You can explore what is possible in the Stripe reference and grab the exact code necessary to perform the operation. Even better, it has a point-and-click token generator to let you see your own data in the responses. This template pack includes detailed examples, guidelines, and screenshots. You can view and manage your API keys in the Stripe Dashboard.. Test mode secret keys have the prefix sk_test_ and live mode secret keys have the prefix sk_live_.Alternatively, you can use restricted API keys for granular permissions.. Instead of using the same two-panel design as other contenders on this list, Dropbox gets you to choose your programming language of choice first, and then provides tailored documentation for that language. Maybe you have a list of use cases already in mind that you can share to stoke your audiences imagination. Using DotLiquid syntax and the editor of your choice, such as DotLiquid for Designers, and a provided set of localized String resources, Glyph resources, and Page controls, you have great . The following documentation content is about the deprecated developer portal. This first example wont be deployed to production but helps show whats possible. Examples: It's always a good idea to provide examples. A prerequisite to generating any meaningful documentation is an OpenAPI document. Thomas Bush is an enthusiastic freelance writer from the United Kingdom, who loves breaking down tough topics into bite-sized articles. Understanding these essential concepts and developing API documentation with the user experience in mind will help you plan well. How to Write a Grant Proposal Cover Letter, Google Technical Writer Interview Questions. Therefore, create API documentation written in simple language, making it easy for developers to use and benefit from. of all Internet traffic belongs to API-based services. It supports version control, collaboration, user roles, try-it authentication, and other security features. The documentation for GitHubs REST API is also praised frequently by developers. Its a good idea to list status codes and error messages on a separate page as it allows you to describe each code in detail without crowding the other documentation. The audience of this documentation needs to have a place where they can reference all endpoints this API provides. We built the API to be as self-documenting as possible, but if you find yourself overwhelmed, we organized this site into four major areas. If developers are your customers, your blog posts should speak their language. For more information about working with templates, see How to customize the API Management developer portal using templates. Remember to replace "module name" with the name of an actual module. The name can contain alpha characters, digits and next symbols: .-_~. You can use Postmans API documentation tool to generate machine-readable documentation for your API and keep it up to date. Each topic page has a three-column template: A menu that lists document topics on the left, the document itself in the middle, and a contents list for that article on the right. To write great API documentation, use templates, use the right API documentation tools, and follow a step-by-step process. If you can, avoid using technical jargon unless it is necessary. You can view the live default templates in the developer portal by navigating to the desired individual templates. Field reference lists and . Instead of bombarding you with information spanning the entire page, it gives you specific implementation advice for your chosen language. For more information about working with templates, see How to customize the API Management developer portal using templates. You want to share best practices for your specific technical area. However, the Twitter API docs feel less like a mundane blog post, and more like an interactive guide theres a quick note of how many minutes read the page is, you can switch between different methods within the post, and the concluding Next Steps heading is always pointing you in the right direction. Includes a 16-page How to Write API Document tutorial that explains how to write each section in your API reference documentation. Its best to use standard terminology so that everyone can understand the terms. Call-outs that share important information with developers, including warnings and errors. All successful response will have an HTTP status code within the 2xx range, errors caused by the client will have a status code within the 4xx range, while errors caused by the server (such errors are very rare) will have a status code within the 5xx range. So its a good idea to write for the entry-level. API docs that are disorganized, inaccurate, too long, or difficult to locate will not be used. The answer to this all-important question is that your smartphone apps access data through APIs. Samples. . The best API documentation reaches beyond simple accuracy. This page is a translated version of the page API:Templates and the translation is 6% complete. Current Version When changes to the API are published into the OpenAPI document, SendGrid automatically runs scripts to generate correct user-facing reference documentation for its API. Postman pulls sample requests, headers, code snippets, and more to populate the documentation with dynamic examples and machine-readable instructions. Some endpoints are protected and need authorized access. The current version of the API lives at https://api.gsa.gov/v3/path. More info about Internet Explorer and Microsoft Edge, How to customize the API Management developer portal using templates, Learn how to migrate to the new developer portal, Azure API Management new developer portal overview, Access and customize the new developer portal. Get 67 api documentation HTML website templates on ThemeForest such as Doxy - Knowlegebase & Documentation Site Template, Vuero - VueJS 3 Admin and Webapp UI Kit, Vulk - Multipurpose Vue 3 SSR SaaS Landing Pages UI Kit A good understanding of APIs also helps. Though many have copied how Stripe docs look, few have gone as far as the payments company to make its reference copy-paste friendly. Before you start working on the API documentation, you need to understand your audience well. If developers are running into issues with their implementation, one glance tells them whether it may or may not be server-related. 