What is an API? Reading Assignment

[homiejohn]

1. APIs are interfaces that fast track coding for engineers. Instead of having to design every aspect of an execution, APIs are used to integrate bundles of tasks and rule sets into programming.
2. The “Twitter API” is a reference to the general platform the engineer interacts with while working with twitter. Used as a broader term, while the “JAVA API” is referencing a more specific API that is only used on top of JAVA and defines what you can do with that specific API. Things such as lists used in JAVA, the API defines “what” you can do with that list.
3. Abstraction is the broad term used to define organizing complex functions or information into a simpler display. Instead of going through all the individual pieces of information to come to a conclusion, the conclusion is given, and you can build on top of that conclusion. An example of that in my own life currently is the electrical prints/drawings I use at work. It takes months/years of decisions by many people such as engineers, architects, and owners and compiles all of those decisions into a conclusion that I the electrician follow and build.

[RailGame]

1) What is an API?
An API (Application Programming Interface), allows you to tap into the functionality of a very complex system, but in a very simple way.

2) In the article the author compares Java API to Twitter API. What is the main difference between these two APIs?
Java API operates within a local environment while Twitter API occurs over the web via a client/server type interaction, the end user in this case being the application itself.

3) The section in the article about abstraction is important, try to understand it and write down an abstraction from your daily life.
For reproductive sexual intercourse, the penis gets hard, the vagina gets wet and then sex can occur until orgasm and babies can be born later as a result. There is no need to know how the blood vessels, nervous system and hormonal signals interact with the rest of the human anatomy to carry out the activity.

[Chris_Fortner]

I couldn’t help but react to your answer for #3.

[Chris_Fortner]

1. What is an API?
   Application Programming Interface. In short it is a term used to describe the way programs can interact with each other.

2. In the article the author compares Java API to Twitter API. What is the main difference between these two APIs?
   A key difference is the Twitter API is a web-based API, and the interactions for all tweeter data take place on a web based protocol.

Java API is a library of software components available to those who want to build their own api. An all including self contained program to build including a Developer Kit. Not a web based protocol.

3. The section in the article about abstraction is important, try to understand it and write down an abstraction from your daily life.

" Abstraction is just a way of organizing the complexity of a system so that complicated actions can be handled in a simple way."

Abstraction is a more efficient way to reorder a product that you use on a daily basis, a " stable item". Instead of logging into a app, and/or phone from privacy setting, locating the product again, adding it to your cart, confirming or verify your information including your shipping address, then finally the payment. You are better off using a “Dash Button”, and better manage your time for other activates.

I personally have never used a dash button so the closes example that I have is the quick reorder on Amazon for my supplements that I will look up in my previous orders. This still fits because of having to relook up the product to include matching the specifics like ounces, number count, product nutrition, which is all time consuming. I can simply go to my order history, and reorder the exact same product.

[RailGame]

The most beautiful API haha

[CSquared]

1. Is an application programming interface that makes abstraction of executing complex functions easier by providing a specification of possible interactions with existing software components
   2)Java API’s come generally as part of the Java Development Kit where as Twitter API’s is a web based request which returns a JSON formated response to the requester
2. When doing laundry i use three in one capsules. I only need to pick one capsule and put it in the washing machine instead of buying the three different products contained in it and then having to measure a portion of each to put into each wash.

[Staniis]

1.API is what allows the user to make a request and receive a response for their request without going through complicated steps and without any knowledge of how it works behind the scenes.

2.In Java, the API Components are available for anyone who installed the Java Development Kit. But for Twitter API It’s a web based API and you have to request access.

3. I Tried thinking of things but the only thing i came up with is when you intergation a certain service like let’s say a gaming platform like blizzard or Origin and you have the option to sign up/in with email or facebook account

[Op1um]

1. API stands for Application Programming Interface. It is a specification that defines a way to programmatically interact with a separate software component or resource such as a software application, a web service or a command-line tool.

2. The Java API defines a set of specifications and components that Java developers use to interact with the Java platform and write software in the Java programming language. The Twitter API is a public web-based API that allows software developers to interact with the Twitter social network. The former is included in the Java Development Kit, while the latter is accessed through HTTP requests over the Internet.

3. An example of an abstraction in my daily life is when I get a coffee from my Nespresso machine. All I do is insert a coffee capsule and click some button in the machine. Then a few seconds later… voilá! The machine does its magic and delivers my coffee, without the need for me to know the machine’s internal process to make coffee.

