Notes: Postman API Student Expert Course
1 Learning Objectives
• Define Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) and explain their role in
modern software.
• Describe the importance of APIs for developers, enterprises, and end-users.
• Identify roles and industries that work with APIs and their benefits.
• Differentiate between types of APIs (hardware, software library, web) and ar-
chitectures (REST, GraphQL, etc.).
• Explain API access levels (public, private, partner) and their use cases.
• Understand the Postman API platform and its advantages over tools like cURL.
• Describe the request-response pattern and components (client, API, server).
• Use Postman to create workspaces, collections, and make API requests.
• Implement query parameters, path variables, and authentication in API re-
quests.
• Utilize variables in Postman for reusability and security.
• Write pre-request and post-response scripts in Postman for automation.
• Generate code snippets in Postman for integrating API calls into applications.
2 Notes
2.1 Introduction to APIs
• Definition: An Application Programming Interface (API) is a contract enabling
code-to-code communication, serving as building blocks for modern software
by sharing resources and services across applications, organizations, and de-
vices.
• Examples: Making online payments, checking weather in apps, syncing Spo-
tify across devices, embedding Google Maps in apps.
• Video: Create a workspace.
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2.2 Importance of APIs
• For Developers: Enable integration of features and automation without re-
dundant work (e.g., using a Weather API instead of building one).
• For Enterprises: Open products for faster innovation (e.g., apps posting via
Twitter/Meta APIs).
• As Products: APIs can be standalone offerings (e.g., Stripe’s payment APIs,
Twilio’s messaging APIs).
• Video: Create a collection.
2.3 Who Works with APIs
• Roles: Beyond developers, includes management, solutions architects, busi-
ness/data analysts, educators, researchers (per Postman’s State of the API Re-
port).
• Industries: Primarily tech, IT, banking, but applicable across all sectors due
to standardized data access.
• Video: Get books from the library API.
2.4 Who Benefits from APIs
• Everyone: APIs enhance efficiency and connect services, benefiting users di-
rectly (e.g., app features) or indirectly (e.g., streamlined processes).
2.5 API Analogy: Digital Restaurant
• Concept: APIs act like waiters, mediating between clients (customers) and
servers (kitchen).
• Mapping:
– Client: Requester (e.g., browser, app) = Customer.
– API: Interface = Waiter.
– Server: Backend processing = Kitchen.
• Example: Requesting data/service via API is like ordering soup without need-
ing to cook it.
2.6 Types of APIs
• Hardware APIs: Software-to-hardware communication (e.g., phone camera to
OS).
• Software Library APIs: Consuming code from libraries (e.g., imported meth-
ods).
• Web APIs: Network-based communication (e.g., fetching stock prices online).
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• Example: Uploading a photo to Instagram uses hardware (camera), software
library (filters), and web (server upload) APIs.
2.7 API Architectures
• Types: REST, GraphQL, WebSockets, webhooks, SOAP, gRPC, MQTT.
• Focus: Course emphasizes REST APIs due to widespread adoption.
• REST Traits: Stateless, cacheable, supports various data types.
2.8 API Access Levels
• Public (Open APIs): Accessible to anyone (e.g., Postman Library API).
•
• Private APIs: Internal organization use only.
• Partner APIs: Shared between organizations with relationships.
• Course Focus: Uses a public REST Web API.
2.9 Postman API Platform
• Overview: Simplifies API lifecycle (building, testing, collaboration), trusted by
over 20 million users.
• vs. cURL: cURL lacks persistence and collaboration; Postman offers format-
ted responses, saves requests, and shares metadata (e.g., status code, response
time).
• Vision: API-First World where APIs are prioritized, easily consumable, and
discoverable.
• Example: Fetching GitHub user data (postmanlabs) in Postman vs. cURL.
2.10 Request-Response Pattern
• Concept: Client (e.g., Postman) sends request over network to server (e.g.,
https://library-api.postman.ai); server processes and returns response.
• Example: GET /books returns a book list.
2.11 Variables in Postman
• Purpose: Reuse values (DRY principle), hide sensitive data (e.g., API keys).
• Syntax: {{variableName}}.
• Scopes: Global, collection, environment, data, local (narrowest scope priori-
tized).
• Video: Variables in Postman.
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2.12 Query Parameters
• Definition: Key-value pairs refining requests, appended to URL after ? (e.g.,
key=value).
• Syntax: Multiple parameters separated by & (e.g., ?key1=value1&key2=value2).
• Example: Google search https://www.google.com/search?q=postman.
• Use: Optional filters or required parameters per API documentation.
• Videos:
– Search books by genre.
– Multiple query parameters.
2.13 Path Variables
• Definition: Dynamic path segments (e.g., IDs, usernames) after a slash.
• Syntax: /path/{variable} (e.g., /users/{username}).
• Example: https://api.github.com/users/postmanlabs.
• vs. Query Parameters:
– Path: In path (e.g., /books/abc123), often for IDs/names.
– Query: At URL end (e.g., /books?search=borges), for filters/options.
• Use: Required per API documentation; notation varies (:variable or {variable}).
• Video: Get a book by ID.
2.14 API Operations
• Add a Book: POST request to create a new book resource.
• Video: Add a book.
2.15 Authentication in Postman
• Methods: Adding authorization headers manually or using Postman’s built-in
auth features.
• Videos:
– Add an auth header.
– Use Postman auth instead.
2.16 Scripting in Postman
• Purpose: Automate and add dynamic behavior to requests.
• Execution: Pre-request scripts (before request) and post-response scripts (af-
ter response).
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• pm Object: Accesses environment, request/response data, variables (e.g., pm.response.jso
pm.collectionVariables.set(”key”, ”value”)).
• Example: Set a book ID as a collection variable post-response.
• Videos:
– Your first script.
– Grab a new book ID.
2.17 Book Management Operations
• Checkout a Book: Update book status via API request.
• Delete a Book: Remove a book resource.
• Videos:
– Checkout your book.
– Delete your book.
2.18 Postman’s Codegen Feature
• Purpose: Generates code snippets for API integration in languages like Python,
JavaScript, cURL.
• Access: Via code icon (</>) in Postman request interface.
• Example: Generate cURL for GET /books, executable in terminal.
• Advantage: Simplifies embedding API calls in applications.
