API’s – How They Help Us
When you’re creating an application to be used by the public, then you’ll most likely wind up running into API’s. They can be extremely helpful for a computer programmer or pretty much anyone who is making the app, but not everyone is entirely familiar with what an API’s are, and how they can benefit you as a user. To try and help with this, we’ve put together some information on them.
So what are API’s?
To understand what how an API helps us on a daily basis, we need to know what the API is first. API stands for Application Programming Interface and is used in many applications and software worldwide. Whenever you go onto the internet and interact with a web page, you’re interacting with the API of that server. When you try and view a page, a request is sent to that API, which allows you access to the site, so to speak. In essence, the API is the part of the server which gets your request to look at the site and then sends you a response.
So how do API’s help us?
As the API acts primarily as the connection between the person wishing to access a site and the site itself, they are vital for allowing you to view the sites you need to while on the internet. As well as this, there are practical applications for API’s, and these can be used by businesses to assist with their customer interactions.
As an example, let’s pretend for a moment that you are a business with a website, and you have a section where a client can fill in a form to book an appointment, with the result being an appointment made in the Google calendar. The API would allow your website to contact Google’s server directly with the information required to complete the booking in, and then the server from Google would then contact your server with a confirmation, which you could then forward onto the client or customer who signed up in the first place.
This is beneficial for you because it allows your customers or clients to use your service without having to leave the website at all, which for them is easier and less hassle, so they’ll be more inclined to use it.
Overall, the Application Programming Interface is something which can be very helpful for business to use, particularly when trying to make things easier for their customers. The role of the API is vital when looking at websites and pages on the internet, as without the API you can’t view a web page correctly, and in the technological age, this isn’t something which is acceptable.
Understanding API’s, their role in the internet based information system, and how they can help you as a business is vital to being able to deliver the best possible experience for your customers and clients, working to ensure that their experiences with your sites are straightforward, hassle free, and easy to use.