Connect to MailChimp Data from PowerBuilder via ODBC

The CData ODBC Driver for MailChimp can be used from any platform or development technology that supports ODBC, including PowerBuilder. This article shows how to connect to MailChimp data and execute queries from the Database Painter and controls such as the DataWindow.

Connect to MailChimp as an ODBC Data Source

If you have not already, first specify connection properties in an ODBC DSN (data source name). This is the last step of the driver installation. You can use the Microsoft ODBC Data Source Administrator to create and configure ODBC DSNs.

You can set the APIKey to the key you generate in your account settings, or, instead of providing your APIKey, you can use the OAuth standard to authenticate the application. OAuth can be used to enable other users to access their own data. To authenticate using OAuth, obtain the OAuthClientId, OAuthClientSecret, and CallbackURL by registering an app with MailChimp.

See the "Getting Started" chapter in the help documentation for a guide to using OAuth.

Create a Profile for the ODBC Driver for MailChimp

Follow the steps below to use the Database Painter tool to create a database profile based on an ODBC DSN (data source name) for MailChimp. In the Database Painter, you can use wizards and the UI to work with MailChimp data.

1. In PowerBuilder, click Tools -> Database Painter.
2. In the Objects window in the Database Painter, right-click the ODBC node and click New Profile.
3. On the Connection tab, enter a name for the profile and select the MailChimp DSN in the Data Source menu. 👁 The ODBC DSN, required to create the Database Profile. (Salesforce is shown.)
   
4. To view and modify a table, right-click a table and then click Edit Data -> Grid.

Using MailChimp Data with PowerBuilder Controls

You can use standard PowerBuilder objects to connect to ODBC data sources and execute queries. The following example shows how to retrieve MailChimp data into a DataWindow. You can add the following code to the open method:

SQLCA.DBMS = "ODBC"
SQLCA.DBParm = "ConnectString='DSN=CData MailChimp Source'"
CONNECT USING SQLCA;
dw_lists.SetTransObject(SQLCA);
dw_lists.Retrieve();