We are proud to share our inclusion in the 2024 Gartner Magic Quadrant for Data Integration Tools. We believe this recognition reflects the differentiated business outcomes CData delivers to our customers.
Get the Report →Create Dynamic TaxJar Grids Using the Infragistics XamDataGrid
Learn how you can connect TaxJar to Infragistics XamDataGrid to build dynamic grids.
Using Infragistics WPF UI controls, you can build contemporary applications reminiscent of Microsoft Office for both desktop and touch-based devices. When coupled with the CData ADO.NET Provider for TaxJar, you gain the capability to construct interactive grids, charts, and various other visual elements while directly accessing real-time data from TaxJar data. This article will guide you through the process of creating a dynamic grid within Visual Studio using the Infragistics XamDataGrid control.
You will need to install the Infragistics WPF UI components to continue. Download a free trial here: https://www.infragistics.com/products/wpf.
Create a WPF Project
Open VisualStudio and create a new WPF project.
Add a TextBox for passing a SQL query to the CData ADO.NET Provider and a Button for executing the query.
The XAML at this stage is as follows:
< Window xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml/presentation" xmlns:x="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml" xmlns:d="http://schemas.microsoft.com/expression/blend/2008" xmlns:mc="http://schemas.openxmlformats.org/markup-compatibility/2006" xmlns:local="clr-namespace:CDataXamDataGridGroupingListApp" xmlns:igWPF="http://schemas.infragistics.com/xaml/wpf" x:Class="CDataXamDataGridGroupingListApp.MainWindow" mc:Ignorable="d" Title="MainWindow" Height="450" Width="800"> < Grid> < TextBox x:Name="textBox" HorizontalAlignment="Left" Height="44" TextWrapping="Wrap" Text="TextBox" VerticalAlignment="Top" Width="682" Margin="10,10,0,0"/> < Button x:Name="button" Content="Execute" HorizontalAlignment="Left" Margin="697,10,0,0" VerticalAlignment="Top" Width="85" Height="44"/> < /Grid> < /Window>
Add and Configure a XamDataGrid
After adding the initial controls, add a XamDataGrid to the App. The component will appear in the Visual Studio toolbox.
Arrange the component on the designer so that it is below the TextBox & Button and linked to the boundaries of the app.
Once the XamDataGrid is placed, edit the XAML to set the XamDataGrid DataSource attribute to "{Binding}" and set the FieldSettings AllowRecordFiltering and AllowSummaries attributes to "true." Next, add an empty method as the Click event handler for the Button component. The XAML at this stage is as follows:
< Window xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml/presentation" xmlns:x="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml" xmlns:d="http://schemas.microsoft.com/expression/blend/2008" xmlns:mc="http://schemas.openxmlformats.org/markup-compatibility/2006" xmlns:local="clr-namespace:CDataXamDataGridGroupingListApp" xmlns:igWPF="http://schemas.infragistics.com/xaml/wpf" x:Class="CDataXamDataGridGroupingListApp.MainWindow" mc:Ignorable="d" Title="MainWindow" Height="450" Width="800"> < Grid> < TextBox x:Name="textBox" HorizontalAlignment="Left" Height="44" TextWrapping="Wrap" Text="TextBox" VerticalAlignment="Top" Width="682" Margin="10,10,0,0"/> < Button x:Name="button" Content="Execute" HorizontalAlignment="Left" Margin="697,10,0,0" VerticalAlignment="Top" Width="85" Click="Button_Click" Height="44"/> < igWPF:XamDataGrid Margin="10,59,10,10" DataSource="{Binding}"> < igWPF:XamDataGrid.FieldSettings> < igWPF:FieldSettings AllowSummaries="True" AllowRecordFiltering="True"/> < /igWPF:XamDataGrid.FieldSettings> < /igWPF:XamDataGrid> < /Grid> < /Window>
Connect to and Query TaxJar
The last step in building our WPG App with a dynamic DataGrid is connecting to and querying live TaxJar data. First add a reference to the CData ADO.NET Provider to the project (typically found in C:\Program Files\CData[product_name]\lib).
Next, add the Provider to the namespace, along with the standard Data library:
using System.Data.CData.TaxJar; using System.Data;
Finally, add the code to connect to TaxJar and query using the text from the TextBox to the Click event handler.
To authenticate to the TaxJar API, you will need to first obtain the API Key from the TaxJar UI.
NOTE: the API is available only for Professional and Premium TaxJar plans.
If you already have a Professional or Premium plan you can find the API Key by logging in the TaxJar UI and navigating to Account -> TaxJar API. After obtaining the API Key, you can set it in the APIKey connection property.
Additional Notes
- By default, the CData connector will retrieve data of the last 3 months in cases where the entity support date range filtering. You can set StartDate to specify the minimum creation date of the data retrieved.
- If the API Key has been created for a sandbox API account please set UseSandbox to true, but not all endpoints will work as expected. For more information, refer to the TaxJar developer documentation.
private void Button_Click(object sender, RoutedEventArgs e) { //connecting to TaxJar string connString = "APIKey=3bb04218ef8t80efdf1739abf7257144;"; using (var conn = new TaxJarConnection(connString)) { //using the query from the TextBox var dataAdapter = new TaxJarDataAdapter(textBox.Text, conn); var table = new DataTable(); dataAdapter.Fill(table); //passing the DataRowCollection to the DataContext // for use in the XamDataGrid this.DataContext = table.Rows; } }
Run the Application
With the app fully configured, we are ready to display TaxJar data in our XamDataGrid. When you click "Execute," the app connects to TaxJar and submits the SQL query through the CData ADO.NET Provider.
Live TaxJar data is displayed in the grid.
Group the data by dragging and dropping a column name into the header.
As you add groupings and filters, the underlying SQL query is submitted directly to TaxJar, making it possible to drill down into live TaxJar data to find only the specific information you need.
Free Trial & More Information
At this point, you have created a dynamic WPF App with access to live TaxJar data. For more information, visit the CData ADO.NET Provider page. Download a free, 30-day trial and start working live TaxJar data in apps built using the Infragistics UI controls today.