API

An Application Programming Interface (API) is a set of definitions of the ways in which one piece of computer software communicates with another. It is a method of achieving abstraction, usually (but not necesserily) between lower-level and higher-level software. Generally, the main purpose of an API is to spare from the programmer the need to write software from scratch. APIs themselves are abstract; software which provides a certain API is often called the implementation of that API.

For example, one may look at the task of writing "Hello World" on the screen, at increasing levels of abstraction:

1. Do it all yourself:
   1. Draw, on graph paper, the shapes of the letters H, e, l, o, W, r, d.
   2. Work out a matrix of black and white squares that look like those letters.
   3. Devise a way to program the CPU to put this matrix into the display adapter's frame buffer.
   4. Set the graphics card up to scan its frame buffer to generate the correct signal.
2. Use somebody else's operating system to some of the work:
   1. Load a data structure called a "font" provided with the operating system.
   2. Have the operating system display a blank window.
   3. Have the operating system draw the text "Hello World" to the window with the font.
3. Use somebody else's application program to do all this hard work:
   1. Write an HTML document with the words "Hello World" in it.
   2. Have Mozilla or Internet Explorer present it.

It is quite obvious that the first option requires more steps, each of which is much more complicated than in the following options. In addition, it is impossible to use the first approach to present a substancial amount of information, like an encyclopedia article, on the screen, whereas the second approach allows to do this with some extra logic (e.g. scrollbars), and the third approach would not even require these modifications. However, higher-level APIs often lose flexibility; for example, Internet Explorer cannot display text with blinking outlines, something that could be done easily at the lower levels. This difference is a typical example of the trade-offs a developer can make by using an API.

APIs are as essential to computers as electrical standards are to the home. One can plug his toaster into the wall whether he is at home or at a neighbour's house, because both houses conform to the standard API for an electrical socket. If there wasn't an API standard, he would have to bring a power station with him to make his toast! Note that there is nothing stopping somebody else coming up with another standard; a European toaster will not work in the US without a transformer, just as a program written for Microsoft Windows will not work directly on a UNIX system without an intermediate API adapter.

There are various kinds mediums where APIs are used. Interfaces intended for the fastest execution often consist of sets of functions, procedures, variables and data structures. However other models exist as well, such as the interpreter used to evaluate expressions in ECMAScript. A good API is able to provide a "black box" or abstraction layer, which prevents the programmer from needing to know how the functions of the API relate to the lower levels of abstraction. This makes it possible to redesign or improve the functions within the API without breaking code that relies on it.

Two general lines of policies exist regarding publishing APIs:

• Some companies guard their APIs jealously. For example, Sony only makes its official API available to licensed developers for its PlayStation. This is because Sony wants to restrict the amount of people who are able to write a PlayStation game, and to profit from them as much as possible. This is typical of companies who do not profit from the sale of API implementations (in this case, Sony breaks even selling PlayStation consoles and takes a loss on marketing, intending to make it up through game royalties created by API licensing).
• Other companies propagate their APIs freely. For example, Microsoft deliberately makes their API information public, so that software will be written for the Windows platform. The sale of the third party software sells copies of Windows. This is typical of companies who profit from the sale of API implementations (in this case, Microsoft Windows, which is sold at a gain for Microsoft).

Some APIs, such as the ones standard to an operating system, are implemented as separate code libraries that are distributed with the OS. Others require software publishers to integrate the API functionality directly into the application. This forms another distinction in the examples above. Microsoft Windows APIs come with the operating system for anyone to use. Software for embedded systems such as video game consoles generally falls into the latter category. While an official Playstation API document may be interesting to read, it is of little use without its corresponding implementation, in the form of a separate library or developer's kit.

An API which does not require royalties for access and usage is called open. The APIs provided by Free software (such as software distributed under the GNU General Public License), are open by definition, since anyone can look into the source of the software and figure out the API. Although usually authoritative "reference" implementations exist for an API (such as Microsoft Windows for the Win32 API), there's nothing that prevents the creation of additional implementations. For example, most of the Win32 API can be provided under a UNIX system using software called Wine.

It is generally lawful to analyze API implementations in order to produce a compatible one. This technique is called reverse engineering for the purposes of interoperability. However, the legal situation is often ambiguous, so that care and legal counsel should be taken before the reverse engineering is carried out. For example, while APIs usually do not have an obvious legal status, they may include patents that may not be used until the patent holder gives her permission.

Examples of APIs are:

• The PC BIOS call interface
• Document Object Models of various applications, such as HTML
• The Single UNIX Specification
• The Microsoft Win32 API
• The J2EE Java 2 Enterprise Edition APIs