RE: API doc question

Subject: RE: API doc question
From: Fred Ridder <docudoc -at- hotmail -dot- com>
To: <klhra -at- yahoo -dot- com>, <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com>
Date: Thu, 4 Mar 2010 13:23:46 -0500


Keith Hood wrote:

> I had a phone interview yesterday with someone who wanted details about my experience with API documents. One of the questions asked was, "What kind of API documentation have you worked with?"
>
> Here's the (stupid) question - is there more than one type?


The most obvious difference is that an object-oriented API requires a very different approach to documentation than does a function-oriented API. And there are some significant differences between what's required for a low-level, generic API (e.g. a programming language's standard library) versus a high-level, application-specific API. And since all developers like to think that there is something unique (or at least special) about their own work product, it often happens that any given company will find some way to dismiss your prior API documentation experience as irrelevant because of their unique requirements.

But you might want to cast an eye on the Wikipedia article on application programming interfaces because it does provide a readable and mostly understandable overview of some of the different types of APIs.

-Fred Ridder

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Follow-Ups:

References:
RE: Profanity in the workplace (Dan Goldstein): From: Paul Moloney
API doc question: From: Keith Hood

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