There are already two other approaches to handling SOAP underway. Dan Wickstrom has demonstrated SOAP integration using his nsjava AOLserver module. Roberto Mello has been working on getting TclSOAP working (which depends on TclDOM, a fast XML parser written in C that will run as an AOLserver module). Since OpenACS already uses XML in a few places internally and since we plan to switch to TclDOM, using TclSOAP would have the least impact on packaging and installation.
You should talk to those folks before starting an independent effort. Visit https://openacs.org/directory to find their e-mail addresses). Both also hang out on our IRC channel fairly regularly (openacs on opennet).
As far as reconciling AOLserver changes made here with the AOLserver.com code base, in the past the AOLserver team has picked up many of the changes made by Ars Digita. The community has no control and very little say in the process, though. The AOLserver team tends to be conservative in regard to changes, because they're charged with the task of making sure that aol.com, mapquest.com, netscape search and the like not only stay up but are secure. So I suspect any SOAP support will need to be implemented as an optionally loadable module.
They do make community-provided modules available at the AOLserver.com, it's the core that they're especially conservative with (and rightly so, IMO).
