DevoxxFR 2024 Reproducible Builds with Apache Maven
Harness APIs for Library Services
1. print $title;
print $subtitle;
print $author;
print $position;
print $institution;
$title = “harnessing free content with web service apis”;
$subtitle = “an ala editions workshop”;
$author = “jason paul michel”;
$position = “user experience librarian”;
$institution = “miami university libraries”;
2. agenda
• Discuss open web ecosystem
• Place of APIs in that ecosystem
• What is exactly is an API?
• An example from the programmer’s
perspective
• Real World examples
• Slice of available APIs
• What is needed for development
• Where to find and keep up with information
3. the “open” web ecosystem
• social web services are not social merely
because of the interactions between users
they facilitate.
• social web services are social because
they also are able to talk to one another on
a programmatic level.
4. the “open” web ecosystem
• thus, If This Then That (ifttt.com)
6. the “open” web ecosystem
• Achieved largely through the use of APIs
• API = Application Programming Interface
• Method of data transfer via HTTP
7. neighbor’s garage analogy
Open Source: take whatever you want, modify however you want,
use however you want
Proprietary: pay for each tool in the garage, use them as designed
API: utilize the services of the garage,
if you have authorization and ask the right way
8. Why APIs?
• Increase visibility of data / service
• Take advantage of the crowdsourcing
model to improve service, e.g. Tweetdeck
• From libraries’ perspective: its important to
integrate with wider web environment
9. Typical API Process
• Request API Key from Service
• Choose scripting language: PHP, Ruby on Rails etc.
• Using chosen language, submit data request via
available API methods
• Ingest that data in JSON, XML or other data type
• Transform the data to make it usable with scripting
language
• Upload data to a database
• Wrap data in HTML, CSS for user interface
17. twitter
• Programmatically capture, store & display
potentially relevant tweets in specific
geolocation to serve as a springboard for
proactive info services and social
interaction.
https://api.twitter.com/1.1/search/tweet.json?q=book%20OR%20research&geocode=39.5069974,-8
working examples
18.
19. vimeo
• Upload video tutorials to Vimeo
• Utilizing API, bring your own video tutorials in
to your own web interface.
http://vimeo.com/api/v2/miamiulibraries/videos.json
working examples
21. instagram
• Create a patron-generated gallery of
instagram images based on a pre-determined
hashtag or keyword
https://api.instagram.com/v1/tags/miamioh/media/recent
working examples
24. movieDB
• Utilizing the movieDB API, create a Netflix-
style application with available Movie posters
http://themoviedb.apiary.io/3/search/movie
working examples
26. worldcat
• Utilizing OCLC’s WorldCat Basic API, pull in
citation information for catalog records.
http://www.worldcat.org/webservices/catalog/content/citations/isbn/1250012570?cfor
mat=turabian&wskey=key
working examples
28. goodreads
• Utilizing goodreads API, enhance catalog
records with goodreads reviews.
http://www.goodreads.com/book/show?format=json&key=key&id=bookid
working examples
30. openlibrary/hathi/google books
• You don’t need to limit your catalog to
what you own / subscribe to…
• There are web services out there with
open content that your catalog can tap in
to.
http://openlibrary.org/api/books?bibkeys=OCLC:4942988&jscmd=data&format=json
http://catalog.hathitrust.org/api/volumes/full/oclc/381593.json
working examples
34. openlibrary
• Enhance catalog with book covers.
http://covers.openlibrary.org/b/olid/OL7440033M-S.jpg
http://covers.openlibrary.org/b/$key/$value-$size.jpg
working examples
35. flickr
• Bulk uploading images and metadata from
repositories to flickr for wider audience
• Embedding flickr slideshows of own
imagery stored in flickr
• Bringing in safe flickr content from current
events / subjects
working examples
39. evernote & dropbox
• Export catalog records / lists of catalog
records out to Evernote/Dropbox
• Export articles to Evernote/Dropbox
Possible API Usages
Catalog Enhancements
40. rotten tomatoes
• Enhance movie records with Rotten
Tomatoes reviews
• Retrieve cast, directors and movie posters
Possible API Usages
Catalog Enhancements
41. ny times bestseller
• Get links to reviews of NY Times
Bestsellers
• Get current NY Times Bestseller Lists and
link to catalog records if available..
Possible API Usages
Catalog Enhancements
42. DPLA
• Enhancing catalog records with DPLA content
• DPLA content includes images, text, video and
sound
• “an open, distributed network of comprehensive
online resources that would draw on the nation’s
living heritage from libraries, universities, archives,
and museums in order to educate, inform, and
empower everyone in current and future
generations.”
Possible API Usages
Catalog Enhancements
43. hoover’s
• Get Company data to match potential
company queries in catalog
Possible API Usages
Catalog Enhancements
44. cambridge dictionaries online/oed
• Get definitions as an additional piece of
content in catalog search
Possible API Usages
Catalog Enhancements
48. ILS & Discovery Layer APIs
• ILSs and Discover Layers are increasingly
adding APIs…
• Ebsco EDS
• Summon
• VUFind
• Koha
• These APIs allow developers to create
their own interfaces..
Possible API Usages
Single Interface
49. Publisher APIs
• IEEE Xplore
• Springer
• Elsevier: SciVerse (Scopus,
ScienceDirect, SciVerse Hub)
• Cambridge Journals
• Cambridge Dictionaries
• And more….
Possible API Usages
Single Interface
50. Vendor APIs
• Factiva – integrate all of factiva’s content
• Hoover’s – integrate company information
• And more…
Possible API Usages
Single Interface
51. OA APIs
• CORE Project – Open University
• arXiv
• Open Library
• Hathi Trust
Possible API Usages
Single User Interface
52. API Development : what is
needed?
• Programming expertise: PHP, Ruby, Python,
Javascript, XML, JSON, SQL, HTML, CSS
• Invest subject librarians in the process: what
APIs are available per discipline, which offers
value?
• Usability assessment
• Development tools: programming software
and hardware
53. Further resources
• Programmable Web
• Zite(app): APIs
• Web Service APIs and Libraries, ALA
Editions
• eCourse in October
• Twitter: @kinlane, @hackernews
