talks about BizTalk activities in the cloud and orchestrations and on but has missed the point completely.
Microsoft in their infinite wisdom named their cloud messaging and workflow technologies BizTalk Services. In fact they have nothing to do with BizTalk!!! They are based on the Windows Workflow foundation and the Windows Communication foundation. No it is true that we will/can be able to host our workflow's in the cloud, and use the Internet service bus it isn't and never will be BizTalk. I cannot do transformations, having adapters and accelerators coming out my ears and the like and I will not/am not able to use BPEL in the cloud - the underlying language of BizTalk orchestrations.
After PDC this will become a lot clearer!
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