wrong content type in error response on api.wordpress.org

[hadmut]

curl -D /dev/stdout ​https://api.wordpress.org/plugins/update-check/1.1/

produces – of course – an error message, because the api call is wrong.

But it's header says

Content-Type: application/json; charset=utf-8

while the body is just

error

which is not json and thus breaks REST Clients. Either return json, or do not claim the content type is json.

[hadmut]

BTW,

it should not reply with a 200 code and then spit out "error". If it is an error, use an error code. And maybe be somewhat talkative about the nature of the error.

[dd32]

The API is intended for internal use by WordPress only, any other client is unsupported.

The error conditional is only hit when invalid input is provided, so IMHO junk in junk out is reasonable.

I don't think it's worth making any changes here.