With this recipe we intend to introduce you to the wonderful world of Web APIs. Nowadays, consulting certain information from a remote server or the process of exchanging data between different servers is commonly done using Web APIs. Practically every Web apps and mobile applications that we use every day have e a Web API in their backend to implement their functionalities, from adding and saving products in the shopping cart in Amazon, to consult the map of your city. Web APIs are a fundamental mechanism to allow different software running on the same or different platforms to communicate with each other.

At the end of this recipe you will be able to:

• Understand the concepts of Web API and Web Service.
• Distinguish the main differences between a SOAP Web Services and REST Web Services.
• Contrast the design principles of a Web API of type REST against the RPCs.
• Know the advantages of Web programming using frameworks.
• Design and develop your own API REST in Python.