Are you looking for a data format that speaks multiple languages? Do you need someone honest and easy to read? Do you need someone who can help you transport all of your most essential goods? JSON’s got you.
JSON, or JavaScript Object Notation, is a serialized, language-independent data format. JSON uses human-readable text for electronic data interchange on an open standard. If that makes your head spin a little, don’t worry – this primer will make JSON less of a blind date and more of a Prince Charming.
Like any good partner, JSON is easy to read and easy to understand. Take a look at the sample below to see what we mean.
JSON at its core is simple text notation, and the benefit of using a simple, self-describing text is that it makes for a lightweight and compact data object that can be safely passed between systems that don’t share a common set of languages or standards to speak to each other. Think of moving data between a CRM system and a separate vendor database, or moving medical records between different proprietary systems.
One of the most common and complex challenges facing enterprises is the varying states of technical debt they have accrued within their technology infrastructure. Systems and applications are updating asynchronously as budgets and timelines allow, meaning there is always an urgent need for data interchange formats that connect these systems. JSON is the reigning king of interoperability, connecting modern service-oriented architectures and legacy systems with great efficacy.
The mission we’re on at Morf is to empower organizations to overcome the scale of digital transformation. The way we accomplish this is through Machine Generation, which in a nutshell automates the conversion of document templates or static forms into configurable and embeddable web forms. The language that powers these conversions is JSON.
Morf uses a declarative JSON syntax to automatically generate HTML form elements which can be rendered with a theme or as headless components to also capture data in a JSON format. This ‘JSON in, JSON out’ approach allows us to automatically generate forms from almost any other type of document, removing the need for a human to actually build the form. Using this approach we can convert a contract template built in Microsoft Word to a web form that can not only collect the data required to fill the contract but post that data back in the contract document. Say WHAT? Did we just say you can create a form from a Word document? Yes.
Not only can Machine Generation power the automated conversion of forms and document templates at scale, but it can also deliver ‘just in time’ forms that are programmatically built from a JSON payload in a workflow step. Did we just solve your forms problem? Yes.
That is the power of JSON.