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PHP Web Services: APIs for the Modern Web
Whether youâ??re sharing data between two internal systems or building an API so that users can access their data, this practical guide has everything you need to build APIs with PHP. Author Lorna Jane Mitchell provides lots of hands-on code samples, real-world examples, and advice based on her extensive experience to guide you through the processâ??from the underlying theory to methods for making your service robust. Youâ??ll learn how to use this language to work with JSON, XML, and other web service technologies. This updated second edition includes new tools and features that reflect PHP updates and changes on the Web.
178 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2013
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
February 5, 2014
An excellent and complete introduction to the web services world. If you have just picked some notions here and there, this book will fill all the missing bits.
With a light tone and a relaxed attitude, you will have an overview of all the related topics, so at the end you will definitely know what a web service is and how to write it.
Well done!
With a light tone and a relaxed attitude, you will have an overview of all the related topics, so at the end you will definitely know what a web service is and how to write it.
Well done!
January 8, 2021
Very interesting book for who is willing to make a PHP API from scratch. It's also a good book for who want to grasp the concept of REST standard, SOAP protocol and APIs in general.
August 21, 2022
I use a lot of web services in my work – both accessing others’ data and sharing my own. Upon embarking on these projects, I never had a formal introduction to APIs. In typical developer fashion, I just dove into the deep end and only then learned to swim. However, some of us don’t learn that way and require a written tutorial. Even those of us who do dive in without reading the print first end up needing to solidify concepts later – something best facilitated by comprehensive treatments. For web services (i.e., APIs or Application Programmer Interfaces) in the PHP programming language, Mitchell’s work fills that need by providing a short but comprehensive treatment. It’s power-packed with concepts, code examples, and places to explore more for details.
Topics include everything you can think of around the API space: HTTP fundamentals, headers, cookies, data formats, access points, tools, documentation, project management, and maintenance. Mitchell covers it all. As such, it’s helpful to fill in gaps of knowledge that experience alone as a developer did not expose me to. At 180 pages, it’s a very quick and available read. I plan to refer back to the content while this book sits on my shelf.
The appropriate audiences for this book include intermediate and advanced PHP programmers along with engineering-savvy project managers. Those still mastering the fundamentals of PHP will probably find this book too advanced. Those interested in the engineering concepts and not just the code will find this book accessible to their needs as readers can skip over the code if desired. Those overachievers who seek ultimate mastery can visit URLs referencing the Internet for more details.
I’m glad that O’Reilly chose to come out with a second edition of this book in 2016. The state of the art hasn’t changed much six years after that date (at the time of my writing), but the state of the art certainly did change between 2013 and 2016. Those who seek to master API technology in PHP (still the most dominant programming language of the web) will do well to consult, borrow from, and bounce forward off of Mitchell’s learning contained in this book.
Topics include everything you can think of around the API space: HTTP fundamentals, headers, cookies, data formats, access points, tools, documentation, project management, and maintenance. Mitchell covers it all. As such, it’s helpful to fill in gaps of knowledge that experience alone as a developer did not expose me to. At 180 pages, it’s a very quick and available read. I plan to refer back to the content while this book sits on my shelf.
The appropriate audiences for this book include intermediate and advanced PHP programmers along with engineering-savvy project managers. Those still mastering the fundamentals of PHP will probably find this book too advanced. Those interested in the engineering concepts and not just the code will find this book accessible to their needs as readers can skip over the code if desired. Those overachievers who seek ultimate mastery can visit URLs referencing the Internet for more details.
I’m glad that O’Reilly chose to come out with a second edition of this book in 2016. The state of the art hasn’t changed much six years after that date (at the time of my writing), but the state of the art certainly did change between 2013 and 2016. Those who seek to master API technology in PHP (still the most dominant programming language of the web) will do well to consult, borrow from, and bounce forward off of Mitchell’s learning contained in this book.
November 1, 2016
This was a great primer on consuming and building APIs. It's short but through in the basics such as the HTTP protocol. I've been looking for a book that presented API's in such a broken down, back to basics sort of way.
I found a lot of books which focus only on the technicalities instead of the big picture. They assume that the reader already is familiar with concepts like the HTTP protocol, HTTP verbs JSON, XML, RPC, and REST. This assumption is fine because the discussions that those books have couldn't happen otherwise.
However, this book takes a different tack and shows the big picture in broad strokes. It explains the basic concepts above simply without getting bogged down in the technical aspects. This is useful because it provides the basic ideas for developers to build from. It helps construct a good mental model of the basics.
Most developers will only be consuming APIs right now. So they might be tempted to only read the first 6 chapters. However, the explanations of how different sorts of APIs work in the latter half will help them consume APIs more intelligently. For example, the explanation of how RPC is structured like functions, and how REST is structured in terms of resources is a pretty useful thing to know when building API wrappers.
In another example, the term 'discoverable' is thrown around a lot when discussing REST but few explain it. I think the book's discussion of how URLs are all representations of resources, and of Hypermedia was the best explanation of the notion of 'discoverability' I've encountered so far.
