A platform-enabled website is a website in which additional functionality can be seamlessly integrated by means of an external application programming interface (API). The platform should provide integration points. These integration points are places in the application where new functionality can be plugged in.
Contents
Platform
The Platform is the website on which new functionality is added via an external API. Often the platform provides client libraries for writing platform Applications (also known as Plug-ins)
Application
Application refers to the external module that integrates with the platform via an external API. The term application is a bit ambiguous since the platform itself is also an application. However, for convenience, this article will typically refer to the plug-ins as applications.
Plug-in
Same as Application. This article typically refers to Plug-ins as Applications.
Architecture
A platform-enabled web application exchanges data with plug-in applications. When designing a platform, it is necessary to determine what data is exposed by the platform and under what conditions. This exchange of data is fundamental to the design of a platform-enabled website. Designed correctly, the platform and the applications that extend it are loosely coupled, yet maintain a seamless look and feel.
A loosely coupled relationship between the platform and a plug-in application exists when:
Execution
Security
Privacy
Conformity
Installation
Communication
Integration Points
Presentation
Agility
Standards
Standards
Certain social networking websites are attempting to create external APIs that conform to the OpenSocial specification. Participants include MySpace, Orkut, Bebo, and LinkedIn.