API responses is not a generic model

[GitWonder]

Evidence / Screenshot (if possible)

Relevant url?

Steps to Reproduce

1. Call https://openlibrary.org/api/books?bibkeys=ISBN:9781741795226&jscmd=data&format=json
2. Read Response

• Actual: The problem is that he response returns a highly specific object. In the example above the object returned is ISBN:9781741795226 with multiple also very specific objects encased within it. This creates an issue for systems expecting generic attribute names.

What is returned is highly specific data that does not lend itself to generic modelling at the receiving end. { "ISBN:9781741795226": { This is an object called ISBN:9781741795226 as opposed to instance number 9781741795226 of ISBN object. "publishers": [
{ "name": "Lonely Planet" } ], "pagination": "286 p. :", "identifiers": { "isbn_13": [ "9781741795226" ], "lccn": [ "2009455714" ], "openlibrary": [ "OL23996497M" ], "isbn_10": [ "1741795222" ] },

• Expected: The return of generic objects, e.g.

  "ISBN_Record": { "publishers": [ { "name": "Lonely Planet" } ], "pagination": "286 p. :", "identifiers": { "type":"isbn_13", "code":"9781741795226", "type":"lccn", "code":"2009455714" },

  Details

• Logged in (Y/N)? N

• Browser type/version? N/A

• Operating system? N/A

• Environment (prod/dev/local)? prod

Proposal & Constraints

Make the response fields more generic as this allows for easier modelling at the receiving end

Related files

Stakeholders

[GitWonder]

Looking at the first element of the REST return "ISBN:9781741795226":

It looks like it is actually a bug that has omitted the quote marks round the : which has turned a the label into part of the object and made it ungeneric