API

REST API Overview

Our APIs are a RESTful web service interface to Sparta Community2 features. All resources support XML and JSON responses. Since the API is based on REST principles, you can use your browser to access URLs, and you can use pretty much any HTTP client in any programming language to interact with the API.

Our adheres to REST standards. You reference particular resources by means of the URL path (the part of the URL after the host name) and use standard HTTP verbs to access the API with different methods. (If you need more information about RESTful web services, the O'Reilly RESTful Web Services book is a good resource.)

You access the Sparta API by using standard REST conventions.

Each API method:

• is modeled as a resource
• is invoked using one of the HTTP verbs: POST, GET, PUT, and DELETE (These HTTP verbs directly correlate with the database CRUD—create, read, update, and delete—operations.)

Response Format

API resources return data formatted as Plain Old XML (POX) or JavaScript Object Notation (JSON). Standard HTTP header information are returned with all of its responses along with status codes, which can be helpful for debugging and troubleshooting purposes.

All requests are made by the use of an HTTP verb:

• In most cases, you retrieve information by having your client make an HTTP GET request for the URL that identifies the specific resource you are requesting. You specify any parameters for the resource using name/value pairs.
• Use the PUT HTTP verb in a similar manner to update a resource, such as some information about a subscriber, and the DELETE verb to delete entries.
• If you are creating a brand new resource, use the HTTP POST method (if you have the URL to a resource that you want to update, use the PUT method).

Download our API Overview or Contact us.