Step by Step Guide to Building a Ninja Forms API Integration in Ruby

Introduction

Hey there, fellow developer! Ready to supercharge your Ruby project with some Ninja Forms magic? In this guide, we'll walk through building a slick API integration that'll have you pulling form data and submitting entries like a pro. Let's dive in!

Prerequisites

Before we start coding, make sure you've got:

• Ruby 2.7+ installed
• The httparty gem (we'll use this for API requests)
• A Ninja Forms API key (grab this from your WordPress admin panel)

Setting up the project

First things first, let's get our project set up:

mkdir ninja_forms_integration
cd ninja_forms_integration
bundle init

Now, add httparty to your Gemfile:

gem 'httparty'

Run bundle install, and we're ready to roll!

Configuring the API client

Let's create a new file called ninja_forms_client.rb:

require 'httparty'

class NinjaFormsClient
  include HTTParty
  base_uri 'https://your-wordpress-site.com/wp-json/ninja-forms/v1'

  def initialize(api_key)
    @options = { headers: { 'Authorization' => "Bearer #{api_key}" } }
  end

  # We'll add more methods here soon!
end

Fetching form data

Now, let's add some methods to grab our forms:

def get_forms
  self.class.get('/forms', @options)
end

def get_form(form_id)
  self.class.get("/forms/#{form_id}", @options)
end

Submitting form entries

Time to add a method for submitting entries:

def submit_entry(form_id, fields)
  self.class.post("/forms/#{form_id}/submissions", @options.merge(body: fields.to_json))
end

Retrieving form submissions

Let's fetch those submissions:

def get_submissions(form_id, params = {})
  self.class.get("/forms/#{form_id}/submissions", @options.merge(query: params))
end

Error handling and logging

Don't forget to add some error handling:

def handle_response(response)
  case response.code
  when 200..299
    response
  else
    raise "API request failed: #{response.code} - #{response.message}"
  end
end

Wrap your API calls with this method to catch any issues.

Testing the integration

Here's a quick test script to make sure everything's working:

client = NinjaFormsClient.new('your-api-key-here')

# Get all forms
forms = client.get_forms
puts "Found #{forms.length} forms"

# Submit an entry
response = client.submit_entry(1, { 'field_1' => 'Test Name', 'field_2' => '[email protected]' })
puts "Submission response: #{response}"

# Get submissions
submissions = client.get_submissions(1, { 'per_page' => 10 })
puts "Retrieved #{submissions.length} submissions"

Best practices and optimization

Remember to respect rate limits and consider caching frequently accessed data to keep your integration speedy.

Conclusion

And there you have it! You've just built a robust Ninja Forms API integration in Ruby. With this foundation, you can easily extend the functionality to fit your specific needs. Happy coding, and may your forms always be ninja-fast! 🥷💨