2. Overview A unique feature is preview functionality: you can preview every branch or pull request to ensure your changes are reviewed and discussed before pushing to production. Just look over to the side navigation panel: theyve included pages like Whats a REST API, anyway? and How Twilios API uses webhooks. Their answers to these questions give developers a quick, bottom-up insight into everything they need to know. Perform an audit of your existing developer portal and content, making a list of potential areas for attention. If you notice any areas that are difficult to understand and read, either edit or remove them altogether. APIs are software developed for software developers. The technology is enabled by OpenAPI and other API descriptions (see generate API references below). Azure API Management provides you the ability to customize the content of developer portal pages using a set of templates that configure their content. However, Twilios API documentation feels a little easier on the eyes, with a well-chosen font and bright, contrasting links. can go. Redocly is an open-source tool that generates API documentation from OpenAPI specifications. Examples based on real-world API applications further enhance learning by bringing in variables that API developers will have to deal with daily. API Blueprint: Maintained by Apiary, it's a standard based on the popular Markdown format that lets you easily generate code from the documentation. For Render, the win is a deployed repo. This is the most important type of API documentation as developers spend most of their time on reference documentation. The sample above shows what the error responses look like. This template is suitable for writing any form of REST API documentation and is limited to just that. MediaWiki Action API . Tutorials are helpful if your users want to learn about specific use cases. The version of an API should be explicitly stated as well as the appropriate revisions. This article will go over the best way to write API documentation. For documentation, you can use OpenAPI to generate references. Another oft-cited favorite of developers is the Twilio docs. You can also include various helpful resources such as SDKs and libraries in the API documentation. Youre already doing a great job with technical writing if you can convert all technical jargon into understandable words and sentences. API Specification Doc (Chilly Recipes App) Version Date Author Description 1.0 05-Oct-2012 Saurabh (rebugged.com) Initial draft 1.1 17-Nov-2012 Saurabh (rebugged.com) Added version number in response NOTE: Please don't request edit access to this demo document. See the examples for details. The guide itself is split into multiple pages and each covers one area of Chaos Engineering. Writing any other form of API documentation is well beyond the scope of this template. However, such auto-generated documentation lacks good explanations that only a good developer or technical writer can provide. Instead, share top use cases. You should discuss in detail how pagination is handled in your API. The company publishes multiple posts per week with general front-end education. Querying data over an API requires making some sort of requests and sending some payload or data with that request. Best of all, SDKs typically simplify authentication, often the hardest part of getting started with an API. 1.1. LogRocket treats its blog like a publication that developers would read even when they arent shopping for monitoring. Azure API Management provides you the ability to customize the content of developer portal pages using a set of templates that configure their content. You should explain in detail how the responses to the API endpoints are paginated. A "Template" is the content of the emails that are sent to targets. Then, ensure you clearly communicate the main benefits of your API or platform. Some endpoints of the Action API require authenticated access, so this is just an example of how you could present endpoints to the audience. In truth, there arent any shiny bells and whistles and thats probably what makes the Stripe API reference so good. Among the many uses of an OpenAPI document is to generate API reference docs. Additionally, code samples in the appropriate language or using curl should be added here so the audience can get a better understanding of the explanation provided. Consumers of your API must know which error to expect, so it can be handled adequately. simply include your API key as the value in an HTTP header named x-api-key. Between these two pages, developers can figure out in a hurry (and without even signing up) whether theyll be able to solve their problem with Plaid. You can check out API documentation from major companies, such as Microsoft, to better understand the format and content. Furthermore, good communication skills are essential for effective coordination between team members and developers. The Most API docs look and feel the same. Update descriptions for any features that are added or removed. To write great API documentation, use templates, use the right API documentation tools, and follow a step-by-step process. Using an API documentation tool can provide many benefits. If youre logged in, it will even include your own token (rather than the public version). As youd expect, it has all the crucial information you need to get going right away. Youve already told them whats possible, so here you need to show them. Below is the provided template for this particular genre and is to be duly followed when creating documentation. Its a small touch, but as we recently covered, small tweaks like this become very helpful. 2. Keep in mind that this is the homepage for the whole company. The deprecated portal will only receive critical security updates. As a quick heads-up, these API reference docs are great for many more reasons than one. It features a sleek and cool two-panel design, with explanations written in plain English on the left and handy code snippets on the right. To make the easier, we've focused on one primary lesson for each: Plaid shows developers what's possible. API Docs, api documentation, dev docs, dev experience, developer experience, docs, documentation, Dropbox, dx, FAQ, GitHub, Stripe, Twilio, Twitter. In particular, Twilio has use case tutorials within its docs, so these solutions can be discovered and described from a developer point of view. The API list template allows you to customize the body of the API list page in the developer portal. Interactive examples will help comprehension of the API documentation because the reader will be applying what theyre reading in real-time. impact blog posts on API business models and tech advice. Version Date Changes; version 1: 1/1/2095: Initial deployment: version 2: 3/1/2096: Changed data structure to fit congressional mandate: version 3: 3/1/2099: This is because keeping the internal details of your authentication process confidential prevents hackers from obtaining unauthorized access. Even though programming experience is not essential, technical writers with programming experience write the best API documentation. Description. The lesson: be beginner-friendly. And not just speak their programming language. Good API documentation makes it easy for developers to use, reference, and explore. To keep you informed of the bigger picture, though, well refer back to this five-part checklist of documentation basics throughout the post: Authentication guide Quickstart guide Endpoint definitions Code snippets Example responses . In a previous post, we talked about the features API