API (Application Program Interface)

/ˌeɪ.piˈaɪ/

Definition

Software programs can be extremely complex and daunting use. Thankfully, developers make using the programs easier to use by wrapping them up and only exposing simplified actions so you won't mess up and you get what you need.

When you want to move a car forward you're not worrying about the pistons, the gears, and the transmission. You simply press your foot on the gas pedal. The API is the gas pedal of software programs. It is the part of the software that is exposed for the users to interact with it in a way that the software developers intended it to be used. Spotify, for example, can choose to create an API to let users receive all the songs from a certain artist.

Used in a sentence

Example 1: API's provide additional functionality to applicationsProduct Manager: Can we integrate Google Analytics into our product?Lead Dev: Sure, we can even integrate with Google's API's to create reports.

Example 2: Tester finds a bug in their APITester: Hey somethings is up with our API's. I'm not able to delete users' posts.Dev: Interesting... I'll check to see if our services are down. 

Commonly used terms related to DevOps

• API Call

• Endpoint

• Keys

• Integration

• Request