Loading JSON files from URLS/File Paths into a After Effects

Question

Basically, I want to make a script in which the user enters a file path or URL of a JSON file, the file is loaded and the user can manipulate the data in various ways within After Effects.
I got as far as writing a script that requests the data and logs it into the console but it will only work in Extendscript. I'm using Extendables which was built for indesign so that may be the problem.
    #include Extendables/extendables.jsx
    var url = "http://echo.jsontest.com/key/value/otherkey/othervalue";
    //Retrieve the data
    function retrieveData(_url){
        var http = require("http");
        var response = http.get(_url);
        var responseStr = JSON.stringify(response);
        var responseBod = JSON.parse(responseStr);
        var data = JSON.parse(responseBod.body);     
        $.writeln(data.key);
    retrieveData(url);
When I run it in After Effects I get an error "Undefined is not an object" pointing to line 162 in errors.jsx which says:
if (app.name.to('lower').contains("indesign")) {
What exactly is happening here? Is there a better way to go about doing requesting JSON files?
Thanks!
EDIT: I should add that I tried removing the "$.writeln(data.key);" but am still getting the same error.

Answer 1

The line that generates the error tries to test whether the targetted application is InDesign, and the test is not so good because in other apps the test may generate an error.
(For AfterEffects, the object 'app' exists [object Application] but it doesnt have a 'name' property, so app.name.xxx is wrong).
I don't know of a test that would work for any app. For After Effects, "if (app.effects instanceof Array)" might work, not sure.
If the script is meant to target AfterEffects only you can simply omit the condition.
Xavier