Question

I’m trying to consume the json services from broadbandmap.gov so that I can display broadband providers and their speeds in an area. Here is a sample url:

http://www.broadbandmap.gov/internet-service-providers/70508/lat=30.1471824/long=-92.033638/%3Ejson

I’m using jquery to consume the service, however it’s giving me an invalid label error in firebug:

var url = "http://www.broadbandmap.gov/internet-service-providers/70508/lat=30.1471824/long=-92.033638/%3Ejson";
        //var url = "http://www.broadbandmap.gov/broadbandmap/broadband/fall2010/wireline?latitude=" + lat + "&longitude=" + long + "&format=json";

        $.ajax({
            url: url,
            dataType: 'json',
            type: 'POST',
            contentType: "application/json; charset=utf-8",
            success: function (result) {
                console.debug("in success");
                console.debug(result);
                //success, execute callback function.
            },
            error: function (result) {
                console.debug("in error");
                console.debug(result);
            }
        });

The strange thing is that under the Invalid Label error in Firebug it actually has the correct response:

{“status”:”OK”,”responseTime”:7,”messa…//www.cscic.state.ny.us/broadband/”}}}

I have tried setting the dataType to json, jsonp, and other types as well to no avail. I have also tried GET instead of POST but that didn’t work either. Does anyone know what I’m missing?

Answer 1

That error is occurring because the service is returning JSON and not JSONP. Your browser is not going to let you process straight JSON from a cross-domain source.

In order to make the service return JSONP you have to use a specially formatted URL. If you go to the search results page without the “/>json” modifier (link) you’ll see a link on the page that reads “API Call”. If you hover over this link it will give you the correct URL to use for the wireless/wired API call. Use one of those URL’s in your ajax call with a JSONP return type & callback and you should be all set.

I created an updated fiddle at http://jsfiddle.net/qsY7h/1/.