REST API
APIs provide a standardised way for two applications to send data back and forth.
REST is a set of guidelines that software can use to communicate over the internet in order to make integrations simple and scalable.
REST stands for Representational State Transfer, meaning that when a client requests a resource using a REST API, the server transfer back the current state of the resource in a standardised representation.
For example, my program can ask Youtube’s REST API for information about a specific video, Youtube will respond to the request with the resource state, which includes attributes like the video name, publishing date, view count and video link - all packaged in a format that the receiving program can quickly parse and use.
- Client-Server Separation.
- Uniform Interface.
- Stateless.
- Layered System.
- Cacheable.
- Code on Demand (Optional).
Why use REST APIs?
- They are flexible, scalable and they incorporate existing web technologies.