Reputation:

The meaning of API

Could anyone please tell me the meaning of API in following paragraph, that's actually about Transfer Object:

If it's likely that a business service might be asked to send or receive all or most of its data in a big, coarse-grained message, it's common for that service to provide that feature in its API.

Thanks in advance.

Upvotes: 3

Answers (7)

alexanderpas

Reputation: 2782

API = application programming interface

The best way to compare a formal API is an contract between certain parts of your code.

If you call me in this certain way, I will always respond in that certain way.

Upvotes: 0

bobobobo

Reputation: 67266

When you talk about any object's "API", you're talking about the functions (aka 'commands') you can send to that object.

Upvotes: 0

Tolga E

Reputation: 12678

to add to the previous answers, let's say for the delicious websites API, in your current program, you can ask for it info on the last site that was bookmarked by a user to put it onto your website. In order to do that, delicious provides a url in their API, and you can use that with certain parameters and it will return you a html code...

Basically any sites/program that provides an API, basically enables the developers to use its database (dictated by them) and they basically provide methods to the developers in their API section

Upvotes: 0

Cody C

Reputation: 4807

API = Application Programming Interface. It is your formal statement of the programming interafce you offer to other components. If you are a serious service provider then you pay careful attention to the design of your API. The use of DTOs is often very appropriate in the provisision of a good interface.

Wikipedia Link

Upvotes: 3

Sk93

Reputation: 3718

an application programming interface (API) is an interface that defines the ways by which an application program may request services from libraries and/or operating systems

see here:

Wikipedia article on API

Upvotes: 1