API Area - Common Building Blocks

by Kin Lane on 03/07/2011

I have spent time reviewing 100+ of the most popular APIs. I am trying to determine a common set of building blocks that are essential to API adoption.

Here is a list of what I consider are the most common building blocks for API areas:

Overview
Getting Started
API Reference / Documentation
Code Samples
Blog
Forum
FAQ
Pricing
Terms and Conditions

The most successful APIs also provide self-service developer tools:

Registration
Application Registration

API pioneers like Ebay, Salesforce, Flickr, and Google have established a common set of essential API building blocks through trial and error over the last decade.

Other API providers can learn from this API history and experience, and make sure they start with the essential API building blocks for sucess.