documentation cant live without, and more broadly the core ingredients for a developer center, but today were going to dive head-first into the nitty gritty of it all and look at five examples of excellent API documentation. At first glance, Vimeo's documentation looks a lot like our other API documentation examples, especially the Google Maps APIs. Parameter. One way of teaching and learning concepts is in isolation. Sure, the layout and colors might differ, but a reference is the source of truth. | Supported by, 5 Examples of Excellent API Documentation (and Why We Think So), features API documentation cant live without, the core ingredients for a developer center, 7 Items No API Documentation Can Live Without. Youll find many big players taking the language-specific approach. Select File > Download as > , from the open template. Its content is not focused on its product, but rather the problems its ideal developer customer experiences. Name of the template being stored. However, its blog topics are much more expansive. The company backs up these use cases with solid documentation that would fit well in other sections of this post. API Documentation Rev 1/5/17 Contents: I n te g r a ti o n Co n s i d e r a ti o n s 1 . MediaWiki API for example returns an error object with an error code and error message; you can read about it at API:Errors and warnings. Additionally, templates can contain tracking images so that gophish knows when the user opens the email. Your ride-hailing app uses Google Maps API (or a similar service) to access real-time tracking information. The DocumentationSamplesCsharp template allows you to customize that code sample in the code samples section of the operation page. The templates in this section allow you to customize the content of the API pages in the developer portal. The DocumentationSamplesJs template allows you to customize that code sample in the code samples section of the operation page. Its crucial to ensure all your documents remain accurate and up-to-date. This API stores a new template, including its name, description and (optionally) the template content. On the developer homepage, you can quickly see more about whats possible: transactions, income, balance, and more is available with Plaid. Good API documentation makes it easy for developers to use, reference, and explore. With consistent attention, youll have better docs and happier developers. Explain each field of the response and what it means, especially the error types and status codes. Refer to the following articles for more details: This feature is available in the Premium, Standard, Basic, and Developer tiers of API Management. Obsolete API documentation will lead to frustrated users, reduced retention, and increased support costs as developers turn to your teams again and again for help. API documentation is the information that is required to successfully consume and integrate with an API. As a writer, feedback is important to improve the quality of your API documentation. The structure of the body solely depends on the endpoint being queried. 1.2. This guide ranks well for relevant, high-volume topics, so it likely brings evergreen traffic. . Make it Accurate, Compact, and Easy to Find, The value of the API management market will reach. That means you use the same terminology, formatting, and reference points throughout the document. You could also have a look at API:Errors and warnings#Standard error messages and API:REST API/Reference to see how errors are presented in MediaWiki APIs. Developers use APIs to write software, and the interface is how non-programming users interact with applications on their devices. Then, focus your efforts to make it successful. Or, think about some new articles on your blog if you havent published anything in a few months or maybe even a year. I illustrated to the client how I could create 1200 pages of skeleton API documentation from their Java code in a day or so, saving them at least 3 weeks of typical technical . Sometimes organizations dont have dedicated technical writers, and the responsibility for writing API documentation falls on product owners, content writers, or even the startup founder. . Twilio is attempting to hit a wide audience with its current messaging, but its developer roots remain. Twilio Docs. Your weather app uses an API to get weather data from one of the many online weather services. Each API document needs to have some fundamental sections. Its hard to point to a single, cool feature of the Stripe API documentation. When a request is successful, the audience should have an idea of what the expected response looks like. The DocumentationSamplesPhp template allows you to customize that code sample in the code samples section of the operation page. motivation letter environmental engineering; present tense conjugation; used concrete forms for sale; role of teacher in special education ppt; a doll's house nora quotes act 1 Sample default templates are included in the following documentation, but are subject to change due to continuous improvements. The response returned from an API when a request is successful is quite different from the response when the request fails. So make API docs easy to find and easy to use. Take one or two of these areas on to improve your documentation today. Any modern programming language should be able to make HTTP requests. Its not hard to maintain your API documentation; you can do the following to make sure it stays updated: Here are some best practices that will improve the developer experience for your API documentation. Technical writers collaborate with developers and other stakeholders to create API documentation. Signup to the Nordic APIs newsletter for quality content. Basic Documentation Using API Blueprint. GET request to get a list of all pages (typically templates) transcluded in the provided pages. Its one thing to see whats possible in a referenceits even better to experience it. People who consume an API need to have an understanding of what kind of data is returned from that API and how the data is structured. If a feature is removed, mention it in the document, along with the reasoning behind the removal. Each version of an API is quite distinct and some are not backwards compatible. Some requests need certain headers to be sent as a part of the request. Using DotLiquid syntax and the editor of your choice, such as DotLiquid for Designers, and a provided set of localized String resources, Glyph resources, and Page controls, you have great flexibility to configure the content of the pages as you see fit using these templates. How to contact the author and maintainers of this project (only share public information here, like Zulip or IRC). High Review these 9 great examples of API documentation and emulate them with your own docs. LogRocket is a front-end monitoring tool. Use this 28-page MS Word template to document your REST/Web APIs.
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