June 2020 Summaries

In response to the challenges posed by the pandemic and social unrest, Postman has launched "Postman for Nonprofits," a program designed to support nonprofit and not-for-profit organizations by providing 10 free business plan licenses to qualified entities. This initiative is part of Postman's commitment to global social responsibility, facilitating the use of APIs to improve decision-making and fundraising for nonprofits addressing urgent issues like pandemic response and racial justice. Notable examples include the Mental Health Center of Denver, which uses Postman to enhance its telehealth services for COVID-19, and Giving Compass in Seattle, which utilizes the platform to improve resource sharing among donors and community foundations. By offering these resources, Postman aims to empower nonprofits to build more efficient technical infrastructures, maximize their impact, and foster a better-connected world.

Jason Lengstorf, VP of developer experience at Netlify, explains how frontend developers can overcome backend challenges using serverless functions, which allow JavaScript functions to handle server-like activities without managing server infrastructure. The tutorial guides readers through creating, deploying, and testing serverless functions using Netlify Functions. It covers steps like handling form submissions, making secure API requests, and deploying a search form integrated with the Unsplash API. By leveraging serverless architecture, developers can efficiently build and deploy backend functionality for web apps without the complexity of traditional server management.

The text provides guidance on securely managing API keys within Postman, emphasizing three main strategies to protect sensitive data. It advises against embedding API keys directly in code, suggesting instead storing them as environment variables within Postman to maintain flexibility and security. When sharing environments with team members, it recommends keeping API keys private by using the current value setting, which remains local to a user's session and is not synced or shared with the team unless explicitly chosen. Furthermore, it warns against inadvertently leaking API keys in publicly shared documentation, advocating for the use of placeholder text to prevent exposure. The text concludes by highlighting additional resources for further insights into API key security, referencing a blog post on Postman's GitHub practices and Google's guidelines for using API keys securely in Google Cloud Platform applications.

SOAP (Simple Object Access Protocol) remains a significant component of the API landscape despite the dominance of REST (Representational State Transfer) in recent years, particularly among older and more established enterprises that continue to support SOAP APIs while developing REST APIs. Although REST has gained popularity due to its association with modern mobile and web-centric applications and its vocal proponents, SOAP's enterprise-grade stability and clearly defined standards make it indispensable for certain scenarios, such as electronic data interchange (EDI). Public SOAP APIs are often overlooked, but they exist alongside REST APIs and offer developers an opportunity to explore and learn about API functionalities without authentication barriers. Tools like Postman serve as effective SOAP API clients by providing essential visibility into HTTP headers and control over API requests, thus allowing developers to experiment with SOAP APIs and understand their potential in delivering robust API infrastructures.

Postman has secured a $150 million Series C investment led by Insight Partners, marking a significant milestone and underscoring the critical role of APIs in modern software development. APIs are fundamental to enabling multi-device experiences, the transition from monolithic to microservices architectures, and the shift to cloud-based infrastructure, yet their proliferation presents challenges for both producers and consumers, including difficulties in producing reliable APIs and navigating disconnected development tools. Postman advocates for an "API-first" approach, where APIs are strategically developed early in the system development process, fostering more effective and powerful API solutions. The company's growing user base, exceeding 11 million, benefits from the "API network effect," where shared APIs enhance collaboration and knowledge sharing within organizations. With the new funding, Postman is set to accelerate product development and expand its team, aiming to improve the API development experience and support the rapid growth and adoption of APIs globally.

Postman, a popular tool for learning and working with APIs, is being combined with Glitch, a community learning platform, to enhance API education through interactive and supportive environments. The author, a developer educator at Postman, highlights how Glitch's user-friendly interface and collaborative features make it an ideal partner for Postman, allowing users to easily set up and modify APIs without deployment complexities. The integration is showcased through the "Learn by API" project, which guides users through API fundamentals using a Postman template and a Glitch-hosted API. This project demonstrates the potential for creating customizable learning experiences in API literacy, with future plans to expand into areas such as authenticated requests and advanced topics. The collaboration aims to break down barriers to technical education, empowering individuals and organizations by providing scalable and adaptable API learning tools.