APIs from Kintera and Convio - A new beginning?

The past two weeks have seen some exciting developments as both Kintera and Convio launched Open API programs, Kintera Connect and Convio Open respectively. Here at Beaconfire we�??d like to applaud both vendors for listening to the nonprofit community, vendors and organizations like NTEN etc as the concepts of openness, APIs and the transparency of Web 2.0 communities have changed the software landscape for good. See we can all have an impact!

In the interest of full disclosure, Beaconfire is partners with both Kintera and Convio and we share some of our largest clients in common. We have been involved in discussions and briefings with both vendors and are discussing projects with clients that will give us the opportunity to really dig into these APIs. We hope to share our findings from working with the APIs based on these real world examples.

Rather than comment on the differences and pros/cons of their offerings, I do have some thoughts on how to evaluate or compare these APIs, programs or approaches. I�??m actually working with the good folks at Idealware and NTEN on evaluating APIs so this is top of mind for me already. So, let�??s talk about the things that could be important in comparing APIs and not worry so much about how these two compare just yet. For initial reviews, check out fellow Nonprofit techies Michelle Murain, Allan Benamer, and Judi Sohn.

In writing their reviews, my esteemed colleagues did cite a number of characteristics that were important for them in reaching their conclusions. On balance, I think they, collectively, did a pretty good job of coming up with good characteristics for comparing the APIs even though they didn�??t articulate them as characteristics per se. Here is my take at articulating the characteristics they used and others should use to evaluate the two APIs:

• the API itself�??the depth and breadth of the offering �?? how many functions are exposed? Given what you can do in the application, how much can you do through the API? If an API does one function really well but doesn�??t do 5 other functions at all, is that better than one that does all 6 functions in an average way? This probably depends on which of the 6 functions you care most about.
• the technologies or architectures involved �?? REST based vs. SOAP based; client or server based. Convio is REST based and Kintera is SOAP based.
• The openness �?? this could refer to access to the documentation, access to sample code or sandboxes. Openness is one of the criteria that probably includes many other things but you get my point. Allan had some good comments on Openness
• the community aspects of it �?? is there an ecosystem of developers, users etc that collaborate or share info about the successes, failures, or improvements that are needed? Is this encouraged or cultivated?
• Apps, Widgets or pre-built code based on the API �?? Did the vendor go beyond the API and build something useful with the tools they�??ve unveiled? Convio calls these extensions and connectors and has invested not only in the API but has gone beyond.
• Roadmap - What�??s next? What is are future plans? What direction are they heading and when can we expect the next take?

Using these criteria (and undoubtedly others), I think the offerings from Kintera and Convio can be evaluated fairly. Ultimately, which you judge to be �??better�?� depends largely on your perspective and where your priorities are.

My conclusions? Well,

• there are many differences between Convio�??s and Kintera�??s APIs, some of which aren�??t a big deal and some of which are.
• Regardless, our clients and the sector are better off with more possibilities for integration with other tools, sites and databases.
• Both offerings will allow for applications that in the past weren�??t possible or required the vendor to develop.
• This is a good beginning but should only be the beginning.

Look for more from Beaconfire as we get into using the APIs and can report on our findings.