_express-js-handling-post-requests.md

Code Examples for my Blog Post: Handling HTTP POST Requests with Express.js

The full Github repo can be found here: Handling POST requests with Express and Node.js

example-1.js

//require the express nodejs module
var express = require('express'),
    //set an instance of exress
    app = express(),
    //require the body-parser nodejs module
    bodyParser = require('body-parser'),
    //require the path nodejs module
    path = require("path");

example-2.js

/support parsing of application/json type post data
app.use(bodyParser.json());
 
//support parsing of application/x-www-form-urlencoded post data
app.use(bodyParser.urlencoded({ extended: true }));

example-3.js

//tell express that www is the root of our public web folder
app.use(express.static(path.join(__dirname, 'www')));
 
//tell express what to do when the /about route is requested
app.post('/form', function(req, res){
    res.setHeader('Content-Type', 'application/json');
 
    //mimic a slow network connection
    setTimeout(function(){
 
        res.send(JSON.stringify({
            firstName: req.body.firstName || null,
            lastName: req.body.lastName || null
        }));
 
    }, 1000)
 
    //debugging output for the terminal
    console.log('you posted: First Name: ' + req.body.firstName + ', Last Name: ' + req.body.lastName);
});
 
//wait for a connection
app.listen(3000, function () {
  console.log('Server is running. Point your browser to: http://localhost:3000');
});

package.json

{
  "dependencies": {
    "body-parser": "^1.15.2",
    "express": "4.14.0"
  },
   "scripts": {
    "start": "node server.js"
  }
}