GraphQL has been hailed for its many benefits, but what exactly is its legal status? Check out our feature article explaining the community's response to the GraphQL patent release.
Next up, the IoT is effecting all walks of life; not least of which is healthcare. If these devices aren't secured properly, however, they could have severe negative consequences.
Lastly, we're excited to feature a submission from API2Cart; they've explained 4 ares of eCommerce that are becoming highly dependent on APIs; chatbots, supply chain management, marketing automation, and localization.
This will be our last digest before we resume in the New Year. Enjoy the holiday break!🎅
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GraphQL has driven much of the conversation around modern API web design, and for good reason — it’s powerful, extensible, and very useful for high data query applications. The ability to request data in a predetermined, knowable format, and the ability to collate endpoints into a single external point, has made GraphQL something that powers some pretty huge projects. Unfortunately, reliance on a near-ubiquitous format comes with a negative – when a change is made to GraphQL, its effects are wide-ranging and significant. This can be seen in the recent troubles concerning GraphQL patent licensing and the disputes that have arisen – a simple change of license format and the resultant understanding (and in some cases, misunderstanding) in the community has sent shockwaves through the API landscape. Today, we’re going to talk about some purported issues related to the GraphQL patent release to provide context and a bit of clarity. We’ll take a look at whether or not the GraphQL license issue is as significant as first thought, and more to the point, what the newly released patent scheme from GraphQL actually means for most providers...
The IoT (Internet of Things) is becoming part of our everyday life. We’re developing audio equipment that can use voice commands to process complex operations, light switches that schedule operations based on observed functionality over time, and even devices that we can use to automatically order supplies based on our consumption habits. While the IoT definitely has some cool front-facing implementations, it’s having an even more important impact on the medical device industry. Tests that once took an incredible amount of time in multiple labs can now be processed using single, small devices, wirelessly connecting results to healthcare providers. The usability of such medical technology can significantly improve the quality of care. There is, unfortunately, a dark side of connected medical devices. Because of their power, letting device data and permissions slip into the wrong hands can have dangerous consequences. Today, we’re going to address the stakes of security in healthcare IoT, and describe how to properly mitigate potential vulnerabilities. We’ll offer some encoding methodologies as well as some advice on encryption as we unravel the complexity behind these tiny but mighty tools...
When web APIs first began appearing everywhere, they were mere supplemental technologies. Has anyone else noticed that they have now become standalone products? APIs have merged into nearly all spheres of life, not to mention eCommerce. Without APIs, there wouldn’t be online retailing as we know it today. This integration-oriented mindset creates more intelligent and efficient software and tooling. In this article, we’ll take a closer look at the most relevant eCommerce areas that rely on APIs to power their software systems. Chatbots are making a quiet revolution in the corporate world. Slowly but steadily they are replacing search engines and virtual assistants. The core purpose of any chatbot is to automate routine communication tasks. In eCommerce, they serve as a customer support option to help engage with shoppers. To make that happen an eCommerce chatbot has to “communicate” seamlessly with the shopping cart databases....
