The REST architecture has become increasingly recognized for its value in creating scalable, loosely coupled systems. REST is presented as a network interaction architectural style, not a programming methodology. However, the principles of REST can actually be very meaningfully and beneficially applied in the programming realm. We will look at how the resource oriented approach of REST can be applied as principles for programming language usage and design. The motivation for looking at REST should be clear. Little in history has been as ridiculously successful and scalable as the web, and REST is a retrospective look at the principles that were employed in designing the core technologies of the web, particularly HTTP. Applying such proven principles to our application design will certainly be beneficial.

Roy Fielding’s REST architecture is broken down into seven constraints (and the four sub-constraints of the uniform interface). The individual concepts here are certainly not new, but collectively looking at these concepts as resource oriented programming may provide an interesting new perspective. I will also look at how these principles are exemplified in Persevere 2.0 in its object store framework, Perstore, and its web stack Pintura.

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