jsonRest complex structures with dojo

Question

I am developing a web app based on dojo framework.

I decided to use dojox.data.JsonRestStore for communication with the server.

For example, I have this representation of Order (ecommerce) in Json:

{
id: int,
name: str,
date: str,
items: [
    {
        id: int,
        name: str,
        pcs: int,
        price: int,
        total: int

    }, ...
]
}

Order has some basic attributes (id, name, date) and it also contains array of ordered items.

I am not sure if this is good (REST) design and I am wondering if the ordered items should be in a separate resource (and so in separate jsonRestStore).

I think I may have trouble with the current object model when I want to display the Orders' basic attributes in dojo Form and the ordered items in dojo Datagrid.

So my question, is my current approach OK - in way of creating REST client app? Also, what is the correct way to implement my example form with datagrid in dojo?

Eric LaForce · Accepted Answer

While your design is RESTful and there is nothing in the REST architecture that requires it, I think most people would agree that keeping your resources separate is the best way to go. If you check out Restful Web Services they describe this as the Resource Oriented Architecture.

I have worked out an example that keeps the orders and items in separate JsonRestStores and will allow you to display the Order object via a Dojo form, and the order's items via a Dojo DataGrid. I think the code is straightforward and I also added some comments in the code to try and clear things up.

I created a simple ASP.NET MVC 3 backend to provide some dummy data for the example. I have posted that code as well, though you are really only interested in the "View' portion of the code, the backend code may also help you figure out or change any of the backend code you have.

View:

<%@ Page Language="C#" Inherits="System.Web.Mvc.ViewPage" %>





   JsonRestStore Datagrid Example









  
  
    Json Rest Store with DataGrid Example



    
    Order
    
    
    
    
    Items

Models:

using System;

namespace OrdersRestService.Models
{
    public class Item
    {
        public int Id { get; set; }
        public string Name { get; set; }
        public double Price { get; set; }
        public DateTime Date { get; set; }
    }
}

public class Order
{
    public int Id { get; set; }
    public string Name { get; set; }
    public DateTime Date { get; set; }
    public Reference Items { get; set; }
}

public class Reference
{
    public string Ref { get; set; }
}

Controllers:

namespace OrdersRestService.Controllers
{
    public class OrderController : Controller
    {
        public ActionResult Index(string id)
        {
            Order order = new Order
                              {
                                  Id = Convert.ToInt32(id),
                                  Name = "Order Name " + id,
                                  Date = DateTime.Now,
                                  Items = new Reference
                                                {
                                                    Ref = "/Order/" + id + "/Items"
                                                }
                              };

            return Json(order, JsonRequestBehavior.AllowGet);
        }

        public ActionResult Items()
        {
            List items = new List();

            for (int i = 1; i <= 5; i++)
            {
                Reference r = new Reference();
                r.Ref = "/Item/" + i;
                items.Add(r);
            }

            return Json(items, JsonRequestBehavior.AllowGet);
        }
    }

    public class ItemController : Controller
    {
        public ActionResult Index(string id)
        {
            List items = new List();
            foreach (string itemid in id.Split(','))
            {
                Item item = new Item 
                                  {
                                      Id = Convert.ToInt32(itemid),
                                      Name = "Item Name " + itemid,
                                      Date = DateTime.Now,
                                  };
                items.Add(item);
            }

            return Json(items, JsonRequestBehavior.AllowGet);
        }
    }

    public class HomeController : Controller
    {
        public ActionResult Index()
        {
            return View();
        }
    }
}

Global.aspx.cs

public class MvcApplication : System.Web.HttpApplication
{
    public static void RegisterGlobalFilters(GlobalFilterCollection filters)
    {
        filters.Add(new HandleErrorAttribute());
    }

    public static void RegisterRoutes(RouteCollection routes)
    {
        routes.IgnoreRoute("{resource}.axd/{*pathInfo}");

        routes.MapRoute(
            "DefaultWithAction", // Route name
            "{controller}/{id}/{action}", // URL with parameters
            new { controller = "Home", action = "Index", id = UrlParameter.Optional } // Parameter defaults
        );
    }

    protected void Application_Start()
    {
        AreaRegistration.RegisterAllAreas();

        RegisterGlobalFilters(GlobalFilters.Filters);
        RegisterRoutes(RouteTable.Routes);
    }
}

jsonRest complex structures with dojo

Answers (2)

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