Definition for service interface

One or more computer readable storage media hardware embodying computer-readable instructions that, responsive to execution by at least one processor, implement a method comprising:

• receiving one or more web service descriptions, the web service descriptions being represented in a standardized format, at least one of the one or more web service descriptions pertaining to an e-mail service;
• ascertaining, from the web service descriptions, common web service properties for one or more web services, wherein the common web service properties include a property associated with a homepage uniform resource locator (URL) and a property associated with a visually-renderable display for a web service that is expressed via a display tag, the property associated with the visually-renderable display for a web service comprising an icon property associated with a displayable icon;
• ascertaining, from the web service descriptions, web service-specific functionality for the e-mail service, the ascertaining including an ability to ascertain one or more optional parameters, associated with the e-mail service, within the web service descriptions;
• and
• providing the e-mail service based upon the web service descriptions.

One or more computer-readable storage media hardware having embodied thereon:

• at least one file configured to enable description of a web service, wherein the at least one file includes:
• one or more descriptions, within a first node and using a standardized format, of common web service properties associated with the web service, the common web service properties being properties shared among multiple different web services, wherein the common web service properties include:
• a property associated with a homepage uniform resource locator (URL);
• and
• a property associated with a visually-renderable display that is expressed via a display tag, the property associated with the visually-renderable display comprising an icon property containing a link to an icon;
• and
• one or more descriptions, within a second node and using the standardized format, of specific functionality associated with the web service, the specific functionality including:
• at least one activity category configured to describe a type of service associated with the web service;
• at least one action definition associated with the web service, each action definition configured to describe an action a user can take associated with the web service, including a preview action configured to cause display of a preview of an associated function, the associated function configured to execute responsive to the user selecting the display of the preview;
• and
• at least one input parameter to the web service;
• wherein the one or more descriptions within a first node and the one or more descriptions within a second node are available to one or more client-side applications.