What an API does
An API is an agreed way for one program to request data or an action from another. It defines endpoints, inputs, outputs, authentication and error behavior. A mobile…
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An API is an agreed way for one program to request data or an action from another. It defines endpoints, inputs, outputs, authentication and error behavior. A mobile app, for example, may use an API to retrieve account information from a server.
How it works
Good APIs validate input, limit access, return predictable errors and document version changes. An API key is not automatically a user identity, and exposing secrets in browser code can let others reuse them.
Practical takeaways
Read the provider’s limits and authentication rules, keep secrets server-side and log failures without recording passwords or tokens. Design clients to handle timeouts and partial outages.
An API is a contract between software; its reliability depends on both the contract and the implementation.
In short: An API is an agreed way for one program to request data or an action from another. It defines endpoints, inputs, outputs, authentication and error behavior. A mobile app, for example, may use an API to retrieve account information from a server.