1. F*** a Dogfood:
Build your web service on a public API.
OR ELSE.
@mattlemay

2. BUT FIRST:
I am on the product team @bitly.
I am a terrible, terrible coder.
My background is primarily in writing/music.
For my first year at bitly, my title was “API
Evangelist.” During that time, I did not know what
“API” stands for.

4. Skeptical dog does not want your f*****g dog food.

5. “Icecreaming”

6. “Drinking your own Champagne”

7. “Eating your own dogfood”
“Icecreaming”
“Drinking your own champagne”

8. Building a service.

9. Building a
web product/
interface
Designing a Building an
service internal API
Building a
public API

11. Building a
web product/
interface
Building an
internal API
WE NEED TO SHIP, WE
CAN MAKE THE
PUBLIC API LATER!
HURF DURF!

12. Making it hard for people who are smarter
than you to build on your service for free
is really f****** dumb.

13. I REALLY WANT TO BUILD
SOMETHING SUPER-COOL WITH
YOUR SERVICE! I WILL DO THIS FOR
FREE, ON MY OWN TIME, AND
EVERYONE WILL LOVE IT!
UM COOL. YEAH.
WE’LL HAVE AN
API SOON, LOL!!!!

14. ......

15. NM, GOING TO BUILD
SOMETHING ELSE NOW.
WELL, BYE.
OH NOES!

16. Reverse-engineering a messy internal
API is time-consuming, frustrating, and
hilariously inefficient.

17. OH HAY GUYS WHAT DOES
THE DO_THAT_ONE_THING
API METHOD DO? OK COOL
LET ME UPDATE THE DOCS
WAIT WHAT DOES THE
HAM_SAMMICH PARAMETER
MEAN? NOW I AM
BOTHERING YOU AND ALSO
I AM CRYING AND
BARFING.....

18. Building a web
Designing a Building a product/
service public API interface on
that public API

19. Document your API alongside the code itself.
AS you write the code.
Read your own chicken scratch.

22. Standards are important.
Readability is more important.

23. Most people who use your API
won’t care if it is ***TRULY*** RESTful.
They just want it to work, easily and fast.

24. Think of your API methods as sentences with clear
verbs and objects.
Use real words from natural conversations.

25. ALWAYS RUN YOUR API NAMING CONVENTIONS
& DOCUMENTATION PAST PEOPLE WHO DID
*NOT* BUILD THE API ITSELF.

26. Taking the time to make an API that
other developers can understand and use
is always worth is. ALWAYS ALWAYS
ALWAYS worth it.
Eating dogfood is never worth it. NEVER
NEVER NEVER worth it.