[kongpoul]

1:
API handle interactions between different software programs. You can say it is the link between ex a landinpage that simply handles order request from customers and then API is the connection to your backend where the API makes sure that the orders arrives correctly in your backend
2: Java API handles what you can do with ex a list wile Twitter API is defined more as a REST API
3:You own a smart fridge and when you run out of milk the fridge knows and via API sends an order to your preferred online grocery store that you are out of milk, and then a order will be placed and in the end delivery made to your house.

[Kapo]

[quote=“ivan, post:1, topic:6381, full:true”]
Welcome to the discussion about this reading assignment.

Leave your answers to the questions below in this thread. If you have any questions or you want to discuss something connected to the assignment feel free to do it in this thread as well, but please everything to the topic.

1) What is an API?

• API stands for Application Programming Interface. An API is a software intermediary that allows two systems or applications to talk to each other. In other words, an API is the messenger that delivers your/consumer request of a certain data/function to the provider that you’re requesting it from and then delivers the response back to you/client the API consumer. In essence the API simplifies programming by abstracting the underlying implementation and only exposing objects or actions the developer needs quickly and efficiently.

2) In the article the author compares Java API to Twitter API. What is the main difference between these two APIs?

• The Twitter API is a Public web-based API that allows developers to programmatically interact with Twitter data. Unlike the Java API, which Java developers use to interact on the Java platform with JAVA Development KIT. Twitter API is accessed by making requests over the Internet to services that Twitter hosts.

3) The section in the article about abstraction is important, try to understand it and write down an abstraction from your daily life.

• An Example of an Abstraction from my daily life; to be able to charge my laptop/phone by plugging in the electric socket that has been around for decades, I think is an example of an historic API hardware mechanism. So as a human consumer, I only plug to the old API/Socket hardware carrier to get power from the provider without the complexities what goes on behind the walls.
  Although I like the Nespresso abstraction example of coffee making without a fuss.

[Jeffrey_Moore]

@JDC

• An API or Application Programming Interface is a set of rules that allows one set of code or an application to interact with another set of code or application. It is a bridge between two applications. For example, it could be the send and request code that requests weather data from a server and delivers it to an application like a Safari browser.
• Java API are rules for code interaction within the Java program environment. Twitter API are rules for code interaction which are sent over the WEB between a client and a server.
• Make pasta sauce abstraction. The abstraction of API tells you how to make the sauce from scratch. Cut onions and carrots and sauté in oil, then add the spices and tomatoes, cook for many hours and season with salt and pepper and so on.

This sounds right … nothing like a good homemade pasta sauce!

[John_Okoye]

An API is a defined set of code that performs a routine task. It is a tool to make developers more efficient.

Java operates in the Java Routine Environment which may be backend, frontend, or both. Twitter API is back and front end exclusively (I could be out in left field here)

Riding a bicycle. Once you learn to ride a bike, you can pretty much ride any bike from point A to point B subconsciously…you aren’t thinking about it whatsoever: put left foot on pedal, do it. put right foot on pedal, do it. grip handlebars, do it. pump legs up and down, do it. you can do it…gosh, no need for all that fuss sending all those commands from your conscious brain. Just program the routine into your cerebellum and bang, there you go…you’ve got the bicycle API set in your brain. Now if you think you can just hop on a unicycle and get from point A to B, forget it…that is another set of code that must developed into an API, the unicycle API. I haven’t achieve that one yet either, lol

[Nickpuna1]

1. API is a set of code that allows front-end and backend to communicate with each other.

2. The Java API uses numerous commands one can use to retrieve data.
   Twitter API is web based communication between frontend and backend.

3. Hearing my child needs help I know what needs to be done.

[arno_nabuurs]

1. a specification of possible interactions with a software component
2. The JAVA API is part of the development kit where the Twitter API webbased is.
3. When I go to work in the morning, pressing the button from the Grab app on my smartphone to get a ride to work

[blue]

1. What is an API?
   Application Programming Interface: a specification of possible interactions with a software component
2. In the article the author compares Java API to Twitter API. What is the main difference between these two APIs?
   Java API is an ‘out of the box’ component of their Java Development Kit and Twitter API is web-based
3. Making bread abstraction. When I bake, I make several loaves… from scratch. Weighing out the ingredients, mix, fold, fold, fold, rest and bake. Ready to eat. Because I make several, I have the extras in the freezer. When I want a new loaf I go to the freezer and thaw a loaf and it is as fresh as I just baked it… but without all the energy required.

