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Let's start with an introduction to services and an overview of what you'll learn in this course.
Prerequisites
To get the most out of this course, you should understand the basics of REST APIs and be familiar with C#, ASP.NET MVC, Entity Framework, and Visual Studio. For more information about those topics, check out these Treehouse courses and workshops:
- REST API Basics
- C# Basics
- ASP.NET MVC Basics
- ASP.NET MVC Forms
- Entity Framework Basics
- Introduction to Visual Studio
Service Types
[MUSIC]
0:00
[SOUND] Hi, my name is James.
0:03
In earlier Treehouse content, we've
seen how ASP.NET can be used to create
0:06
web applications containing server
side rendered user interfaces, or UIs.
0:11
These applications allow users to work
with data, execute steps in a work flow,
0:17
or monitor automated processes.
0:22
This is a common use case for ASP.NET, but
0:25
ASP.net can also be used to create
applications that expose data in
0:28
processes through application
programming interfaces, or APIs.
0:33
These applications or
0:39
services are typically implemented
using public standards or guidelines.
0:40
That makes it easier for third parties or
0:45
developers to understand how to
consume and use our services.
0:47
Services give us a way to decouple
our back end from our front end.
0:52
Front end clients don't need to know all
the implementation details of the service.
0:56
They only need to understand how
to work with the service's API.
1:01
Separation between the back end and
the front end makes it easy for
1:06
our services to support
multiple front end clients, or
1:09
even to integrate with other services
enabling machine to machine communication.
1:13
Services are not a new idea.
1:19
The origins of proprietary computer
to computer communication protocols,
1:22
known as remote procedure calls, or RPC,
date all the way back to the 1970s.
1:27
And in the early 2000s,
developers combined HTTP and
1:33
SOAP to create a new class of
services known as Web Services.
1:37
Developers, who were looking for
a simpler, yet still powerful to build
1:41
services, eventually,
embraced RESTful Services or APIs.
1:46
Instead of introducing new or
proprietary technology,
1:52
REST APIs leverage the native
capabilities of HTTP.
1:56
In this course, you'll learn how to use
Microsoft's ASP.NET Web API framework to
2:00
build a rest API.
2:05
As you learn about web API,
you'll be creating a service for
2:07
Fitness Frog Web Client.
2:11
A single page application,
or spa, built using Angular.
2:13
To get the most out of this course, you
should understand the basics of REST APIs
2:17
and be familiar with C#, ASP.NET, MVC,
Entity Framework, and Visual Studio.
2:22
If you're unfamiliar with any of these,
or maybe you need a refresher, see
2:29
the teacher's notes for links to resources
that can help bring you up to speed.
2:34
I would also encourage you to follow
along with each video as we design,
2:39
build, and test the Fitness Frog API.
2:44
By actively participating
in a learning process,
2:47
you'll increased your retention of
the material covered in this course.
2:50
In the next video, let's start with a
quick review of what makes an API RESTful.
2:55
See you then.
3:00
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