Download and install the following tools in order to run the myRetail service.
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node.js : NodeJS is a command-line JavaScript application. It allows us to run a server with js.
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MongoDB : MongoDB is a noSQL database that store information as BSONs. In order to run the myRetail service, a Mongo must either be available on localhost, or configured with an environment variable.
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axios : Used to GET HTML from the external product database hosted by myRetail (redsky.target.com)
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express : Express creates and manages our server. It takes in a PORT, a set of middleware, and the routes.
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mongoose : Mongoose is our ORM. It allows us to control and access our MongoDB collections.
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nodemon : Nodemon is a development tool that automatically restarts the service when changes occur.
A package.json file has been provided so all of these dependencies can be installed by simply running:
npm iOnce these have been installed, and provided Mongo is running and accessible, Scraper can be started with:
node server.jsOnce the server has been started, information from the API can be accessed by opening our browser and pointing it to:
localhost:8080/products/{id}where {id} is the eight digit id number representing a myRetail product.
The browser will then display information associated with that product like so:
{
"id": "13860428",
"name": "The Big Lebowski (Blu-ray)",
"current_price": {
"value": 29.99,
"currency_code": "USD"
}
}The myRetail API takes the id number of a given product from the URL entered in the browser and uses it to look up a product record in an existing external product database.
Once it has the record, the service looks up pricing information in a local noSQL database implemented with Mongo.
The service then assembles the id, name, and cost with currency into a JSON which is returned to the browser.
Tom Christ is a Minneapolis-based Web Developer. He is a graduate of the University of Minnesota Full Stack Web Development Boot Camp.