The document discusses creating a good developer experience when building APIs. It provides 10 steps for a great developer experience, including keeping documentation simple and up-to-date, providing quick and easy signups, code samples, interactive documentation, and being available to help developers. The overall message is that API builders should treat their developer experience as a product in its own right to inspire developers and solve their pain points.

1. Unpacking
The Developer Experience
Amit Jotwani
@amit

2. Play around with lots of APIs.
Build tools that help solve developer pain
Live rent free in Manhattan.

3. Unpacking
The Developer Experience

6. Package Rage
“heightened levels of anger and frustration resulting from the inability to
open hard-to-open packaging”

9. "It matters because it sets the tone for their whole
relationship with that product."
Jony Ive, Apple

10. But, Developers are people too
How about Developer Experience?

11. WTF?

13. "People who are really serious about software
should make their own hardware."
Alan Kay

14. "People who are really serious about API should
care about Developer Experience."
Yours Truly

15. “Treat your API like your Product”
John Sheehan, RunScope > IFTTT > Twilio

16. 10 Steps
Great Developer Experience

17. 1. Keep it simple

18. Dwolla Developer Page

19. 2. English please
Don’t get all marketing on us

20. Twilio Home Page

21. Q
What can they stop doing if they use your API?
What pain are you solving?

22. Stripe Home Page

23. 3. Simple & Fast Signup
Do not ask me a million questions
Where is your Signup button?

24. #sadface

25. Singly Sign up

26. Singly API Explorer

27. 4. Hello World
5 mins or less

28. Big Commerce Home Page

29. 5. API Key Provisioning
Don't keep me waiting

30. 6. Be clear
Costs, limitations
Tell them what to expect
Free trial

31. Foursquare - Rate limits SendGrid - pricing/email quota

32. 7. Stellar Documentation
Complete
Up to date
No PDF’s

33. Foursquare documentation

34. 8. Interactive
Documentation

35. Mashery API Explorer

36. Klout Interactive Console

37. 9. Show the code

38. Client Libraries - Twilio

39. Code Snippets - SoundCloud

40. Sample Apps - Twilio

41. 10. Inspire them

42. Klout App Showcase

43. Be available
Stack Overflow
Twitter
Other contact info

44. Unpacking
The Developer Experience
Amit Jotwani
@amit