For Developers

Government Open Data: How To Get Involved
API University

A workshop on open government data pathways by API Evangelist and current White House Innovation Fellow, Kin Lane, shows there is still plenty of potential for developers, startups and interested citizens to influence the government open data agenda and make use of government data assets. Lane ran the workshop as part of the pre-opening day's workshop series at API Strategy and Practice, being held in San Francisco for the rest of the week.
How-To
Mark Boyd
Government, Events, Open Source
10-24-2013

When SDKs Are Better Than APIs
API University

An emerging trend is taking place where platforms are increasingly letting developers interact with their APIs through SDKs. Layer 7's Scott Morrison comments on why this is happening and when it makes sense, noting that "SDKs make the service subordinate to the client, thus inverting a hierarchy that goes back to the early days of distributed computing."
Analysis
Guest Author
SDK
10-04-2013

Advice from Hackathon Winners: How to Plan Your Time and Choose the Right APIs
API University

Hackathon events continue to be a key strategy used to promote API products and services. For developers, they provide an opportunity to work on solutions to real world problems, create new networks of like-minded technologists, connect with potential clients, and provide a chance to hone core developer skills from programming to pitching. Hackathon event planners are encouraged to read ChallengePosts’ top 5 keys to a successful app challenge. For competitors, we have already covered one key piece of advice: book your place in a hackathon early. This year has seen an explosion in growth of hackathon events, but surprisingly, this is yet to outstrip demand for new competition opportunities. But once you have booked in to a competition, how can you best prepare to compete? Many hackathons operate over 24 hours or a weekend. How can you maximize the productive time you spend when the clock of a hackathon starts counting down?
Interview
Mark Boyd
Events, Hacking, Competitions
08-14-2013

7 Free Geocoding APIs: Google, Bing, Yahoo and MapQuest
API University OpenAddresses GeoLocated Address SearchYahoo PlaceFinder
More Related

Almost every app that uses a mapping API needs latitude/longitude points. To get geocodes you need to convert an address to a point on the earth. That's where you'll need one of the 54 geocoding APIs in our directory. This post covers seven free geocoders and compares them on several aspects.
News
Adam DuVander
Mapping
06-21-2012