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copied!<p>In API design I've always found this keynote very helpful: <br> <a href="http://www.google.nl/search?q=How+to+Design+a+Good+API+and+Why+it+Matters" rel="noreferrer">How to Design a Good API and Why it Matters - by Joshua Bloch</a></p> <p>Here's an excerpt, I'd recommend reading the whole thing / watching the video.</p> <blockquote> <p>II. General Principles</p> <ul> <li>API Should Do One Thing and Do it Well<br></li> <li>API Should Be As Small As Possible But No Smaller<br></li> <li>Implementation Should Not Impact API<br></li> <li>Minimize Accessibility of Everything<br></li> <li>Names Matter–API is a Little Language<br></li> <li>Documentation Matters<br></li> <li>Document Religiously<br></li> <li>Consider Performance Consequences of API Design Decisions<br></li> <li>Effects of API Design Decisions on Performance are Real and Permanent<br></li> <li>API Must Coexist Peacefully with Platform</li> </ul> <p>III. Class Design</p> <ul> <li>Minimize Mutability<br></li> <li>Subclass Only Where it Makes Sense <br></li> <li>Design and Document for Inheritance or Else Prohibit it</li> </ul> <p>IV. Method Design</p> <ul> <li>Don't Make the Client Do Anything the Module Could Do<br></li> <li>Don't Violate the Principle of Least Astonishment<br></li> <li>Fail Fast - Report Errors as Soon as Possible After They Occur<br></li> <li>Provide Programmatic Access to All Data Available in String Form<br></li> <li>Overload With Care<br></li> <li>Use Appropriate Parameter and Return Types<br></li> <li>Use Consistent Parameter Ordering Across Methods<br></li> <li>Avoid Long Parameter Lists<br></li> <li>Avoid Return Values that Demand Exceptional Processing</li> </ul> </blockquote>

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