Back a few days ago, there was a series that DevShed started about using Amazon.com's web services with PHP and the SOAP protocol to create an interface to their API and allow for you to use it to do something useful. Well, they've returned with the second part of the series today.

In this latest installment, they spend some time discussing the search features built into AWS, showing you the various types of search options available and illustrating, with examples, how they can be used to improve the user experience at your store. Also, how to link your store up to Amazon's transaction system, by adding support for both shopping carts and wish lists to your site.

It was one of the best things that Amazon.com could have done to open their systems like this. Not only does it bring more revenue to them (as far as I know, the API doesn't allow purchase information, yet) but it also created quite a buzz in the developer community about them wanting to use it. I wish more larger companies would "jump on this bandwagon" and open their systems as well. Maybe we'd actually have that "completely linked society" that everyone always dreams about....