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Don Wereschuk wrote:
Steve: It is my understanding that an API is a procedure that must be declared in the program before it can be used. A BIF is a procedure that doesn't need to be declared in the program and can be used by any program that is using the language the BIF belongs to. They are both still external procedures. Maybe this is another part of coding that I don't understand so correct me if I'm wrong. I used the terminology very loosely and I didn't mean to interchange the two terms.
I don't know if I'd call a BIF an "external procedure". As I understand
it, BIFs are part of the RPG language, just like opcodes are.
API is an acronym for "Application Programming Interface". It is a
procedure or group of procedures that is written by an OS or other
software vendor to allow third party programs to access information from
that application. For example, if you purchase an inventory control
system, the vendor of that system might provide an API to allow your
homegrown programs to produce reports about inventory activities without
having to learn the layout of the PFs the vendor uses. APIs also
insulate you from changes to the internal organization of the system
between versions.
Hope that helps clarify your understanding,
Adam
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