Open APIs Are the New Open Source

...Open source software continues to be a critical part of software development, systems administration, IT operations and more, but much of the action in leveraging modern cloud computing and services-based infrastructures centers on APIs. Open APIs are the new open source.

Open source, open standards, open clouds, and particularly open data continue to serve as pillars of modern IT openness, but APIs have quickly emerged as equally if not more critical. Here's why: Many organizations may inquire or investigate open source software as they set about leveraging cloud computing infrastructure, services and practices, but they soon find that they are dealing much more with APIs than with source code. Both customers and providers indicate an initial interest in open source and source code, but they soon find the APIs to be the more appropriate point of interface and integration...