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wxpath is a Python library that simplifies web crawling by allowing users to express both traversal and data extraction in a single XPath expression. It supports asynchronous operations for efficient crawling and streaming of results. The library includes features like a command-line interface, a terminal user interface, and options for politeness and caching.
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wxpath is a Python library designed for web crawling using XPath expressions. It simplifies the process by allowing users to describe both the traversal and data extraction in a single, declarative expression. This eliminates the need for traditional crawl loops, making it easier to fetch links and data concurrently. To get started, you need Python 3.10 or newer, and you can install wxpath with pip. For interactive terminal interface support, install the TUI component.
The library offers advanced features like asynchronous crawling and polite crawling with customizable headers, which is vital for sites like Wikipedia that may block requests without them. The `url(...)` operator fetches content, while the `///url(...)` syntax allows for deeper recursive crawling. Users can define extraction formats directly in their expressions using JSON-like structures, enabling the retrieval of clean, structured data. The library respects robots.txt by default, ensuring compliance with web scraping norms.
wxpath also supports advanced XPath 3.1 features, allowing for complex queries that include maps and arrays. A command-line interface (CLI) is provided for quick experimentation, and a progress bar tracks crawl performance. Overall, wxpath combines ease of use with powerful capabilities, making it a valuable tool for developers looking to scrape and analyze web data efficiently.
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