Consuming Web Service that returns a Complex Data Type

[walshd]

All,

I'm trying to consume a web service that returns a complex data type. I'm not
having any luck. Hoping someone can point me in the right direction.

Here is what I have.

<cfscript>
ws = createObject("webservice",
"http://www.jasongaylord.com/webservices/zipcodes.asmx?wsdl");
retCityState = ws.ZipCodeToDetails("01863");
</cfscript>

I want to use this web service to get city and state from a zip code. If you
uses <cfdump var="#retCityState#"/> it returns a list of methods. (below)


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------------------------------
object of
com.jasongaylord.[url]www.webservices.zipcodes.ZipCodeToDetailsResponseZ ipCodeToDetai[/url]
lsResult

Methods hashCode (returns int)
equals (returns boolean)
getSerializer (returns interface org.apache.axis.encoding.Serializer)
getDeserializer (returns interface org.apache.axis.encoding.Deserializer)
getTypeDesc (returns org.apache.axis.description.TypeDesc)
get_any (returns [Lorg.apache.axis.message.MessageElement; )
set_any (returns void)
getClass (returns java.lang.Class)
wait (returns void)
wait (returns void)
wait (returns void)
notify (returns void)
notifyAll (returns void)
toString (returns java.lang.String)

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------------------------------

Now i thought that I could just use dot notation to reference these variables
but it doesn't work. ex. #retCityState.state# etc..

I'm lost at this point.

I'm running CF 7.0

Thanks,

[mrampson]

This is probably returning a transfer object of some sort. The key here would
be to find the correct field name. Looks like maybe any or _any so maybe
retCityState.any or retCityState._any. I couldn't tell from the wsdl exactly
what it was doing, but maybe give it a try.

[PaulH]

funky kind of ws. it returns a 2 element array. the 1st is filled w/schema
goop, the 2nd w/the "real" results. i actually don't see any methods to pull
data out of the results though (the results are actually returned as
org.apache.axis.message.MessageElement).

if you're after free/cheap geocoding ws then maybe geocoder.us or terraserver
would do.


<cfscript>
ws = createObject("webservice",
"http://www.jasongaylord.com/webservices/zipcodes.asmx?wsdl");
results = ws.ZipCodeToDetails("18452").get_any();
</cfscript>

<cfdump var="#results[2].getAsString()#" label="results as string">
<br>
<cfdump var="#results[2]#" label="the results object">

===================================geocoder.us==== ===========================
<cfscript>

geocoder=createObject("webservice","http://geocoder.us/dist/eg/clients/GeoCoder
..wsdl");
geocodeResults=geocoder.geocode_address("714 River St,Peckville, PA 18452");
</cfscript>

<cfdump var="#geocodeResults#">

<cfoutput>
<cfloop index="i" from="1" to="#arrayLen(geocodeResults)#">
latitude: #geocodeResults[i].getLat()#, longitude:
#geocodeResults[i].get_Long()# <br>
</cfloop>
</cfoutput>

<br>
<cfdump var="#results[1].getAsString()#" label="schema goop">

==========================terraserver============= ==========================
<cfscript>
thisPath = ExpandPath("*.*");
thisDir = GetDirectoryFromPath(thisPath);

ws=createObject("webservice","http://terraserver.microsoft.com/TerraService2.as
mx?WSDL");
place=StructNew();
place.City="Peckville";
place.State="PA";
place.Country="USA";
point=ws.ConvertPlaceToLonLatPt(place);
scale=structNew();
scale.Scale16m="Scale16m";
aBB=ws.GetAreaFromPt(point,1,Scale.Scale16m,600,40 0);
tMD=ws.GetTileMetaFromLonLatPt(point,1,Scale.Scale 16m);
tile=tMD.getID();
image=ws.GetTile(tile);
</cfscript>

<cffile action="WRITE" file="#thisDir#\image.jpg" output="#toBinary(image)#"
addnewline="No" fixnewline="No">
<table cellspacing="2" cellpadding="2">
<tr><td><cfoutput><b>that location</b>:
latitude:=#point.getLat()#&nbsp;longitude:=#point. getLon()#</cfoutput></td></tr>
<tr><td><img src="image.jpg" alt="" border="0"></td></tr>
</table>
<br>
<cfdump var="#ws#">
<br>
<cfdump var="#point#" label="point object">
<br>
<cfdump var="#aBB#" label="bounding box object">
<br>
<cfdump var="#tMD#" label="tile metadata">
<br>
<cfdump var="#tile#" label="tile object">

[walshd]

Paul,

Thanks for your help. I was using the results in the first part of the array.
That is why I didn't see any data. Now it looks like i'm going to have to
parse that string for the data. I looked at the other two examples you gave
me, but neither of them just take a zip code. I'm really looking to get city
and state from a zip.

Does anyone know of another service that is free with this information?

Thanks,

[PaulH]

geocoder.us only does, well, geocoding. terraserver has an "advanced find"
which seems to work off of zipcodes. i guess you could try scraping/parsing
[url]http://zip4.usps.com/zip4/citytown.jsp[/url]. the USPS does have a webtools API for
for this sort of thing at [url]http://www.usps.com/webtools/address.htm[/url].

but if this is all you want to do, i'd look at getting a zipcode db:
[url]http://www.cfdynamics.com/cfdynamics/zipbase/index.cfm[/url] or if you were really
intent & deranged maybe:
[url]http://www.johnsample.com/articles/GeocodeWithSqlServer.aspx[/url] (need to get TIGER
data from [url]http://www.census.gov/geo/www/tiger/tiger2004fe/tgr2004fe.html[/url]). once
you built out the TIGER db, you could perform this kind of "reverse" geocode.

[walshd]

Alright I got this to work. Here is the details.

Here is the Original Web Service I was having problems with.

Hope it helps someone!!!!

Thanks,



<cfscript>
ws = createObject("webservice",
"http://www.jasongaylord.com/webservices/zipcodes.asmx?wsdl");
retCityState = ws.ZipCodeToDetails("01863");
results = retCityState.get_any();
result = XmlParse(results[2].toString());
state = xmlSearch(result,"/diffgr:diffgram/NewDataSet/Details/state");
city = xmlSearch(result,"/diffgr:diffgram/NewDataSet/Details/city");
</cfscript>
City: <cfdump var="#city[1].xmltext#" label="City"/><br/>
State: <cfdump var="#state[1].xmltext#" label="State"/>

Found another webservice that looks like it might last longer.
<cfscript>
ws = createObject("webservice", "http://www.webservicex.net/uszip.asmx?WSDL");
retCityState = ws.GetInfoByZIP("01863");
results = retCityState.get_any();
result = XmlParse(results[1].toString());
</cfscript>

<cfoutput>
City: #result.NewDataSet.Table.CITY#<br/>
State: #result.NewDataSet.Table.STATE#
</cfoutput>