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Build a Python app to convert forms to JSON

Written by

Bernardo Palos

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To build a Python app that converts forms (such as HTML forms or similar input) to JSON, you can approach this in a couple of ways. The most common scenario would be taking form data (like a POST request body from an HTML form) and converting it into JSON format.

Here’s a basic example using Flask for web server functionality, and it will take the form data and convert it to JSON:

Steps to Build the Python App

  1. Install Dependencies
    First, install the necessary libraries. We’ll use Flask for the web framework and json to handle the conversion.

    bash
    pip install flask

  2. Create the Python App

    Below is an example of a simple Flask app that accepts form data via a POST request, converts it into a JSON object, and returns the JSON response.

    python
    from flask import Flask, request, jsonify

app = Flask(__name__)

@app.route('/convert', methods=['POST'])
def convert_form_to_json():
    # Extract form data (assuming the form fields are sent as x-www-form-urlencoded)
    form_data = request.form.to_dict()

    # Return form data as JSON
    return jsonify(form_data)

if __name__ == '__main__':
    app.run(debug=True)

  3. HTML Form for Testing

    You can create a simple HTML form to test the app.

    html
    <!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
    <meta charset="UTF-8">
    <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0">
    <title>Form to JSON</title>
</head>
<body>
    <h1>Submit Form Data</h1>
    <form action="http://127.0.0.1:5000/convert" method="POST">
        <label for="name">Name:</label>
        <input type="text" id="name" name="name"><br><br>

        <label for="email">Email:</label>
        <input type="email" id="email" name="email"><br><br>

        <label for="age">Age:</label>
        <input type="number" id="age" name="age"><br><br>

        <input type="submit" value="Submit">
    </form>
</body>
</html>

  4. Running the Flask Application

    After writing the Python script, save it as app.py and run it using:

    bash
    python app.py

    This will start the Flask app on http://127.0.0.1:5000/.

  5. Submitting the Form

    Open the HTML form in a browser. When you fill out the form and click submit, the form data will be sent as a POST request to your Flask app, and the app will return the data in JSON format.

Example of JSON Output

If you submitted the following data:

The response will look something like this:

json
{
  "name": "John Doe",
  "email": "johndoe@example.com",
  "age": "30"
}

Explanation

  1. Flask handles the web server setup and routes. The route /convert listens for POST requests containing form data.

  2. The request.form.to_dict() converts the form data (which is a MultiDict object) to a Python dictionary.

  3. jsonify converts the dictionary to a JSON response, which is returned to the user.

Extending Functionality

  • You can extend the form to include file uploads, validation, or more complex form structures, and you can customize the JSON output to fit specific needs (e.g., add metadata or transform the data in certain ways).

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