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Easy-to-use RSS client (consumer) enables developers to build .NET applications that easily consume RSS feeds.

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DataBind Charts to RSS Feeds


Use the standard ADO.NET procedures for databinding to provide bidirectional access to RSS feeds from controls in the Visual Studio toolbox. This article demonstrates a graphical approach using wizards in Visual Studio, as well as how to databind with only a few lines of code.

DataBinding facilitates two-way interaction with data through UI controls. Using the CData ADO.NET Provider for RSS streamlines the process of binding RSS feeds to Windows Forms and Web controls within Visual Studio. In this article, we will demonstrate using wizards to establish a binding between RSS feeds and a chart that dynamically updates. Additionally, the code walk-through section will guide you through the creation of a chart using just 10 lines of code.

DataBind to a Chart

DataBinding consists of three steps: Instantiate the control, configure the data source, and databind.

Configure the Connection and Select Database Objects

To create a chart control and establish a connection to RSS, follow the steps outlined below using the Data Source Configuration Wizard. Within the wizard, you'll have the option to choose the specific RSS entities you wish to bind to.

  1. In a Windows Forms project, drag and drop a Chart control from the toolbox to the form. In the Data section of the Chart properties, select DataSource and then select Add Project Data Source from the menu.
  2. In the Data Source Configuration Wizard that appears, select Database -> Dataset.
  3. In the Choose Your Data Connection step, click New Connection.

  4. In the Add Connection dialog, click Change to select the CData RSS Data Source.

    Below is a typical connection string:

    URI=http://broadcastCorp/rss/;

    You can connect to RSS and Atom feeds, as well as feeds with custom extensions. To connect to a feed, set the URL property. You can also access secure feeds. A variety of authentication mechanisms are supported. See the help documentation for details.

    When you configure the connection, you may also want to set the Max Rows connection property. This will limit the number of rows returned, which is especially helpful for improving performance when designing reports and visualizations.

  5. Choose the database objects you want to work with. This example uses the Latest News table.

DataBind

After adding the data source and selecting database objects, you can bind the objects to the chart. This example assigns the x-axis to Author and the y-axis to Pubdate.

  1. In the Chart properties, click the button in the Series property to open the Series Collection Editor.
  2. In the Series properties, select the columns you want for the x- and y-axes: Select columns from the menu in the XValueMember and YValueMember properties.

The chart is now databound to the RSS feeds. Run the chart to display the current data.

Code Walk-through

DataBinding to RSS feeds requires only a few lines of code and can be completed in three easy steps.

  1. Connect to RSS.
  2. Create the RSSDataAdapter to execute the query and create a DataSet to be filled with its results.
  3. DataBind the result set to the chart.

Below is the complete code:

RSSConnection conn = new RSSConnection("URI=http://broadcastCorp/rss/;"); RSSCommand comm = new RSSCommand("SELECT Pubdate, Author FROM RSSFeed", conn); RSSDataAdapter da = new RSSDataAdapter(comm); DataSet dataset = new DataSet(); da.Fill(dataset); chart1.DataSource = dataset; chart1.Series[0].XValueMember = "Author"; chart1.Series[0].YValueMembers = "Pubdate"; // Insert code for additional chart formatting here. chart1.DataBind();