API - What is it and what does it do?

[JackNoMore]

The term API is being thrown around a lot lately. Right now I'm trying out the cartmanager software and there's a spot for API. What is it? What does it do? When do you need it and how complex is it to work? Yeah, I know I could google it, but who wants to sort through 3 million mentions of the term when we can nail down a good explanation right here?

[Chris Hanson]

Somehow your comprehending with it?? right???

[aspkin]

An API is basically a way for one site to communicate with another. If there are upgrades needed, or a spam list you need to be aware of or other things. It's just interface that makes things a lot easier.

A lot of people use API keys to have access to a service. For example Wordpress has Akismet which requires an API key to use it. With Akismet it's basically a huge database that filters out all the spam a wordpress site would have. Without it, you would see nothing but spam blogs on the internet. But there are a lot of uses for an API.

Try these for more info:

Application Programming Interface
Application programming interface - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[JackNoMore]

Thank you Aspkin Finally a sensible reply.

How would this play specifically into something like Google Base or product search? One of the first things you see when you access the service is the API upload option, along with the single post and CSV file uploads. I'm already using the CSV (not by choice really, just more exposure) format and was wondering if it would be advantageous to step it up to the API level.

[aspkin]

Using an API would automate everything. It would pull your products to Google Base instead of having your upload it all the time with your CSV file.

[JackNoMore]

I see. Interesting. So would this be like the "renew until cancelled" option for ebay stores or is that something else entirely?

[aspkin]

Not really.