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Understand the Basic Difference between API and Web Services

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API is considered the Application Programming Interface and it is a software interface that permits a couple of applications to have interaction with one another minus a user intervention. APIs proposed a product or service that has communication with other items and services minus knowing their implementation. 

On the other hand, a web service is considered an accumulation of open standards and protocols that are used widely to exchange data between applications of systems. Some software applications get written through the use of different programming languages and they run on several platforms and it provides users the flexibility to use web services for exchanging data over a computer network, similar to playing their favorite online poker game, dominoqq.

Benefits of using APIs

Benefits of using web services

The basic difference between API and web services

Both API and Web services act as means of communication but the difference lies in the fact that web services facilitate interaction between a couple of machines over a network whereas an API works as an interface between a couple of distinct applications for turning their communication process easily. Through an API, third-party vendors do write programs that interface with other programs easily. The web services are designed for having an interface that is illustrated in a machine-processable format which is commonly specified in WSDL (Web Service Description Language)

Commonly, HTTP is used as a common protocol to communicate and web services also use REST, XML-RPC, and SOAP as means of communication. However, API might make use of any other means of communication for initiating interaction between various applications. 

The job of an API is defining the processes for a software program for interacting with another and when this action comprises sending data, web services march in. Commonly, an API includes calling functions from a software program. When the matter comes to web applications, then the API that is used happens to be web-based. Some desktop applications, like word documents and spreadsheets, make use of COM-based APIs and VBA that do not comprise web service.

A web service needs a network but APIs can be offline or online. The web services should also make use of a network. APIs happen to be protocol agnostic. Though APIs can make use of any protocol, commonly, web services use SOAP, though, at times, they use XML-RPC, REST and UDDI too. 

The big distinction between APIs and Web Services is numerous public APIs happen to be transparent with self-service portals and open documentation for fast developer onboarding. On the contrary, web services do not enjoy such a kind of open history. In place of that, they tend to propose particular functionality or data to particular partners.

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