So far in this book, we have worked with static data that is hardcoded directly into the TripLog app itself. However, in the real world, it is rare that an app depends purely on local static data—most mobile apps get their data from a remote data source, typically an API. In some cases, an app may communicate with a third-party API, that of a social network, for example. Alternatively, developers sometimes create their own API to make data available for their apps. In this chapter, we will create a simple API in the cloud that we can connect to and retrieve data from in the TripLog app.

The following is a quick look at what we will cover in this chapter:

• Creating a live, cloud-based, backend service and API using Microsoft's Azure App Service platform to store and retrieve TripLog data
• Creating a data access service that handles communication with the API for the TripLog mobile app
• Setting up data caching so that the TripLog app works offline