Quick Guide to Realtime Data in Goodreads without Webhooks

Aug 7, 2024 • 8 minute read

Hey there, fellow JavaScript enthusiast! Ready to dive into the world of Goodreads data without the luxury of webhooks? Don't worry, we've got you covered. In this guide, we'll walk through how to fetch real-time(ish) data from the Goodreads API using good old polling. Let's get started!

The Goodreads API: No Webhooks? No Problem!

So, Goodreads doesn't offer webhooks. Bummer, right? But fear not! We can still get that sweet, sweet real-time data using polling. It's like repeatedly asking your friend if they've finished that book yet – annoying, but effective!

Setting Up the Goodreads API

First things first, let's get you set up with the Goodreads API:

Head over to the Goodreads API site and grab yourself an API key.
For authentication, we'll be using the simple key-based method. Easy peasy!

Polling: The Art of Persistent Questioning

Polling is basically just asking the API for updates at regular intervals. Here's a basic structure to get you started:

function pollGoodreads(endpoint, interval) {
  setInterval(async () => {
    try {
      const response = await fetch(endpoint);
      const data = await response.json();
      // Do something with the data
    } catch (error) {
      console.error('Oops!', error);
    }
  }, interval);
}

Fetching User Data: Who's Been Reading?

Let's grab some user info:

const userId = '12345';
const apiKey = 'your_api_key_here';

pollGoodreads(`https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/${userId}.json?key=${apiKey}`, 60000);

This will check for user profile updates every minute. Neat, huh?

Book Updates: What's on Their Shelf?

Now, let's see what books they've been devouring:

pollGoodreads(`https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/${userId}.json?key=${apiKey}&v=2&shelf=read&sort=date_read`, 300000);

This checks for new books every 5 minutes. Adjust as needed!

Handling Rate Limits: Don't Be That Guy

Goodreads has rate limits, and we don't want to be the person who ruins it for everyone. Let's implement some exponential backoff:

function pollWithBackoff(endpoint, initialInterval) {
  let interval = initialInterval;
  
  const poll = async () => {
    try {
      const response = await fetch(endpoint);
      if (response.status === 429) {  // Too Many Requests
        interval *= 2;  // Double the interval
        console.log(`Rate limited. Retrying in ${interval/1000} seconds.`);
      } else {
        const data = await response.json();
        // Process your data here
        interval = initialInterval;  // Reset interval on success
      }
    } catch (error) {
      console.error('Error:', error);
    }
    
    setTimeout(poll, interval);
  };
  
  poll();
}

Optimizing Polling Frequency: Be Smart, Not Annoying

Let's make our polling adaptive based on user activity:

let pollInterval = 60000;  // Start with 1 minute

function adaptivePolling(endpoint) {
  let lastUpdateTime = Date.now();
  
  setInterval(async () => {
    const response = await fetch(endpoint);
    const data = await response.json();
    
    if (hasNewData(data)) {
      lastUpdateTime = Date.now();
      pollInterval = Math.max(pollInterval / 2, 30000);  // Increase frequency, min 30 seconds
    } else {
      pollInterval = Math.min(pollInterval * 1.5, 3600000);  // Decrease frequency, max 1 hour
    }
  }, pollInterval);
}

Error Handling: Because Things Go Wrong

Let's make our polling function a bit more robust:

async function robustPolling(endpoint, interval) {
  while (true) {
    try {
      const response = await fetch(endpoint);
      if (!response.ok) throw new Error(`HTTP error! status: ${response.status}`);
      const data = await response.json();
      // Process your data here
    } catch (error) {
      console.error('Polling error:', error);
    }
    await new Promise(resolve => setTimeout(resolve, interval));
  }
}

Storing and Comparing Data: Spot the Difference

To avoid unnecessary updates, let's compare new data with what we've stored:

let storedData = null;

function compareAndUpdate(newData) {
  if (JSON.stringify(newData) !== JSON.stringify(storedData)) {
    console.log('New data detected!');
    storedData = newData;
    return true;
  }
  return false;
}

Performance Boost: Caching for the Win

Let's implement a simple cache to reduce unnecessary API calls:

const cache = new Map();

async function fetchWithCache(url, ttl = 60000) {
  if (cache.has(url) && Date.now() - cache.get(url).timestamp < ttl) {
    return cache.get(url).data;
  }
  
  const response = await fetch(url);
  const data = await response.json();
  
  cache.set(url, { data, timestamp: Date.now() });
  return data;
}

Wrapping Up

And there you have it! You're now equipped to fetch real-time(ish) data from Goodreads without relying on webhooks. Remember, polling isn't perfect, but it gets the job done when webhooks aren't an option.

Keep in mind that while polling can be effective, it's important to be respectful of API limits and optimize your requests. Happy coding, and may your Goodreads integration be ever in your favor!