When dealing with numerous routes that have a similar structure, like the example provided:
https://www.yelp.com/biz/mcdonalds-san-jose-19
Instead of creating individual routes for each location, you can create a single route with a parameter. This route handler will then look up the parameter in a database or lookup table within your code to retrieve the relevant content for that specific tag.
An example implementation of such a route with a parameter would be:
app.get("/biz/:location", (req, res) => {
const location = req.params.location;
// retrieve the appropriate content for that location using a lookup mechanism and send the response
});
By following this approach, you only need one route to serve countless potential locations without having to register separate routes for each one.
If you are unfamiliar with URL parameters in Express routes, the ":location" serves as a placeholder for any string that matches the specified pattern. Any URL fitting this pattern will correspond to this route, enabling the route handler to access the parameter via "req.params.location," where the "location" property name aligns with the one used in the URL pattern. For further information, refer to the Express documentation here.