I found a lot of books which focus only on the technicalities instead of the big picture. They assume that the reader already is familiar with concepts like the HTTP protocol, HTTP verbs JSON, XML, RPC, and REST. This assumption is fine because the discussions that those books have couldn't happen otherwise.
However, this book takes a different tack and shows the big picture in broad strokes. It explains the basic concepts above simply without getting bogged down in the technical aspects. This is useful because it provides the basic ideas for developers to build from. It helps construct a good mental model of the basics.
Most developers will only be consuming APIs right now. So they might be tempted to only read the first 6 chapters. However, the explanations of how different sorts of APIs work in the latter half will help them consume APIs more intelligently. For example, the explanation of how RPC is structured like functions, and how REST is structured in terms of resources is a pretty useful thing to know when building API wrappers.
In another example, the term 'discoverable' is thrown around a lot when discussing REST but few explain it. I think the book's discussion of how URLs are all representations of resources, and of Hypermedia was the best explanation of the notion of 'discoverability' I've encountered so far.
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January 9, 2016لورنا، استعملت لغة إنجليزية بسيطة في تقديم هذا المحتوى. كان بإمكاني قراءة كامل الكتاب بسلاسة واستطعت تقريباً أن أفهم كل ما ذكر فيه.
قبل قراءة هذا الكتاب كانت خليفتي حول مصطلحات مثل الـ REST غير واضحة ولم أكن استطيع معرفة علاقته بالـ Web Services او اي شيء آخر اعلمه. لكن بعد قراءته تمكنت من معرفة ذلك، وايضاً ساعدني الكتاب على بناء معلومات أكيدة لخبرات ممرت بها سابقاً في مجال تطوير خدمات الويب.
أنصح بهذا الكتاب لمن يريد أن يعرف أكثر حول بناء الـ Web Services فهو يقدم بطريقة بسيطة ماهي الخطوات المتبعة للقيام بذلك، مروراً بطرق ارسال الطلبات وماهي اللغات الأكثر شهرة في تمثيل البيانات، وصولاً حتى كيفية تتبع الأخطاء في تلك الخدمات وبناء مستند توثيق لتلك الخدمة للرجوع اليها.
قبل قراءة هذا الكتاب كانت خليفتي حول مصطلحات مثل الـ REST غير واضحة ولم أكن استطيع معرفة علاقته بالـ Web Services او اي شيء آخر اعلمه. لكن بعد قراءته تمكنت من معرفة ذلك، وايضاً ساعدني الكتاب على بناء معلومات أكيدة لخبرات ممرت بها سابقاً في مجال تطوير خدمات الويب.
أنصح بهذا الكتاب لمن يريد أن يعرف أكثر حول بناء الـ Web Services فهو يقدم بطريقة بسيطة ماهي الخطوات المتبعة للقيام بذلك، مروراً بطرق ارسال الطلبات وماهي اللغات الأكثر شهرة في تمثيل البيانات، وصولاً حتى كيفية تتبع الأخطاء في تلك الخدمات وبناء مستند توثيق لتلك الخدمة للرجوع اليها.
April 3, 2013
Ho comprato il libro dopo aver ascoltato il talk dell'autrice al PHPday dell'anno scorso.
Purtroppo il libro non dice molto di più.
E` una panoramica a quota molto alta delle varie possibilità di implementare servizi web. Purtroppo di PHP ci saranno sì e no un centinaio di righe di codice in tutto il libro.
Parla in modo abbastanza astratto delle varie tipologie di webservice, di come possano essere implementati nel web, di quanto sia importante seguire gli standard (per gli header e i formati) e del fare debug e documentazione.
Ma non spiega praticamente mai come farlo.
Purtroppo il libro non dice molto di più.
E` una panoramica a quota molto alta delle varie possibilità di implementare servizi web. Purtroppo di PHP ci saranno sì e no un centinaio di righe di codice in tutto il libro.
Parla in modo abbastanza astratto delle varie tipologie di webservice, di come possano essere implementati nel web, di quanto sia importante seguire gli standard (per gli header e i formati) e del fare debug e documentazione.
Ma non spiega praticamente mai come farlo.
October 11, 2014
A good introductory book for general web services, how to work with them, and what to consider when building them. Although the book is very short, it includes enough examples to get started, and plenty of thoughtful strategies for each covered technology.
September 28, 2016
Must read for junior web developers, but expired developers also can find new and interesting things. For example, I found new tools for API like ngrok, refresh in memory base things and found some good practices.
December 21, 2016
Good introduction to different types of web services in general. A lot of different tools and techniques
are described as well as best practices and more specific tips.
It's good for anyone just getting started or wanting a quick refresher on the subject.
are described as well as best practices and more specific tips.
It's good for anyone just getting started or wanting a quick refresher on the subject.
February 5, 2016
Nice short plain overview of Web services implemented with PHP. Seems a good starting point.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews