We recently came upon the need for a Python SOAP client library that supported SSL client authentication (client-side certificates). When surveying the various options, we liked SOAPpy, but it had a bug in its support for SOAP complex types that required us to switch to Suds, which is also a very nice framework.

Suds does not support client certificates directly, and neither does urllib2, the URL-opener library it depends on. However, httplib, which is used at the core, does support HTTPS client authentication. Fortunately, somebody found a workaround for urllib2, and we were able to combine that with a trick of our own to integrate it with Suds. Here it is:

A common complaint we hear from our business clients is that IT is a black box within their organization. They send requirements in, have very little communication for long periods of time, and eventually are delivered an application with approximately half of the requested functionality or enhancements. Whether a VP of Operations allotting $75 of a $600 million dollar budget to IT or the CEO of a start up ISV whose livelihood is dependant on successful product development, the frustration and uncertainly is equally painful and unnerving.

These days, it seems like every time I turn around I am being asked how the economy is affecting Three Pillar Software. I'm cautiously optimistic as I answer, we have more business and a larger pipeline now than we have ever had. To some degree, that may simply be a result of our new focus on developing business. Until just a few months ago, Three Pillar had grown from myself to our current state almost exclusively through being opportunistic.