# Web service suggestions?

**URL:** <https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/web-service-suggestions/142192>\
**Category:** Rails\
**Created:** [July 4, 2008, 11:50am UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/web-service-suggestions/142192 "2008-07-04T11:50:45Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 1\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![phantom](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/p/e0b2c6/32.png) [@phantom](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/phantom)\
**Post date:** [July 4, 2008, 11:50am UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/web-service-suggestions/142192/1 "2008-07-04T11:50:45Z")

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hi there,

i need to implement web services in my rails 2.0.2 app that external  
(non-rails) apps will consume. whilst i’d prefer to do things the  
REST-full way, i’m struggling to work out what i need to supply (a la  
WSDL) to the other apps so that they know the structure of the request  
that they must send me.

i have looked at activeresource, but that appears to be more  
appropriate when i’ve got a rails app to consume web services and wadl  
doesn’t seem established enough as an alternative to wsdl.

unless i can sort this problem out, i imagine i’ll need to go back to  
activewebservice. so, am i going about this the wrong way and missing  
something blindingly obvious, or is this something that people simply  
haven’t needed to do in rails ?

thanks,

phantom