YouTube Moves API QA to Stack Overflow

by Kin Lane on 09/17/2012

YouTube has decided to cease support for Youtube API QA via dedicated Google Group, and exclusively use Stack Overflow for developer QA support.

Every developer knows that Stack Overflow is where you go to get the best answers for your programming issues, and API providers are taking notice too.

Stack Overflow has always been something I recommend paying attention to for any API evangelist, but more API providers are considering it be the place where all API developer QA should exist.

Facebook, Foursquare, and Salesforce have all moved their API developer QA to Stack Overflow.

These API providers are still maintaining other API support building blocks like bug ticket systems, email and Twitter accounts, but when it comes to public developer forums they feel that Stack Overflow is enough.

While I think having a active presence on Stack Overflow is a critical part of any API evangelism strategy, I’m not 100% sure eliminating a dedicated forum is the right way to go. I worry you will push developer community completely out on the open Internet, reducing interactions that happen under your brand.

With the size of their developer community, larger APIs often have canyon that exists between them and their developers, and it’s easy to widen this canyon by moving general QA exclusively into an open Internet forum.

I don’t think it’s that much more work to monitor and respond to your community forum as well as Stack Overflow, and even add in Quora, Reddit, StumbleUpon, Google Alerts, and other ways of monitoring the API and developer landscape.