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Title: Discovering APIs: A Beginner's Guide to Postman's Workshop with Nishit Baria

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Vinayak Vispute
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Table of contents

Introduction

If you're curious about how technology works and want to dive into the exciting world of APIs, the "API 101" workshop led by Nishit Baria, a Postman student expert, is the perfect starting point. In this article, we'll break down the event from a beginner's perspective to help you understand what happened.

The Basics: The workshop began with a question and their answers :

  1. What's an API?

    First, Nishit Baria explained what an API is. Think of it as a way for different computer programs to talk to each other. We learned how this concept is just like how we interact with everyday technology.

  2. APIs Are Everywhere

    We discovered why APIs have become so popular. They're the secret sauce behind all the amazing apps and websites we use daily.

  3. Real-World Examples

    We got to see which big companies use APIs. It was like connecting the dots between what we use and how they work behind the scenes.

  4. Meet Postman

    Nishit introduced us to Postman, a helpful tool for testing and developing APIs. It's like a magic wand that helps you understand and work with APIs.

Hands-On Experience

The practical part of the workshop was where the fun really began:

  1. Forking the Collection: We learned how to 'fork' a collection, which is like making a copy of a recipe to follow along with the chef. This made sure we were all on the same page.

  2. Understanding GET Requests: Nishit showed us how to make a simple request to Google.com. We looked at the response and saw how it's like getting information from a website. They told us that looking at documentation (instructions) is super important in tech.

  3. Choosing an API: We got to pick which API we wanted to play with – Jokes, Quotes, or Books. We voted, and the one with the most votes won. It was like picking your favorite game to play.

  4. Sending and Viewing Data: We tried sending information to an API. At first, we made some mistakes, but that's okay. We learned from our errors by checking the instructions. Then, we saw what we sent on the API's webpage. It was like writing a message and seeing it appear on the screen.

  5. Updating and Deleting Data: Finally, we learned how to change or remove the information we sent earlier. It felt like being the boss of your own data.

    Understanding Key Postman Concepts

    Postman is a valuable tool for working with APIs. Here are some key concepts to get you started:

    1. Parameters: These are values you include with your API requests, like filters, headers, or request data.

    2. Authentication: To access secure APIs, you need to prove your identity. Postman supports methods like API keys and OAuth for this.

    3. Endpoints: Endpoints are specific URLs that tell you where to send your API requests, like "/current" for weather data.

    4. HTTP Methods: These define the type of action you want to perform, such as GET (retrieve), POST (create), PUT (update), and DELETE (remove).

HTTP Status Codes:

  • 2xx: Success, like 200 OK for a successful request.

  • 3xx: Redirection, like 301 for a permanent move.

  • 4xx: Client errors, like 404 Not Found.

  • 5xx: Server errors, like 500 Internal Server Error.

QNA Session

In the workshop, the difference between Postman and Insomnia was explained. Postman is beginner-friendly with strong community support, while Insomnia is open-source and favored for advanced features. The choice depends on your preferences and project needs.

Takeaways

Here's what we took away from the workshop:

  • The workshop was like a friendly guide that made learning about APIs easy and not scary.

  • The hands-on activities made everything practical, so we could understand how APIs work, even if we'd never used them before.

  • We learned that in tech, looking at instructions (documentation) is like using a treasure map. It helps you find what you need.

  • The real-world examples and actual APIs made everything we learned feel real and exciting.

Conclusion

The "API 101" workshop led by Nishit Baria, the Postman student expert, was like opening a door to a new and interesting world of technology. It made APIs, a sometimes tricky topic, understandable and enjoyable. With simple, hands-on exercises and relatable examples, it gave beginners like us the confidence to explore APIs further. This workshop shows that learning tech can be fun and easy, even if you're just starting out.

#PostmanStudent #PostmanAPI