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Guide · Open source

How to use examples-of-web-crawlers: clone and explore Python scrapers

Updated · written with AI from the project's own documentation and checked against our catalogue data

examples-of-web-crawlers is an open-source collection of Python scripts that show how to collect data from websites such as Taobao, Tmall, WeChat, Douban and QQ. This guide is for beginners and students who want a working reference for web scraping in Python. After reading, you will know how to get the code onto your machine and what the project is and isn't suited for.

examples-of-web-crawlersshengqiangzhang/examples-of-web-crawlers · ★ 14.7k · MIT

Quick start

  1. 1Check prerequisites. Make sure Python 3 and Git are installed on your computer.
  2. 2Clone the repository. Run the git clone command for shengqiangzhang/examples-of-web-crawlers in the folder where you want the project.
  3. 3Open the project folder. Change into the cloned folder and look through the files to see which examples are included.
  4. 4Read the code. Since the README was empty in the available material, read each script to understand what it does before running it.
  5. 5Compare with other tools. If you outgrow the examples, compare the listed alternatives such as Scrapy or BeautifulSoup.

What is examples-of-web-crawlers?

The project describes itself as a set of interesting Python crawler examples that are friendly to beginners. Its examples target sites including Taobao, Tmall, WeChat, WeChat Reading (微信读书), Douban and QQ.

The project is published under the MIT licence, so you can read and reuse the code under its terms.

What do you need before you start?

The project's install method is clone-and-build. The listed prerequisites are Python 3 and Git.

  • Python 3
  • Git

How do you get the code?

Clone the repository from GitHub with Git. This creates a local copy of the project in a folder on your computer.

git clone https://github.com/shengqiangzhang/examples-of-web-crawlers

What can you learn from the examples?

The project is aimed at students learning how crawlers, Selenium or PyQuery are used in practice. Developers who want a reference for scraping Chinese websites may also find it useful.

The README was empty in the material available for this guide, so the exact contents of each example could not be verified. Open the files in the cloned folder to see what each script does.

  • Students learning how crawlers, Selenium or PyQuery are used in practice
  • Developers who want a reference for scraping Chinese websites

What are the limits of this project?

This project is not a good fit for a production scraping system. The README did not confirm robustness or ongoing maintenance.

The coverage is limited to the sites named in the description. Guidance on legal or terms-of-service compliance is not covered in the material available.

  • Not for production-ready scraping systems
  • Not for sites outside the ones listed, since coverage beyond the description is unverified
  • Not a source of legal or terms-of-service guidance

What are the alternatives?

If you need a more complete scraping framework, the comparable projects listed for this item are Scrapy, BeautifulSoup, Crawlee and Colly.

  • Scrapy
  • BeautifulSoup
  • Crawlee
  • Colly

What people use it for

  • Learning how a Python script requests and parses pages from a website
  • Seeing how Selenium or PyQuery is used in a scraping example
  • Studying example scrapers for Taobao, Tmall, Douban or QQ as a reference

Frequently asked questions

How do I install examples-of-web-crawlers?

The install method is clone-and-build. Run git clone https://github.com/shengqiangzhang/examples-of-web-crawlers with Git installed, then work from the cloned folder. The README was empty in the available material, so further setup steps could not be confirmed.

What do I need to run examples-of-web-crawlers?

The listed prerequisites are Python 3 and Git. Beyond that, the material available does not list other requirements.

Is examples-of-web-crawlers free to use?

Yes, it is published under the MIT licence. That licence lets you read, use and modify the code under its terms.

Which websites does examples-of-web-crawlers scrape?

The description names Taobao, Tmall, WeChat, WeChat Reading, Douban and QQ. Coverage beyond these sites is not verified in the material available.

Is examples-of-web-crawlers good for beginners?

The project describes its examples as friendly to beginners. The exact contents of each example could not be verified because the README was empty.

What are alternatives to examples-of-web-crawlers?

Comparable projects listed are Scrapy, BeautifulSoup, Crawlee and Colly. Scrapy and Crawlee are better suited to larger scraping projects than a set of examples.

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Our verdict

Use examples-of-web-crawlers if you are a beginner or student who wants to read simple, working Python scraping examples for the listed Chinese sites. Pick a full framework like Scrapy or Crawlee if you need a production system, broader site coverage, or confirmed maintenance.

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