What is a JSON Action?

Creating JSON Actions

1. Click and drag the 

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    icon from the toolbar onto the canvas
2. Enter a name for the JSON action, then select Create Action
3. In the JSON action 

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    on the right, populate the following details:

4. 

Path Syntax

Output Attributes

JSON is converted into data objects that can be used by PhixFlow, this information is accessed using the syntax, _result.AttributeName.

Worked Example

Here is a worked example using the Shop Data (available from the Learning Centre).

In this example, we are using:  

• A Shop Staff screen containing a grid of the Shop Staff data and a blank tile  - this screen was created using the Multi-Tile template

GIF/SCREENSHOT OF FINISHED RESULT   

Calculate Working Days

In this example, we'll use the bank holiday data created in 2.05 12 HTTP Action Configuration to calculate the remaining working days in the current month and map this onto a screen. 

Table Setup

1. Create a new

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    on your

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    to save the working days data to, and ensure it contains the following attributes:
   1. Name: UID
      1. Name: UID 
   Actionflow
   1. 1. 1. Type: Integer
         2. Expression: _NULL
      2. Name: Date
         1. Type: Date
         2. Expression: _NULL

   Event Handler Setup

   1. On the Shop Staff screen, find the Working Days tile

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       the screen to expand the tile

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       the screen and click on the chevron (True/False Field) to open its Properties 

   4. Create a new Actionflow on an Event Handler that will run when the chevron state is changed

      Expand
      title How?
      See 2.01 Connecting Actionflows to Events.

      
      

   5. Connect the Shop Staff form as the Input and On the Actionflow, set the Input as On Change

   Extract Actions From Actionflow

   We will reuse the Actions created to retrieve the bank holiday dates.

   Expand
   title Prerequistites
   If you have not completed the worked example in 2.05 12 HTTP Action Configuration, follow the steps to create the actions required for this chapter, excluding the Open Screen action.

   1. Open the Actionflow that retrieves bank holidays from the government website, created in 2.05 12 HTTP Action Configuration
   2. Hold down Ctrl and click on the 

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       action, the 

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       action and the 

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       action
   3. Right-click and choose 

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      1. Name: Get Gov Bank Holidays

   Working Days Actionflow

   1. Click back into the Calculate Working Days

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   2. From the toolbar, click on 

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       to open the list of Actionflows in the repository
   3. Drag Get Gov Bank Holidays onto the canvas to create an embedded 

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       node
   4. Connect the input to

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       to the embedded Actionflow node
   5. Add a

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       action to the canvas and connect it to the the embedded Actionflow node
   6. On the Calculate action, add an Output Attribute that works out the last day of the current month:
      1. Name: LastDay
      2. Type: String
      3. Order: 1

      4. Expression: 

         Code Block
         theme Emacs
         do( //set $lastDay to the 1st day of the month $lastDay = dateSet(now(),_DAY,1), //add a month to $lastDay $lastDay = dateAdd($lastDay, _MONTH,1), //minus a day to get the last day of the month $lastDay = dateAdd($lastDay, _DAY,-1) )

         
         

   7. Hover over the Calculate action to add a lookup 
   8. Create a

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       action that retrieves the bank holiday data
   9. Set the Incoming and Outgoing Mappings:
      1. Incoming: LastDay
      2. Outgoing: Date

   10. Create a filter on the View that retrieves only bank holiday dates for England and Wales, and the current month

       Expand
       title How?
       Image Added

       
       

   11. On the Calculate action, add an Output Attribute that works out the working days:
       1. Name: CalculateWorkingDays
       2. Type: Structured Data
       3. Order: 2

       4. Expression: 
          
          

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          theme Emacs
          do( //Get the last day of the month and set $lastDay to this $lastDay = dateGet($lastDay,_DAY), //for each day of the month, remove the time and set $allDays to now forEach($day,1..$lastDay, addElement($allDays, removeTime(dateSet(now(),_DAY,$day) ) ) ), //remove BH days from month days excluded($allDays, lu.Date) )

          
          

   12. Hover over the Calculate action and select out, then create a

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        action to map the data to the Working Days table
   13. Map across the CalculateWorkingDays attribute from the Calculate action to the Date attribute on the Working Days table

   Testing

   1. Test your Actionflow by clicking the chevron on the Shop Staff screen