21 The API prerelease checklist

After the success of the web and mobile products, José is now considering releasing the API to the general public. He wants to allow others to build on the PetSitter platform and give it more exposure to different audiences and marketplaces.

As excited as José and the team are, they need to consider what they’ll release and how they’ll release it before jumping in.

21.1 Pros and cons of a public API

There are several challenges involved in releasing an API to the general public. The chief problem is surely that consumers cannot change their code immediately after the API has a breaking change. Add to that, there isn’t a direct communication channel between the API team and the consumers, so we’re left with a pickle jar and no way of opening it. Topics like security, testing, and monitoring also need to be considered to keep the API healthy and engaging.

All these challenges may make releasing an API a little wearisome. But there are benefits from increased use of the platform: new and innovative use cases not considered before. We, as authors of an API book, are naturally a little biased, but even so, releasing an API is generally good.

These are some pros and cons of releasing a public API:

21.2 The checklist

21.3 Getting the API working

21.3.1 Unit testing your API

21.3.2 End-to-end testing

21.4 Documentation

21.5 Getting your API consistent

21.6 Validation and error reporting

21.7 An API roadmap and exposure index

21.8 Getting a change strategy

21.9 Improving security