Beginners Guide to Data from API please!

[KJM]

Hello everyone,

I wish to begin using API to bring in some demographic information from NISRA - the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency.

They hold regularly updated data, but for this example they hold the latest Census data from 2021 for example.

Could someone guide me (never used APIs before but have full tenant admin / permissions) through how to do this?

NISRA provide their API codes etc. at the bottom of the page for each dataset.  The census data is here: https://data.nisra.gov.uk/table/PS04

Note: I'm using Qliksense Saas.

Really appreciate any help or a point in the right direction!

K.

[Mike_Dickson]

Hello @KJM 

I hope the information below leads you in the right direction.

1. Get the API Details: You mentioned that NISRA provides API details at the bottom of each dataset page. You'll need to know the base URL for the API, the specific endpoint for the data you want, and any required headers or query parameters. Also, if authentication is required, know the type (Basic, OAuth, API key, etc.) and the credentials.

2. Create a REST Connector in Qlik Sense: In Qlik Sense, go to the data load editor for your app. Click "Create new connection" and choose "REST". Fill in the details you gathered in step 1. Test the connection to make sure it works.

3. Load the Data: Once the connection is successful, click "Select data". You'll see a preview of the data returned by the API. You can select the fields you want and load them into your app.

Note: The way the data is structured in the API response may affect how you load it in Qlik Sense. For example, if the response is JSON, it may contain nested arrays or objects, and you might need to use Qlik Sense's JSON functions to flatten it.

4. Schedule Data Reloads: If you want to keep your app updated with the latest data from the API, you can set up a data reload schedule in the Qlik Sense management console.

Remember to consult the NISRA API's documentation for any specific requirements or limitations, such as rate limits or data usage policies.

If you run into any issues or have specific questions about using the NISRA API, I recommend reaching out to their support or looking for help in their developer community, if they have one.

[NadiaB]

@KJM 

As mentioned by Mike, you will need to use the REST connector. 

From the page you provided if you go all the way down, you can use JSON-RPC or RestFul connection, both should work, it seems that both allow to pass a date as a parameter, one as part of the URL and GET method and the other in a POST method in the body.

Probably the Restful one is easier as the parameter goes in the URL and you can use a simple GET method. The connection in Qlik Sense you will need to go to the Data Load Editor, Create connection option then select Rest Connector, place the URL, keep GET as the method, test the connection and name the connection (you might have to remove some symbols from the automatic generated name as there are some limitations for naming connections), then create the connection and you should be good to start retrieving data. 

The tricky part is going to be to get the information from the JSON response from what you will need to do some extra work. 

API endpoint shown from the webpage you provided:

The documentation for your API is here:

https://github.com/CSOIreland/PxStat/wiki/API-Cube-RESTful

Hope it helps!

[Min1]

Hello, Mike! Is it possible to do this in not in QlikSense, but in QlikView?