Consuming Membership info via API for .NET

Hello:

I'm looking at building a small application for our bishopric. I am looking for any information you have regarding the ability to retrieve membership info via an API and consume it in a .NET application.

Is that possible?

Ryan

ryalif wrote:I'm looking at building a small application for our bishopric. I am looking for any information you have regarding the ability to retrieve membership info via an API and consume it in a .NET application.

The membership APIs are not available except for Church-sponsored applications. See this response from Joel Dehlin, CIO for the Church:

joel wrote:Actually, it's against our policy to have 3rd party apps use these web services. The policy going forward is that the only apps which can use LDS Account credentials are LDS Community apps.

OK, good to know. One follow up question though, how are some of these 3rd party iPhone apps (iWard, iStake, etc) getting their info? Screenscraping?

ryalif wrote:OK, good to know. One follow up question though, how are some of these 3rd party iPhone apps (iWard, iStake, etc) getting their info? Screenscraping?

Yes, screen scraping is pretty much the only technique available for a third party app.

ryalif wrote:I'm looking at building a small application for our bishopric. I am looking for any information you have regarding the ability to retrieve membership info via an API and consume it in a .NET application.

Since the application is for the bishopric, you might look at using the export files from MLS instead. They essentially contain a large superset of the same data now available on the website directory API. There are two downsides to that:

• The updating would not be as easy and seamless as an online API.
• The MLS exports are not well supported, and may be eliminated entirely someday.