Difference between ordinary json and json lines?
JSON (JavaScript Object Notation) and JSON Lines (also known as newline-delimited JSON) are both formats used for representing structured data, but they differ in how they store multiple JSON objects.
- JSON (JavaScript Object Notation):
- Format: JSON is a text-based data interchange format.
- Structure: It represents data as key-value pairs and supports various data types, including objects, arrays, strings, numbers, booleans, and null.
- Example:
{
“name”: “John Doe”,
“age”: 30,
“city”: “New York”
}
- Usage: Typically used for configuration files, data exchange between a server and a web application, and various other scenarios where structured data needs to be transmitted.
- JSON Lines (newline-delimited JSON):
- Format: Each line in a JSON Lines file is a valid JSON object, and the objects are separated by newline characters.
- Structure: Each line is a standalone JSON object. Unlike a traditional JSON file, which contains a single JSON object or an array of objects, JSON Lines allows for a sequence of independent JSON objects.
- Example:
{“name”: “John Doe”, “age”: 30, “city”: “New York”}
{“name”: “Jane Smith”, “age”: 25, “city”: “San Francisco”}
- Usage: Particularly useful for streaming large datasets, log files, or any scenario where you want to process data line by line. It’s easier to read and parse incrementally, without having to load the entire file into memory.
In summary, the key difference is in how they handle multiple JSON objects. Regular JSON files are typically a single, self-contained structure, while JSON Lines use a line-by-line format, allowing for easier streaming and processing of individual objects.