Knowledgebase

Reading API Documentation Effectively Print

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Getting what you need from it.

WHAT TO READ FIRST

Authentication The getting-started guide One complete example

WHAT TO ESTABLISH EARLY

Rate limits Whether a sandbox exists How errors are reported What the versioning policy is

WHY ERRORS EARLY

Handling them is most of the work, and it shapes your design.

WHAT TO LOOK FOR THAT IS OFTEN BURIED

Idempotency support Pagination behaviour Whether events are guaranteed in order Data retention

WHAT TO BE SCEPTICAL OF

Examples that look simplified Claims about guarantees without detail Documentation with no dates

WHY DATES MATTER

Undated documentation may describe a version that no longer exists.

WHAT TO VERIFY YOURSELF

Actual response shapes, against the documented ones.

HOW

Make the calls and record what comes back.

WHY

Documentation and behaviour diverge routinely.

WHAT TO KEEP

Your own notes of observed behaviour.

WHAT TO DO WHEN DOCUMENTATION IS ABSENT OR WRONG

Ask the provider, and record the answer.

WHAT TO NEVER DO

Build on behaviour that is undocumented, without isolating it.

WHAT TO CHECK BEFORE STARTING

The terms of use.

WHY

They may forbid exactly what you intend.


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