This document discusses middleware, including its history, types, advantages, and future. Middleware sits between layers of software to allow different applications to work together seamlessly. There are four main types: transaction processing, remote procedure call (RPC), message-oriented middleware (MOM), and object request broker (ORB). Middleware provides benefits like centralized management of transactions, hiding operating system details, and asynchronous communication between clients and servers. The future of middleware and enterprise application integration is promising, with the market expected to grow substantially in the coming years.