Hacker News Reader

Comment by bradhe | Hacker News Reader

What's the use case for searching for "an API" exactly? Usually, there's something very specific you want to do with an API...

View on HN

I think this is a legitimate question. Personally, it would be cool to scan lists of API's for idea inspiration but this doesn't really provide that functionality. Now what would be cool here, is if the APIs returned here had docs presented on the website with a consistent UX/UI. But then you would need an API for an API :)

The apis.json format this looks for contains fields for formats like http://www.swagger.io/ which it could then pull in (or someone else could) to render the docs in line.

Might be interesting to check this out https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=8637324

Main thing that's useful is that if it can pull in all the elements (def portal, specs, etc.) you get deeplinks to everything. Google also doesn't help finding some APIs easily since it just treats it as content or they aren't linked.

In the long run hopefully a lot of the fields in the apis.json files this pulls on will be machine readable (e.g. meta-data for things like major T&C provisions), pointers to libraries etc. so you could filter on that.

What I'd like to see, replace the "Documentation" link in each search engine result - with the apis json rendered to a standard template thusly http://jsbin.com/favajizuti/1/edit

As we add Swagger specs for each one, that is exactly what will be possible. Baby steps.

SDKs as well :)

We have the previous version of APIs.io supported over here: https://apimatic.io/apientity/search

Let's connect this too!

Usually but not always. For example, I was just searching for a weather API and apis.io was really helpful.

Getting ideas for what's out there.

it gets 3scale marketing traffic. it doesn't offer anything useful or functional just a viola effect.

It doesn't offer anything useful? Really? I spent almost 80 hours hand crafting the APIs.json for this release. I'm building federal gov versions of APIs.io with this to drive traffic to vital gov resources, and working to priortize the APIs.json + Swagger for vital non-profit resources ilke DPLA. WTF have you done notastartup to further the API community? eh? Links please!!

what you are doing sounds pretty useless.

I think you comments violate the spirit, and maybe the rules, of HN -https://news.ycombinator.com/newswelcome.html

I guess we'll see if people find it useful - the point of this is: there is current NO structured meta-data about APIs out on the web and that will be needed if we're one day goingto find APIs with all their associated elements as easily as we can web pages today.

Hence the format http://www.apisjson.org (it's basically sitemap for APIs) and the search engine http://www.apis.io. The search engine is also open source so you can run your own, format is completely open.

So if we (3scale) get some benefit I won't be unhappy - but if more people start posting API info then it'll benefit everyone.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com