What is JSON?
JSON is a simple text format for structured data, made of names, values, lists and nested objects, used everywhere on the web.
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JSON (JavaScript Object Notation) is a way to write data as text that both humans and programs can read. It has only a few building blocks: strings in double quotes, numbers, true, false, null, lists in square brackets and objects in curly braces. A filled in form is a good picture: a label, a colon, and the value, repeated.
Almost every web API sends and receives JSON, configuration files such as package.json use it, and browsers parse it natively. Every language has a built in library: json in Python, JSON.parse in JavaScript. Two rules catch beginners: keys must be in double quotes, and there is no trailing comma after the last item. The command line tool jq is the Swiss army knife for it.
{
"name": "Ada",
"age": 36,
"languages": ["python", "sql"]
}See also: What is YAML? and What is a REST API?
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See also
- 0009 CSV to JSON converter A small command-line tool that turns a CSV file into a JSON array of objects, with optional number detection, custom delimiters and… Beginner · Step by step · Any system Script CSV & JSON · Files & automation 15 Oct 2026
- 0072 CSV vs JSON: choosing a format and avoiding the classic pitfalls CSV is a simple table of text; JSON holds nested, typed data. Both break in predictable ways: quoting, delimiters, encodings, numbers and… Beginner · Explains an idea · Any system Article CSV & JSON 15 Oct 2026
- 0073 Fix: json.decoder.JSONDecodeError: Expecting value: line 1 column 1 (char 0) Python's json module found nothing it could parse at the very first character. The input is usually empty, HTML, or already consumed.… Beginner · Fixes an error · Any system Article Common errors · CSV & JSON 15 Oct 2026
- 0075 CSV to JSON converter (Python, standard library) Convert any CSV file with a header row into a JSON array or JSON Lines. Handles quoted fields, a byte order mark,… Beginner · Step by step · Any system Script CSV & JSON · Files & automation 15 Oct 2026
- 0076 jq recipes: 23 one-liners for JSON on the command line A runnable collection of jq filters for everyday JSON work: pick fields, filter with select, reshape, sort, count, group, pass shell variables,… Intermediate · Cheat sheet · Linux, macOS, Windows Script Command-line tools · jq & JSON on the command line 15 Oct 2026
- 0299 What is YAML? YAML is a human friendly text format for configuration files where indentation shows structure instead of brackets. Beginner · Explains an idea · Any system Article CSV & JSON 15 Oct 2026
Repos in the wild
- jq: command-line JSON processor jqlang/jq jq is a small command-line tool for reading, filtering and transforming JSON, like sed and awk for structured data. GitHub
History
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