What is the main purpose of using REST API in web service development?

The main goal of using REST API in web service development is to provide a standardized, simple, and scalable way for interaction between the client and server via HTTP.

REST (Representational State Transfer) uses standard HTTP methods (GET, POST, PUT, DELETE) to perform operations on resources, which facilitates integration and maintenance.

Advantages of REST API:

• Lightweight and easy to use
• Platform and language independence
• Scalability and cacheability
• Clear separation of client and server responsibilities

Example of a REST API request to get a list of users:

GET /users HTTP/1.1
Host: example.com
Accept: application/json

The response will contain data in JSON format, which the client can process.