When you’re working with images, you know how important the little details like color preservation and optimal clarity is. This being said, in today’s digital world, many people who work with images need to do so in collaboration with other people, not all of whom are in the same town or even country. The following will explore one simple solution to a handful of common image struggles for artists, project managers, and private image owners. Cloud APIs might be the solution that you’re looking for.
What Is The Cloud?
The cloud is a very sweet name for the space in the digital world where things are remotely stored and managed, where applications are run, or content is delivered from. You’re likely already using cloud services if you have an email address. Think about it; your computer doesn’t store all those unopened newsletters you need to unsubscribe to—the cloud does. Basically, the internet exists on the cloud as everything on there is stored on internet servers instead of the hard drive on your computer.
Clouds can be public, private, or some combination of the two known as hybrids and have a few major benefits. The first is obviously the space saved on your computer by storing things in the cloud. The second is your ability to access things stored or run on the cloud from any device that connects to the internet, not just your laptop. The cloud also allows for data back up which can be critical to businesses and individuals, as well as easy file sharing. If other people have internet access and have been granted access to a private cloud or told where to find a public cloud, they can download whatever you’ve stored there, making collaborative projects much easier. Finally, there is often less paper involved when cloud computing is used, making this a preferable option for businesses that are attempting to go paperless. It is worth noting that even if this sounds intense to you, given the convenience of cloud computing options, it is expected that cloud usage will continue to grow both for personal and business use in the near future.
What Is an API?
API stands for Application Programming Interface. It’s basically a connection between computers or programs that allows two applications to interact without users intervening. You can contrast this concept with a user interface that connects a person to a computer.
Many times software and applications need to communicate and exchange data with one another. Take, for instance, the simple example of buying movie tickets online. You choose the film you want to see and the time and the seats if that’s an option and then put in your financial information, and you get emailed your tickets. The website you’re working with is collaborating with the theatre, exchanging data without you micromanaging the processes like notifying the theatre. There are four main kinds of APIs:
- Open APIs are available to the public. They’re sometimes also called public APIs because there’s no restriction in their use.
- Partner APIs are not available to the public. They require rights or licenses to access.
- Internal APIs are sometimes also called private APIs and tend to be developed by businesses for use within that business. Often the goal is to improve the productivity of teams.
- Composite APIs combine two or more APIs. They are most often used for complex processes.
How This Applies To Images
When you’re working with images either privately or for a work project, there are often many logistical hiccups that greatly slow down and complicate the process of resizing, cropping, converting, and hosting images. Further, file efficiency (meaning an optimal balance of file size and detail and color preservation) can be a real struggle as you deal with various programs that help you get your images looking as you want them and get them to the people who need to see them. Moreover, some people want to authorize who can upload and download images—this is especially important for work projects that want to remain hidden until the project is complete and shown to its audience.
In many cases, because image files are so big (and often irreplaceable), the cloud makes for ideal storage. If people in different locations need to work with or access the images, the cloud also makes things far easier. Beyond this, depending on the alterations that need to be made to the images in tandem with the above needs, you might find that the ease and efficiency of your work are increased when you work with an image upload API service. Further, being able to control who can access, alter, and download images with security options is often required of work projects.
Potential Uses For Image-focused Cloud APIs
When it comes to using cloud APIs that focus on images, there are several main uses people think about. Foremost, uploading and processing images take a lot of time and processing power. Depending on the size of a project you’re handling, it can take days or even weeks to add all the files you need. A cloud API can greatly speed up this process.
Secondly, storing mass amounts of files can be messy, especially if several people are involved. A cloud API can help you store files in a simple and hierarchical manner to help everyone involved find what they need to find with minimal confusion, frustrations, and time spent.
In addition, Javascript or coding shortcuts are something that, if you know how to use it, can drastically speed up your image work. Some cloud APIs tie coding to image processing, making things hyper-efficient. Custom coding is also sometimes needed by people processing images. If this is you, know that there are cloud API options that can help with this.
Finally, data security is a growing concern of many. Managing and authorizing all uploads and downloads might be desirable depending on the security and privacy requirements of a given project.
The above information has hopefully outlined what cloud-based APIs are and how they can help you meet your image resizing, cropping, sharing, and transformation needs, whether you’re working alone or with a group of people on a time-sensitive project. If you are initiating the use of cloud APIs in your workplace, it’s a good idea to instate a training session so that workers are aware of all the features available.
I’m is an owner of Venostech.com, blogger, Android and technology enthusiast. Individual who are educated in the IT and like to write according my scope.
