Orientation: API Design

Welcome! In this curriculum, you'll move from building standalone command-line applications to building web services that other applications, websites, and mobile apps can communicate with.

[!NOTE] Sequential Prerequisite (Step 2 of 5) This program is Step 2 in your learning path. We highly recommend completing the SOLO Fundamentals program first, as we build directly on top of the git workflows and developer habits established in that course.

What is a Web API?

An API (Application Programming Interface) is a bridge that allows different software systems to talk to each other over a network. Instead of a human interacting with a terminal or UI, another program calls your API to load data, save logs, or verify status.

What you will build

Across this course, you will build a Task Organizer Web API.

• It will run locally on your computer.
• It will receive HTTP requests containing task details.
• It will store, retrieve, update, and delete tasks in a local SQLite database using raw SQL queries.
• It will be fully tested using automated integration tests.

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Tools & Setup

We will use FastAPI, a modern, fast web framework for building APIs in Python.

Platform-Agnostic Setup Instructions:

1. Create a new folder for this project: mkdir task-api && cd task-api
2. Set up a Python virtual environment.
   • Why a Virtual Environment? Think of it like an isolated sandbox. If you install libraries globally, they can conflict with other Python homework projects. Setting up .venv gives this project its own private toolkit that won't mess up anything else on your computer.
   • Mac/Linux:

     python3 -m venv .venv
     source .venv/bin/activate
     

   • Windows (Command Prompt):

     python -m venv .venv
     .venv\Scripts\activate.bat
     

   • Windows (PowerShell):

     python -m venv .venv
     .venv\Scripts\Activate.ps1
     

     ⚠️ Troubleshooting PowerShell: If you get an error saying Script execution is disabled on this system, PowerShell is blocking your activation script. Fix this by running: Set-ExecutionPolicy -Scope Process -ExecutionPolicy Bypass Then try the activation command again.
3. Install the dependencies:

   pip install fastapi uvicorn pydantic pytest httpx
   

4. Verify your environment is clean, then commit:

   git init
   echo ".venv/" > .gitignore
   echo "__pycache__/" >> .gitignore
   git add .
   git commit -m "Orientation: environment initialized"