[Steffen]

1)API stands for application programming interface,
An API is a way to programmatically interact with a separate software component or resource.

2)Java Development kit (non-web-ased) API interacts with Java lists (on the same system),
web-based Twitter JSON API requests tweets (between you and the twitter host).

3)smoke detectors (scattered light --> fire alarm),
humidity sensor (humidity dependent capacity --> relative humidity%), electric toothbrush, remote control

[ambous]

1) What is an API?

• It’s a way of communicating with a specific software, through some specific rules.

2) In the article the author compares Java API to Twitter API. What is the main difference between these two APIs?

• the Java API comes out of the box when you install the JDK, so basically you can access it locally.
• the Twitter API is web based and you can access it by sending an HTTP request.

3) The section in the article about abstraction is important, try to understand it and write down an abstraction from your daily life.

• A calculator: you input numbers, in the background different calculations take place and then you receive a result.

[Supremedonut]

1: An API is a set of rules that enables two programs to interact with each other. An example could be if I wanted to create a website which parts of some cities i could integrate with google maps API, which would essentially allow users to interact with google maps from my website.

2: Unlike the Java API, the Twitter API is web based and sends requests to services that Twitter hosts.

3: When I play videogames I sometimes make a macro which allows me to complete multiple actions with a single click, instead of having to click on multiple buttons.

[johnp]

1. What is an API?
   It is a way for a program to interact with a separate software component or other resource.

2. In the article the author compares Java API to Twitter API. What is the main difference between these two APIs?
   Java API is part of the Java Development Kit. Twitter API is web based. It must be accessed by making requests over the internet to Twitter hosted services.

3. The section in the article about abstraction is important, try to understand it and write down an abstraction from your daily life.
   Ivan on Tech sent me a notification email. I click on the email and view the daily chat without doing a search for IvanonTech.

[coinarura]

1) What is an API?
API stands for application programming interface. An API is defined as a specification of possible interactions with a software component. It defines the kinds of calls or requests that can be made, how to make them, the data formats that should be used, the conventions to follow, etc.
An API is basically a mechanism that allows the interaction between two applications using a set of rules .

2) In the article the author compares Java API to Twitter API. What is the main difference between these two APIs?
The Java API is a library of software components available “out of the box” to anyone who has installed the Java Development Kit.
The Twitter API is a web-based JSON API. This is the main difference with the JAVA API.
With a web-based API such as Twitter’s, your application sends an HTTP request, just like a web browser does. But instead of the response being delivered as a webpage, for human understanding, it’s returned in a format that applications can easily parse. Various formats exist for this purpose, and Twitter uses a popular and easy-to-use format called JSON.

3) The section in the article about abstraction is important, try to understand it and write down an abstraction from your daily life.
Imagine a waiter in a restaurant. You, the customer, are sitting at the table with a menu of choices to order from, and the kitchen is the provider who will fulfill your order.
You need a link to communicate your order to the kitchen and then to deliver your food back to your table. It can’t be the chef because she’s cooking in the kitchen. You need something to connect the customer who’s ordering food and the chef who prepares it. That’s where the waiter — or the API — enters the picture. The waiter takes your order, delivers it to the kitchen, telling the kitchen what to do. It then delivers the response, in this case, the food, back to you.
Another example could be booking a flight.
When you search for flights online, you have a menu of options to choose from. You choose a departure city and date, a return city and date, cabin class, and other variables like your meal, your seat, or baggage requests.
To book your flight, you need to interact with the airline’s website to access the airline’s database to see if any seats are available on those dates, and what the cost might be based on the date, flight time, route popularity, etc.
You need access to that information from the airline’s database, whether you’re interacting with it from the website or an online travel service that aggregates information from multiple airlines. Alternatively, you might be accessing the information from a mobile phone. In any case, you need to get the information, and so the application must interact with the airline’s API, giving it access to the airline’s data.
The API is the interface that, like your helpful waiter, runs and delivers the data from the application you’re using to the airline’s systems over the Internet. It also then takes the airline’s response to your request and delivers right back to the travel application you’re using. Moreover, through each step of the process, it facilitates the interaction between the application and the airline’s systems – from seat selection to payment and booking.