Transaction processing is at the heart of modern enterprise systems. This book explains in depth transaction processing technology and how it can be leveraged in the Java platform. It provides a comprehensive explanation of the underlying concepts in transactions that are needed to understand and exploit the technology correctly. All technical information delivered in the book corresponds directly to the latest revision of Java. The authors cover how transactional aspects of all the major J2EE components work and the practical consequences of implementation choices. In addition, this text looks beyond Java at standards and implementations that provide for broad interoperability across heterogeneous application environments. Finally, the book provides a look at how emerging web services standards will address the next generation of reliable information systems.