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Programmers are People, Too (on Programming Language and API design)
- daniel02216 17y agoThis is pretty awesome. I wish that more APIs were better designed, though I think that the best APIs come out when you can iterate on their design with enough flexibility to remove the pain points and common questions. The author gets it exactly right on the topic of Java's GUI APIs, which are world-renowned for their terribleness.
- demallien 17y agoHis comments on focusing on what the user is trying to do rather than on how it is going to be implemented is absolutely spot on. For me, this is one of the big advantages that TDD has. It gives you the opportunity to think about your API as a user first, before you try to do the implementation.
- follower 17y agoWhen I'm working on an API design from scratch I like to mock-up a program using the API even before I get to code. It can be as simple as a handwritten example. I find it a good way to get a "feel" for how the main parts of the API will work and it enables communication with other interested parties. (And I must be doing something right 'cos the API I designed for the libgmail Python binding was described by one columnist as a "work of art"[1]. :) ) [1] http://jonudell.net/udell/2006-02-07-gathering-and-exchanging-email-threads.html http://jonudell.net/udell/2006-02-07-gathering-and-exchangin...