1. A method of using a high-level, task-oriented Application Programming Interface (API) to access a legacy system, the method comprising the steps of: (a) providing the legacy system, including emulation software for accessing the legacy system; (b) operating a low level API over said emulation software; (c) operating the high-level, task-oriented application programming interface over said low level API, and (d) implementing database access protocol emulation over said high-level API.