Converting JSON strings with escaped Unicode characters to JavaScript objects

Question

I have a JSON string which contains an escaped Unicode character. The JSON includes this snippet:

I co-ordinate our Chat Literacy network \u2013 an online group for practitioners of Information Literacy

The \u2013 is a long dash.

I'm using

var theObject = eval ("(" + jsonString + ")");

to convert the JSON string to a JavaScript object. I need to use a version of SpiderMonkey that doesn't have a direct JSON to Object method in it.

After conversion, the character in question becomes the Unicode control character \0013 which is an invalid UTF-8 character.

Is there another way I can convert the JSON to an object which will preserve the correct long-dash character? Maybe some other JSON to Object method I can load?

This happens with some other characters also, like curly quotes.

Thanks,

Doug

Does anyone know if the JSON.parse method in JSON 3 would solve the problem of the escaped Unicode entities? Or if there is a way of avoiding the problem with the eval() method I'm using? — Doug Lerner
– Doug Lerner, Commented Apr 9, 2015 at 8:02

AlexStack · Accepted Answer · 2015-03-30 06:23:53Z

2

eval() is evil. Stay away from it. Try using JSON 3: http://bestiejs.github.io/json3/

answered Mar 30, 2015 at 6:23

AlexStack

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4 Comments

Amadan Over a year ago

Ooo, there's JSON3? I'm not keeping up :O

AlexStack Over a year ago

You know Javascript! :D For everything new there's something newer! :D

AlexStack Over a year ago

By the time you finish reading this somebody is already working on JSON 4 ;)

Doug Lerner Over a year ago

Would the JSON.parse method in JSON 3 help with the problem I mentioned involving escaped Unicode entities?

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