Reading and Writing Data Using the Hotjar API

Hey there, fellow JavaScript aficionados! Ready to dive into the world of Hotjar API integration? Let's get our hands dirty with some code and explore how to sync data for a user-facing integration. Buckle up!

Introduction

Hotjar's API is a powerful tool that lets you tap into user behavior data. We're going to focus on reading and writing data to create a seamless user experience. Trust me, your users will thank you for this!

Authentication

First things first, let's get you authenticated. Head over to your Hotjar account and grab those API credentials. Once you've got them, here's how you can implement authentication in JavaScript:

const hotjarApi = axios.create({
  baseURL: 'https://api.hotjar.com/v1',
  headers: {
    'Authorization': `Bearer ${YOUR_API_KEY}`,
    'Content-Type': 'application/json'
  }
});

Easy peasy, right? Now you're ready to make some API calls!

Reading Data

Time to fetch some user data. Here's a quick example of how to retrieve user sessions:

async function getUserSessions(userId) {
  try {
    const response = await hotjarApi.get(`/users/${userId}/sessions`);
    return response.data;
  } catch (error) {
    console.error('Error fetching user sessions:', error);
  }
}

Writing Data

Now, let's update some user attributes:

async function updateUserAttributes(userId, attributes) {
  try {
    await hotjarApi.post(`/users/${userId}/attributes`, attributes);
    console.log('User attributes updated successfully');
  } catch (error) {
    console.error('Error updating user attributes:', error);
  }
}

Syncing Data

Here's where the magic happens. Let's create a sync function that handles both reading and writing:

async function syncUserData(userId) {
  try {
    const sessions = await getUserSessions(userId);
    const attributes = processSessionData(sessions);
    await updateUserAttributes(userId, attributes);
    console.log('User data synced successfully');
  } catch (error) {
    console.error('Error syncing user data:', error);
  }
}

Pro tip: Don't forget to handle rate limits and pagination for larger datasets!

Error Handling and Logging

Always be prepared for the unexpected. Here's a simple error handling wrapper:

function apiCallWrapper(apiCall) {
  return async (...args) => {
    try {
      return await apiCall(...args);
    } catch (error) {
      if (error.response && error.response.status === 429) {
        console.warn('Rate limit hit. Retrying in 60 seconds...');
        await new Promise(resolve => setTimeout(resolve, 60000));
        return apiCallWrapper(apiCall)(...args);
      }
      throw error;
    }
  };
}

Optimizing Performance

Keep your app snappy by implementing some caching:

const cache = new Map();

function getCachedData(key, fetchFunction, ttl = 300000) {
  if (cache.has(key) && Date.now() - cache.get(key).timestamp < ttl) {
    return cache.get(key).data;
  }
  const data = fetchFunction();
  cache.set(key, { data, timestamp: Date.now() });
  return data;
}

Security Considerations

Never, ever expose your API keys in client-side code. Use environment variables and a backend proxy to keep things secure.

Testing and Debugging

Here's a quick unit test to get you started:

test('getUserSessions returns correct data', async () => {
  const mockResponse = { data: [{ id: '123', timestamp: '2023-04-20T12:00:00Z' }] };
  axios.get.mockResolvedValue(mockResponse);
  
  const result = await getUserSessions('user123');
  expect(result).toEqual(mockResponse.data);
});

Conclusion

And there you have it! You're now equipped to create a robust Hotjar API integration. Remember to keep your code clean, your errors handled, and your users happy. Happy coding!