Application Programming Interface
Synonyms: API
1 Definition
According to Wikipedia, "In computer programming, an application programming interface (API) is a set of routines, protocols, and tools for building software and applications. An API expresses a software component in terms of its operations, inputs, outputs, and underlying types, defining functionalities that are independent of their respective implementations, which allows definitions and implementations to vary without compromising the interface. A good API makes it easier to develop a program by providing all the building blocks, which are then put together by the programmer. An API may be for a web-based system, operating system, or database system, and it provides facilities to develop applications for that system using a given programming language." As examples in EOSDIS, NASA's Common Metadata Repository (CMR) and Global Imagery Services (GIBS) provide an APIs to support client developers.
Notes
Examples
Sources
- NESDIS Data Management Lexicon and Related Terms
2 Definition
A set of functions and procedures allowing the creation of applications that access the features or data of an operating system, application, or other service.
Notes
An application programming interface (API) is an interface that defines interactions between multiple software applications or mixed hardware-software intermediaries. It defines the kinds of calls or requests that can be made, how to make them, the data formats that should be used, the conventions to follow, etc. It can also provide extension mechanisms so that users can extend existing functionality in various ways and to varying degrees. An API can be entirely custom, specific to a component, or designed based on an industry-standard to ensure interoperability. Through information hiding, APIs enable modular programming, allowing users to use the interface independently of the implementation.
Examples
Sources
- CEOS CalVal Portal
Term Relationships