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MCP vs. API Explained

norahsakal.com

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Re: MCP vs. API Explained

#31

Post by [deleted] »

saurik wrote: post #21
muzani wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I wouldn't call it another form of API. It's more like an SDK. If you were accessing a REST API from Android, iOS, Windows, Mac, Firefox, they'd be mostly the same. But an SDK for Android and an SDK for iOS has been built for the platform. Often the SDK encapsulates the official API. That's a direct answer for (2) too - instead of writing a JS SDK or Swift SDK or whatever, it's an AI SDK and shared across Claude, Ope…

I didn't have a good term so I went with "API layer" (not merely "API"), but, to try to clarify... that's what you also get with SOAP/WSDL or any of the other numerous attempts over the years to build an API "layer" thing: you can use the one universal SDK you have, plus only the schema / IDL, to use the API. Every time people try to describe MCP it just sounds like yet another API description language when we alread…

[deleted]

Re: MCP vs. API Explained

#33

Post by risyachka »

So how does MCP differ from a regular library like aisuite or vercel ai sdk?

Regular SDK lib: - Integration Effort: just like MCP - Real-Time Communication - Sure - Dynamic Discovery - obviously. just call refresh or whatever - Scalability - infinite, it is a library - Security & Control - just like mcp

i trully don't get it

Re: MCP vs. API Explained

#34

Post by doug_durham »

1116574 wrote: post #7

The article has the same usb-c photo three times, but doesn't actually explain what it is, or how it works.

The usb-c metaphor along with most of the text are lifted from the Anthropic documentation without attribution. I'm not impressed with the author.

Re: MCP vs. API Explained

#37

Post by zombiwoof »

no_wizard wrote: post #14
saurik wrote: post #13

1) Ok, so you are reinventing SOAP or WSDL or whatever... did that ever go well? How and why is this different from every prior attempt to create the one true API layer? 2) Is this meaningfully different from just having every API provide a JavaScript SDK to access it, and then having the model write code? That's how humans solve this stuff. 3) If the AI is actually as smart at doing tasks like writing clients for AP…

Question three is what hits the nail on the head about how this “AI revolution” isn’t as robust as often claimed. If it was truly intelligent it could reason about things like API specifications without any precursors or shared structure, but it can’t. Are LLMs powerful? Yes. Is current “AI” simply a re-brand of machine learning? IMO, also yes

Exactly Any junior developer can reason about API and integrate

But LLm will replace them?

Re: MCP vs. API Explained

#38

Post by jjfoooo4 »

starik36 wrote: post #8

It seems like MCP is a pretty cool protocol, but has anyone seen any actually useful integrations? I've played a lot with the FileSystem MCP server but couldn't get it to do something useful that I can't already do faster on my own. For instance, asking it how many files have word "main" in it. It returns 267, but in reality there are 12k. Looks promising, but I am still looking for useful ways to integrate it into m…

I’ve used it to connect my open source memory application to Roo Code: https://github.com/elroy-bot/elroy

So, now when Roo Code does tasks for me, it takes notes and searches memory.

It’s good as a means to get a quick POC running, for dev oriented use cases.

I have seen very few implementations that use anything but the tools capabilities though.

The complete lack of auth consideration and the weird orchestration (really the “client” manages its own “server” processes), make me doubt it’s going to get serious adoption in prod. It’s not something I’d have a lot of confidence in supporting for non dev users.

Re: MCP vs. API Explained

#39

Post by speakbrightly »

I don't really get how MCP is materially different from a standardized API interface. It will be interesting to see if the other big model providers decide to standardize on MCP or push their own competing standards.

Re: MCP vs. API Explained

#40

Post by saurik »

nsonha wrote: post #22
rsp1984 wrote: post #16

To be honest I don't understand why this is needed. All the leading AI models can already write code that interfaces perfectly with well-known APIs, and for the niche-APIs I can supply the docs of that API and the model will understand. So all that's needed are API docs. Or what am I missing?

Sorry but I'm extremelly annoyed with this idiotic take that many people seem to have. Is it that easy to prompt AI to write code and call an API predictably?

This is like the simplest task you can give a software developer, as it is nigh-unto merely a document "translation" task, without much real thought required. If an LLM is failing to do this task, why do we hope whatever chain of reasoning it is about to embark on would work?
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