All you API developers need to get more alert and cautious! Yes, you got it right, more cautious. This famous micro-blogging site is planning to launch new version 1.1 for Twitter API within a short span of weeks.
“The SMS of Internet”, as it is popularly known has now launched certain new rules for API developers that need to be strictly followed. If any developer is found working against the new rules, he or she may be at a high risk of losing application key.
Michael Sippy, a Twitter group product manager, recently announced all the changes that are being planned to be incorporated into this new version including
- Requirement of compulsory verification or authentication on the part of every API endpoint.
- Advanced pre-endpoint-rate-limiting
- Alterations in Developer Rules of the road particularly around traditional client applications.
All these changes have been made in order to incorporate better user security as well as proper visibility of all activities that are taking place around Twitter’s platform.
Presently, developers were allowed to access certain API endpoints without any authentication requirement, thereby enabling them to access most of the user information without the knowledge of Twitter.
But now, use of OAuth has become compulsory. All the apps that are using Twitter API without OAuth need to update their applications before March 2013, or else they may have to suffer through numerous problems.
Further, pre-endpoint rate limiting has been incorporated. Presently, this social networking website has reduced previously allocated limit of 350 calls per hour to just 60 calls per hour, which according to them is well above the average usage and need of most of the apps. This concept is termed as pre-endpoint rate limiting.
More importantly, there will still be a set of high volume endpoints related to profile display, tweet display, user search & user lookup, based on which, certain applications could make upto 720 calls per hour per endpoint.
Additional changes have been made into DEVELOPERS RULE OF THE ROAD, and are being briefly described in the following section.
Firstly, display guidelines will be display requirements. Precisely speaking, if some application displays tweets to the users, but it is not adherent to twitter’s display requirements, then its application key would be revoked.
Secondly, pre installed client applications need to be certified by Twitter. This renewal has been made in order to ensure that developer imparts best Twitter experience for the users.
Thirdly, developers will now have to work directly with this website if they need to use large amount of user tokens i.e. if some application requires more than 100,000 individualized user tokens, then its owner will have to take proper permission from higher authorities of Twitter in order to continue its usage.
In case, your app already had more than 100,000 individual user tokens, then you will be able to add upto 200% of current user tokens, and once this limit has reached, owner will have to take permission for adding any further user tokens.
Although certain agitations are arising following all these strict up-gradation, but there is no other choice.
Now, it’s time to get serious and stick back with all these rules that are being introduced into the next version of Twitter’s API or else your application key might be revoked leading to closure of your application.
