API also known as Application Programming Interface acts as bridges that enable one computer (software) to access data of another.
One computer is able to extract (get), create,or modify data of another through a simple function call or endpoint.
Types of APIs
There are many APIs;
Operating system APIs that allow a piece of software or application to interact with the system’s components like files, network etc
Libraries and Frameworks – libraries provide function calls with parameters to customise the returned data, e.g jQuery
Web APIs – Web APIs allows one website or application to retrieve data from another website over the HTTP protocol. These can be called REST API. For this guide, we will focus more on web APIs
How APIs work
APIs are designed such that one computer (application) can interact with data of another with minimum effort.
- One computer/server/application creates a complex system, service or has some huge data.
- The computer creates an API to access and interact with its services or data.
- The API can be called or invoked by another computer (application) with different parameters that customise how the data is retrieved, modified or created.
- The API must respond with some form of data, for example, a JSON object or a success message.
Most Web APIs consist of a URI endpoint that allows you to perform CRUD operations (creating, reading, updating, or deleting data). These operations are usually implemented through GET (for data retrieval) or POST (creation/updating data) HTTP methods.
Here’s an example of an API endpoint that allows you to embed a static Google Maps image. The parameters af
https://maps.googleapis.com/maps/api/staticmap?center=Brooklyn&zoom=10
Examples of Web APIs
Google sign up – allows you to sign up into a website/application using your existing Google account
The Google maps API allows you to get location related data like distance between two points, latitude and longitude, convert address to coordinate system etc.
The Facebook API can allow you to get a user’s friend list, create posts, remove friends etc.
The WhatsApp link to chat API is a simple API that allows you to start a conversation with a given number. You can add a custom message along with it. Here’s an example:
wa.me/263776832593?text=Hello
The text parameter need to be URL encoded.
Most API providers usually require an API key to access their data. You have to sign up and fill some details to get the API key.
Benefits of APIs to Businesses
Integrate Seamlessly
Allows two softwares to interact with each other without viewing the source code of the other. APIs can integrate with different systems that are implemented differently,.e.g a PHP API can be called/used by a Java or Python app
Saves time
APIs simplifies the programming process. You simply access data by a simple API call and integrate it into your own system.
No need to reinvent the wheel
Programmers don’t have to recreate complex systems. An API can be created once and used by different systems.
One codebase
With an API you can modify the code in one place and the changes reflects to all other systems using that API.
Monetisation
Companies can monetise their APIs to access the huge amount of data that they have, e.g Chat GPT’s Open AI
At Web Desyn we create functional APIs that integrate with your own website or other third parties
