I am preparing for a big week of discussion around API definitions at Gluecon, and in addition to working on my Swagger research, I kicked off deeper research into API Blueprin, looking for the companies that are doing interesting things in the space, using the machine readable API definition format.
As i do with all my work, I have a Github repository setup for the research, allowing me to publish all of my work publicly, and manage feedback and engagement with the community, using my Github workflow. If you want to make any changes to the data you can fork and submit a pull request, or you can also suggest companies I should be looking at, as a Github issue.
So far, I've broken things into four areas:
- Platform Integrations - Companies who are using the API Blueprint specification as part of their platforms--essentially baking it in.
- External Integrations - Companies and individuals who have integrated API Blueprint into an existing platform, or framework, from the oustide-in.
- Apiary - API providers who are using Apiary as part of their API operations, providing interactive documentation to their consumers.
- Building Blocks - Some of the common patterns I'm tracking on, regarding how API Blueprint is being applied.
- Tooling - What toolin ghas emerged that puts API Blueprint to work, from documentation, to generating code samples, to IDE integration.
I'm working on organizing the tooling that I have found so far, but I figured I'd publish what I have currently, and ask for suggestions about anything that is missing. If you know of a platform that is using API Blueprint, either baked directly in, via an external framework, or are just using Apiary for its documentation, and management platform -- please let me know, by submitting a Github issue.
I know there is a lot more API Blueprint out there, and if you are doing something cool with the API Blueprint specification, there is a good opportunity for it to be included in the discussion next week. If you don't share your story, nobody will know, and there are a huge amount of fence sitters right now when it comes to API definitions--people just waiting, and watching for the right sign to jump in.
I'm going to be writing a lot about API definition formats this week, priming my brain for the conversation at Gluecon next week in Colorado. I apologize in advance. ;-) And thanks for sharing your stories!
