A technology platform is more than the sum of the parts

Programmers always think of the language first when they think of platform. They tend to ignore the other facets and identify with their language of choice. There is nothing wrong with that but these days, systems are built using more than just a language. Software development as a procession requires the mastery of many different disciplines. All the moving parts of a system have to be considered now when discussing the platform on which it is developed.

The cloud is in the platform and the platform is in the cloud

When the term was first coined, 'technology stack' was generally considered to be the OS, web server, database and language on which systems were built. Everyone talked about 'the LAMP stack', 'the WAMP stack' and other variations of letters representing the OS, Web server, Database and Language that make up the major moving parts of modern web-based systems. Today however, cloud components have to be factored into the stack. This widens the definition of 'technology stack' greatly but it is necessary because the choices developers make when selecting cloud computing components and partners are every bit as important as the choice of OS, database, or language.

All choices have consequences

Because all cloud partners are not created equal, technology decision makers - programmers and managers alike - have to be aware of the consequences of the decisions they make when selecting APIs and cloud services to integrate. Choosing the wrong cloud service or cloud platform can be as disastrous to a project as choosing the wrong persistent storage technology. The days of Mashup Fever are over. Third party APIs are now considered a mission critical piece of many applications and the decision of which ones to integrate should be treated with appropriate seriousness. Whether selecting something as complex and robust as Amazon's Simple Queue Service or as simple as Google Maps, the APIs that a decision maker chooses to integrate can make the difference between a functional application and your users staring at a throbber.

Conclusion

Don't treat cloud partners as second class citizens and don't integrate new APIs into an application because they are the new shiny. A technology stack is important. Mastery of a technology stack is an important skill for developers. Managers, architects and developers should consider both of these facts when considering integrating new APIs or cloud services into an application or design.