A DataAddress is what ScrapeMate uses to designate what data to capture. The ScrapeMap Explorer pane is where DataAddresses are created in a new ScrapeMap. The DataAddress Name serves as the default column header for the output data and contains information on where the data can be found in the source web page.
Data from the website in the Source Browser is selected, captured and stored through a DataAddress. All DataAddresses within a ScrapeMap must have a unique name that cannot contain spaces or special characters.
After creating a new ScrapeMap, an empty Root InstructionSet is displayed in the ScrapeMap Explorer Pane. This is where DataAddresses and Actions can now be added, through interactions with data on the pre-selected website in the Source Browser Pane.
The specific sequence for capturing data from websites in ScrapeMate varies depending on the Type of ScrapeMap.
FreeForm – For this type of ScrapeMap, only one instance of the desired data needs to be clicked for each DataAddress.
List – For this type of ScrapeMap, at least two instances of the desired data must be clicked for each DataAddress. For example, if you want to capture Price data, then two separate prices must be selected.
Table – For HTML Table data and headers, you just need to click anywhere within the table, rather than on a specific data field, and the entire table DataAddresses will be captured and brought into ScrapeMap.
After you have browsed to the data you wish to scrape and created your FreeForm ScrapeMap click on the data you wish to capture to begin creating a DataAddress.
The ScrapeMap Wizard Dialog will appear and ask you what kind of DataAddress or Action you would like to add. For a FreeForm DataAddress you would select “Capture Data.”
After you have clicked on your first piece of data but before the DataAddress has been created the data the DataAddress will capture is highlighted in purple.
A new dialog box will display where you can enter the Name (unique, with no spaces or special characters) along with a more detailed Description (optional).
After clicking OK, the FlightTime DataAddress is added to the Root InstructionSet. Once the DataAddress has been created, the data that will be scraped turns green in the Browser Pane. The green data let you know that the ScrapeMap has successfully targeted the data you selected.
Additional details about DataAddresses and how to create them is available through the Help topics for each of the 3 ScrapeMap Types FreeForm, List and Table.