API stands for Application Programming Interface. It’s essentially a set of rules for building software applications.
APIs define how different software’s or applications should interact with each other. They enable developers to access the functionality or data of an application, service, or platform, without needing to understand the underlying technology.
APIs are commonly used to enable integration between different software systems, allowing them to communicate and exchange data.
Here’s an example to illustrate how APIs work:
Consider a weather forecasting website that provides weather information to users. This website has an API that allows developers to access the weather data.
Now let’s say you’re a developer building a outdoor workout mobile app and you want to display current weather conditions. Instead of manually collecting weather data, you can use the weather forecasting website’s API to retrieve this information.
