static-api

A node module that reads a JSON file and generates a static folder structure that matches the JSON to allow data end points for simple apps without the hassle of setting up your own server.

Inspired by the Jekyll approach to static website hosting. You can maintian your 'database' offline then run this script and push the changes to your live site.

How to use

The json file

Create a .json file that strucuture matches your desired API.

my-api.json

{
    "artists": {
        "0123": {
            "id": "0123",
            "name": "alt-J",
            "albums": {
                "456": {
                    "id": "456",
                    "name": "An Awesome Wave",
                    "tracks": {
                        "1": {
                            "name": "intro",
                            "length": "2:37"
                        },
                        "2": {
                            "name": "Interlude I",
                            "length": "1:12"
                        }
                    }
                }
            }
        },
        "0743": {
            "id": "0743",
            "name": "The Antlers",
            "albums": {
                "457": {
                    "id": "457",
                    "name": "Burst Apart",
                    "tracks": {
                        "1": {
                            "name": "I Don't Want Love",
                            "length": "3:19"
                        }
                    }
                }
            }
        }
    }
}

The code

Using command line

install static-api using npm

npm install static-api -g

Run in the command line like so

-f example/data -j example/example.json

Where -f is the folder you would like the api to saved to and -j the path to the JSON file containing the structure

Using a node app

Include 'static-api' as a dependency in your package.json and create a file a js file similar to the code below.

var baseData = require('./my-api.json'), //load your json file
    path = require('path'), 
    staticApi = require('static-api'); //load the module
 
 
var dataFolder = path.join(__dirname, 'data/');
 
new staticApi({
    outputFolder: dataFolder, //where the data will be stored
    object: baseData //the object to create the file structure from
});

The result

After running the js file in the command line using: node myapp.js

This should result in a simlar structure to the following

/data/
...../my-api.json
...../artists/
............./artists.json
............./0123/
................../0123.json
................../albums/
........................./albums.json
........................./456/
............................./456.json
............................./tracks/
..................................../tracks.json
..................................../1/
....................................../1.json
..................................../2/
....................................../2.json
............./0743/
....etc..

So now if you hit the following URL from your application /data/artists/0123/albums/456/456.json you will get the following:

{"id":"456","name":"An Awesome Wave","tracks":{"1":{"name":"intro","length":"2:37"},"2":{"name":"Interlude I","length":"1:12"}}}

You can now quickly produce a static API that you can use with your simple JavaScript app allowing you to focus on doing what you do best: creating awesome web apps or producing amazing prototypes.