JSON (JavaScript Object Notation) is a text-based way to organize nested data. It groups values into arrays and objects so related information can be handled together instead of scattered across separate fields. section 3.5.2
JSON’s two main building blocks make layered data easier to describe:
- Arrays use square brackets and comma-separated elements. They can nest inside one another to create multiple dimensions, and their elements are described as sharing a data type. section 3.5.2
- Objects attach names to values, including arrays. Those names provide context that a bare, repeated nested array would lack. section 3.5.2
- Nested JSON contrasts with tabular data arranged in rows and columns, a difference that matters when data comes from SQL-dominated systems. section 3.5.2 section 3.6
From repeated arrays to labeled records
A weekly schedule can begin as seven repeated arrays of Morning, Noon, Evening, and Night. Naming those arrays by day makes the structure readable; a richer fruit-ranking example then wraps metadata such as a title and version around an array of named records.
