Developer's Guide to Social Programming: Building Social Context Using Facebook, Google Friend Connect, and the Twitter API, The (Developer's Library) [Paperback]

Mark D. Hawker (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 25, 2010 | ISBN-10: 0321680774 | ISBN-13: 978-0321680778 | Edition: 1

In The Developer’s Guide to Social Programming, Mark Hawker shows developers how to build applications that integrate with the major social networking sites. Unlike competitive books that focus on a single social media platform, this book covers all three leading platforms: Facebook, OpenSocial, and Twitter. Hawker identifies the characteristics of superior, highly engaging social media applications, and shows how to use the Facebook platform, Google Friend Connect, and the Twitter API to create them.

You’ll find practical solutions and code for addressing many common social programming challenges, from site registration to search, blog commenting to creating location-based applications. Hawker concludes by walking you through building a complete, integrated social application: one that works seamlessly across all leading platforms, and draws on powerful features from each. Coverage includes

• Working with the Twitter API, including the Search API, Lists API, and Retweets API
• Authenticating users with Twitter OAuth
• Mastering the Facebook API, FQL, and XFBML
• Utilizing the Facebook JavaScript Library for creating dynamic content, and animation
• Exploring the Google Friend Connect JavaScript API, and integrating with the OpenSocial API
• Using Facebook’s tools for sharing, social commenting, stream publishing, and live conversation
• Using the PHP OpenSocial Client Library with Google Friend Connect
• Creating, testing, and submitting Google Friend Connect gadgets

 

Editorial Reviews

Review

“With the advent of the social web, companies must know how to leverage new technologies to stay competitive. Mark Hawker shows readers in simple steps what social programming really means. He walks you through examples of integrating with many of today’s most successful social platforms–getting you up and running with social programming in no time at all.”

–Joseph Annuzzi, Jr., Web Architect, PeerDynamic.com

 

“An essential reference for the social web, present and future… a must-have for making your website known on the social graph.”

–Joshua T. Gross, Cortex Creations

About the Author

Mark Hawker is a social applications developer and consultant focused on developing for social platforms such as Facebook and Twitter. He is a graduate from the University of Leeds, United Kingdom, with a First-class Honors degree in Informatics.A researcher in the field of health informatics, Mark focuses his time on how to innovatively apply social networking technologies in a wide variety of consumer health scenarios.

Product Details

• Paperback: 336 pages
• Publisher: Addison-Wesley Professional; 1 edition (August 25, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0321680774
• ISBN-13: 978-0321680778
• Product Dimensions: 12.9 x 9.7 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #666,884 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Mark D. Hawker is a long-time developer with extensive experience creating successful social web applications for Facebook and Twitter, especially in the field of health informatics. He graduated from the University of Leeds with a First-Class Honours Degree in Informatics.