Intro to APIs

Emily Chao(elchao2), Berwin Xie(bxie6)

What is an API?

• Application Programming Interface
• Allows developers to integrate already-existing features into their application
• Saves time, energy, allows for cool data analysis, etc.
• Most often provided by companies or open-source communities

Example uses

• Account creation, login, authentication (i.e. Google Login)
• Social media posting capability (i.e. Tweet, Follow, Like)
• Accessing data from different services (i.e. CUMTD, Weather.com)
• Manipulate different data points between applications (i.e. Google Apps Script)
• Incorporating other features (i.e. Google Maps)

Visual Components and Data Request Endpoints

How to gain access to an API

• OAuth tokens
• Register for API key through developer console
• Maybe it's just an open API! Hooray!

Tutorial!

• Let's use JSFiddle
• Tutorial based on CUMTD API
• Challenge: Use the Open Movie Database API to create a search engine for movies

Ethics of using an API

• Maintaining APIs is expensive
• Many companies will rate-limit requests
• For smaller or more open APIs, be aware of server downtime and other developers using the API - don't send too many requests!
• Different cost models - # requests / day for free tier, capacity costs, etc.