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Enterprise architect's guide to API best practices and trends
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Article
How to make API management, development and strategy choices
With the influx of mobile and cloud applications, it's more important than ever to have a sound API strategy in place. Read Now
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Article
Why an enterprise needs effective API management
While some of the hype around SOA architecture may have died down, the importance of API management remains. Read Now
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Article
How API development, SOA and the cloud come together
API development is becoming increasingly important, as APIs are playing a bigger role than in the past. Read Now
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Article
Advice for avoiding common API design traps
Architects need to look at a new kind of API design based on resources and verbs instead of technical, self-defining data models. Read Now
Editor's note
While anything but new, application program interfaces (APIs) haven't always in the spotlight. Now, the programming tool is becoming increasingly important, thanks to advances in mobile, cloud and machine-to-machine technologies.
More than ever before, organizations are looking for ways to speed API development as systems are becoming overwhelmed with data. Enterprise architects are commonly tasked with developing and managing APIs, making it critical to know how the technology is changing integration and software development.
This guide brings together a collection of articles and key terms related to API best practices and development. When you're done, see how much you've learned by taking our quiz.
1Where APIs are headed
It's not enough to be able to wrap your head around what an API can and can't do for an organization. Technology professionals have to be thinking one step ahead of what is currently taking place. Some experts predict cloud and mobile technologies are just beginning to impact APIs.
The following is a collection of articles focusing on the latest trends and API best practices.
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Article
Mobile, cloud applications push APIs to the next level
Basics found in REST will help keep developers from being overwhelmed as they navigate software application development. Read Now
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Article
Value, importance of APIs realized by IT departments
Delivering software is important, but in this age of social media and networked infrastructure, allowing various pieces of software to integrate seamlessly is of heightened importance. This makes the development of externally facing client APIs more important than ever. Read Now
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Using Representational State Transfer (REST) and JSON to build APIs
Learn tips on best practices for building REST and JSON APIs from a presenter at JavaOne 2013. Read Now
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Article
Latest trends in API management and development
Experts share their insights on API development and what architects can do to keep track of the evolving technology. Read Now
2Common API terms
This glossary provides definitions of terms related to APIs.
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Definition
API management
API management is the process of overseeing application programming interfaces (APIs) in a secure, scalable environment. Read Now
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Definition
application program interface (API)
An application program interface (API) is code that allows two software programs to communicate with each other. Read Now
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Definition
open API (public API)
An open API, also known as a public API, is an application programming interface that allows the owner of a network-accessible service to give universal access to consumers of that service, such as developers. Read Now
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Definition
REST (REpresentational State Transfer)
REST (REpresentational State Transfer) is an architectural style for developing web services. REST is popular due to its simplicity and the fact that it builds upon existing systems and features of the internet's HTTP in order to achieve its objectives, as opposed to creating new standards, frameworks and technologies. Read Now
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Definition
vStorage API
A vStorage API is an application program interface (API) from VMware that enables third-party storage and backup vendors to integrate their products with VMware’s vSphere server virtualization platform. Read Now
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Definition
cloud provider API
A cloud provider API is an application program interface that allows the end user to interact with a cloud provider's service. Read Now
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Definition
cloud storage API
A cloud storage API is an application program interface that connects a locally-based application to a cloud-based storage system, so that a user can send data to it and access and work with data stored in it. To the application, the cloud storage system is just another target device, like tape or disk-based storage. Read Now
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Definition
vStorage APIs for Storage Awareness (VASA)
vStorage APIs for Storage Awareness (VASA) is a set of application program interfaces (APIs), released with VMware’s vSphere 5, that enables vSphere vCenter to recognize the capabilities of storage arrays that support the API. Read Now
3Prove your API knowledge
How much have you learned about API best practices and trends? Find out with our quiz.