What Are APIs And What Can They Do For You?
When you come across a term like API on your way about town and discover that it stands for Application Programming Interface, you may feel a distinct sensation of dread sliding through you like a bad oyster. But fear not! In this post, we’ll be talking through exactly what an API is, and why it’s such a crucial tool in the digital era.
An Application Programming Interface is a tool that facilitates communication between different devices and programs.
The ease with which separate devices and programs can connect to and interact with one another today is nothing short of astonishing. Just think — you can hail an Uber through Google Maps, sign up for Spotify using Facebook, and with just one app in the likes of Skyscanner, comb through the databases of dozens of airlines and compare flight prices for a spontaneous getaway.
APIs are what makes this level of interconnectivity possible.
You see, apps like Google Maps and Spotify, or a website like the one you’re on right now are all varying manifestations of computer programs. All programs are built from code — a series of instructions for a computing system, if you like — and different programs are built differently, so the underlying code for one program is distinct from that of another.
This difference is important because sometimes, the functions of one program could be very useful for another — such as when Uber uses Google to support its mapping, or when an e-commerce store uses Quiqup’s algorithms to power its deliveries. In order for one program to “speak” with another, then, there needs to be some kind of a translator.
This is where APIs come in, they are doorways that allow one program to access the functions of another program without needing to first understand the entire coded architecture — shortcuts to a program’s functions. (You could, of course, learn all the code for a particular program and access its functions that way, but that’d just be silly and take you forever)
If a program is like a house, then the APIs are the doorways that let you know how to access that house.
The technical definition of APIs is sets of routines, protocols and tools for building software applications which specify how different components of programs should interact and request access to one another’s functions. However, this kind of definition can be hard to grasp without some prior knowledge in programming.
So, think of it this way instead: say you’re pining after some ramen but lack the necessary equipment, ingredients and expertise to make it at home. So you go to a restaurant to satisfy your craving. But you can’t just charge into the kitchen and start firing up — you have to order your meal off of a menu with a certain amount of options, a waiter takes your order, gives it to the kitchen, then returns with your ramen.
If the kitchen in the ramen joint is the program you’re trying to access, then the menu is the part of the API that specifies how and what you can request from the program, and the waiter is the process that serves your request and returns with what you ordered.
Just as a graphic interface on a screen allows you to interact with your device and access its functions — an API is an interface that allows programs to interact with and access the functions of different programs.
So, when Quiqup is offering an API Integration service for your e-commerce or EPOS system, what we’re providing is a seamless fulfilment integration for your online store to communicate with Quiqup’s logistics fleet in the most efficient manner possible. That way, you don’t need to know how Quiqup matches a Quiqee to a pickup, you just need to know that a Quiqee is on the way to take your goods to your customers.
We hope you enjoyed the post! Still want to learn more about APIs? Read here.
Tim, Business Content Writer
