Web scraping, also often know as web harvesting or web data extraction, primarily, is a technique used for extracting data from the websites. It uses the world wide web directory to access the huge database through hypertext transfer protocol and compare and analyse the desired content. Though, it can be done manually too, but an automated process is hassle free, can handle larger data and provided higher accuracy of results.

 

Web Scraping is done extensively with the help of Python. Reason being that Python is superfast for this job. Python has a library called “Beautiful soup” which is required for extracting the data out of the HTML and XML files. It works with one’s favorite parser to provide idiomatic ways of navigating, searching and modifying the parse tree. It makes the job much more easier and saves the time. “Beautiful soup” can do a variety of things but it has its own limitation. It cannot send a request on to the web page. So for making the requests, requests are used and then further Beautiful soup can be used. Another python module which is used for getting the URLs is Urllib2 is also used.

By why is Web Scraping used? The answer to this lies in the fact that, web scraping:-

 

• Boosts Employment as there are various processes which come under the umbrella of web scraping where manpower in required to be engaged.
• Optimizes resources as it helps in developing strategic plans and creating modules which could be profitable in short and long run for the respective company
• Boosts profits as once the well planned strategies are executed, they are sure to reap amazing results in terms of company profits as well as in terms of helping the respective company to create a niche in the modern day competitive market arena.

 

In this context, companies such as ITSYS Solution is a name to place one’s trust with. Its efficient management of data, proper maintenance of databases – big or small, detailed analysis, precise results and, all over cost, effective services make it very dependable and a company to go for.

 

Web scraping, though considered by many, as a grey area, is such an area that despite of being cited as illegal proves to be a domain which helps in reaping quite handsome profits. From its very inception, it has grown and expanded its reach and still on a rapid rise in terms of its use by many eminent companies.