Episode #90: API Testing Tools: First API Request With Insomnia #CodingBlind #ScreenReader

As an experienced software engineer who is blind and relies solely on a keyboard, let's explore how to send your first API request using Insomnia.
Link to the Docs: https://docs.insomnia.rest/

API Request Basics:
APIs (Application Programming Interfaces) are an essential part of modern software development. Before we begin, let's understand some common API terminology:
- Request: A structured attempt to communicate with an API.
- Endpoint: A request-able URL that specifies the location of an API resource. For example, an API with the base URL petstore.com and the endpoint /inventory will return a list of the pet store’s product inventory when you make a request to petstore.com/inventory.

API requests consist of discrete elements that enable you to interact with an API:
- URL: The address where the API is hosted.
- Request type: In the HTTP protocol, common request types include:
- GET: Retrieve information from an API.
- POST: Send data and receive a confirmation that the data was received.
- PATCH and PUT: Send data to modify a record accessible by the API.
- DELETE: Remove a record accessible by the API.
- Authentication: Credentials required to access API endpoints. Note that not all APIs require authentication, and various authentication methods exist.

Send a Request to mockbin using Insomnia:
To test a GET request, we'll use mockbin, a free tool provided by Kong, the makers of Insomnia. It allows you to create mock endpoints for easy API functionality testing without setting up a server.

Instructions:
1. Go to mockbin URL: https://mockbin.org/
2. On the mockbin page, go to the top of the page with (control + home) and perform a search by pressing the key stroke (insert + control + f)and search for "Create Bin". Activate the "Create Bin" button and press Enter. You’ll be taken to the Bin Builder.
3. You will find the body field by going to the top of the page and navigating by headings with the h key to find. Add some text in the "Body" input field, press escape, find the create bin button and press Enter. You will be taken to a page where you will find a Bin Identifier.
4. Go to the top of the page (control + home), open the search (insert + control + f) and look for the "Visit in browser" button. This will show your inputted Body text, and the associated URL is where we’ll send our request using Insomnia.
5. Now open Insomnia and press control + n.
6. Your focus will be placed in the new document URL input field. (This is where we will type our URL.)
7. In the video, I go through how to navigate to the new request settings and change the name. Here I will just help you understand the method of choice and the URL input.
8. When we create a new request with (control + n), we are by default making a get request. For the scope of this video, we do not cover the other methods yet.
9. If you are not in focus of the URL bar, you will find it by navigating to the top of the window with (control + home)) and then useing the "e" key to navigate to the second text field. Below it should be the send button (for verification).
10. In the request URL input field, enter your mockbin URL.
11. Press Enter on the "Send" button to send the request.
12. Your mockbin message will appear in the Preview panel on the right side, but this is more the bottom for the screen reader.

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#CodingBlind