This Week's Sponsor:

Listen Later

Listen to Articles as Podcasts

With Real-Time API, Instagram Goes Beyond the App Store

Instagram yesterday released their real-time updates API which allows other developers to integrate Instagram photos, tags and locations in their own apps. The API is already in action on a number of apps including Foodspotting, Momento and Instagre.at.

Over 2000 developers signed up for access to the API and some other popular apps and services such as Flipboard and About.me will soon be adding Instagram API into their products. However at this stage the API is read-only as Instagram works to ensure a smooth implementation of the API, which was only announced earlier this month. Instagram has a demo of what the API can achieve, with a dynamic web page updating as new photos are uploaded to Instagram.

One of the best implementation’s of the API yet is Instadrop, which is a simple creation by Shayne Sweeney that links your Instragram and DropBox profiles so that any photos you upload to Instagram get automatically uploaded to your DropBox account. Instagre.at, which we covered earlier this month is also a bit more fully featured now and as you can see in the image above, you can also view your own images in its really fluid web interface. Whilst the Foodspotting API works by adding any Instagram photos with the #food or #foodspotting tags to your Foodspotting account.

Instagram has become a massive success in the few months of its existence and despite only having an iPhone app, it has created a thriving community of photo-sharers around the world. As this API becomes adopted, and as uploading through the API becomes enabled sometime soon Instagram will surely become an even greater platform.

[Via DownloadSquad]

Join

Unlock More with Club MacStories

Founded in 2015, Club MacStories has delivered exclusive content every week for over six years.

In that time, members have enjoyed nearly 400 weekly and monthly newsletters packed with more of your favorite MacStories writing as well as Club-only podcasts, eBooks, discounts on apps, icons, and services. Join today, and you’ll get everything new that we publish every week, plus access to our entire archive of back issues and downloadable perks.

The Club expanded in 2021 with Club MacStories+ and Club Premier. Club MacStories+ members enjoy even more exclusive stories, a vibrant Discord community, a rotating roster of app discounts, and more. And, with Club Premier, you get everything we offer at every Club level plus an extended, ad-free version of our podcast AppStories that is delivered early each week in high-bitrate audio.

Choose the Club plan that’s right for you:

  • Club MacStories: Weekly and monthly newsletters via email and the web that are brimming with app collections, tips, automation workflows, longform writing, a Club-only podcast, periodic giveaways, and more;
  • Club MacStories+: Everything that Club MacStories offers, plus exclusive content like Federico’s Automation Academy and John’s Macintosh Desktop Experience, a powerful web app for searching and exploring over 6 years of content and creating custom RSS feeds of Club content, an active Discord community, and a rotating collection of discounts, and more;
  • Club Premier: Everything in from our other plans and AppStories+, an extended version of our flagship podcast that’s delivered early, ad-free, and in high-bitrate audio.

Former MacStories contributor.

graham@macstories.net