Hacks/Hackers DC

Python Web Scraping 101 for Journalists

January 28, 2012 · 11:00 AM
Sunlight Foundation

Roll up your sleeves: We're going to get hands-on this month with a coding workshop!

Jackie Kazil, a web developer and an organizer of DC PyLadies, and Serdar Tumgoren, a news app developer at The Washington Post, will introduce the fundamentals of Python using a simple web scraping example. This will be a basic session aimed at folks who have some familiarity with Python. It will move pretty quickly through fundamentals such as looping, variables and data types before moving to scraping.

The event will run from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m and is sponsored by International Center for Journalists. We have limited seating, so please RSVP promptly. We have a waiting list and are looking into ways to include more people -- we'll follow-up if anything changes.

Please bring a laptop with Python installed. For more on that, check out the official Downloading Python page. Python Anywhere is a cloud-based solution that doesn't require local installation. If you need help installing Python locally, please comment below or message Greg and we will have a pre-workshop session at 10:30 a.m. to make sure everyone who needs assistance is ready to start.

Also, here are some resources to prepare/get up to speed, if needed:

Hope to see you there!

Update

We're considering whether to divide this event into beginner and intermediate sessions at Sunlight, in addition to exploring a possible larger venue. Please stay tuned for a quick survey of your skills.
Thanks to sponsorship for this event by International Center for Journalists, we'll be able to buy some pizza for lunch. ICFJ is a non-profit, professional organization that promotes quality journalism worldwide in the belief that independent, vigorous media are crucial in improving the human condition.

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Ben Colmery

I know I was a co-organizer, so I'm self-rating here, but I had a great time. Fun atmosphere, fun to talk to everyone, great that everyone was pretty into it, the more knowledgeable people were very helpful of those in need of help. Thanks, everyone!

0 · January 31, 2012
Greg Linch

Glad to do it, John. And thanks for the offer! Sounds like a good space for future workshops.

0 · January 30, 2012
John Kabler

Thanks for all your work in running the workshop. I'll be contacting you in the future regarding a hosting location in Crystal City that can seat 50.

0 · January 30, 2012
John Kabler

Awesome. Thanks for putting on a great workshop.

0 · January 30, 2012
Michelle Minkoff

Solidified my own techniques with great input from presenters, was inspired to see others picking this stuff up, starting from a variety of levels. Nothing like getting into the code with great teachers and organizers -- thanks for making this happen! More, please.

0 · January 29, 2012
Yong Lee

Ditto Katya and chad - thanks for a great experience!

0 · January 29, 2012
Yong Lee

Happy with the experience. Serdar, Jackie, and Jeremy were awesome, I'm impressed that so much was done in such a short time. Would love to see follow-ups (working with APIs, Django) and maybe even meetups with different experience levels. Impromptu/casual meetups -- eg, at a coffee shop -- would be fun, too!

0 · January 29, 2012
A former member

Thanks for a really awesome learning experience!

0 · January 29, 2012
Chad Bouchard

Yeah, great job for a Herculean effort, y'all.

0 · January 29, 2012
Chad Bouchard

Utterly fantastic. The hands-on style worked surprisingly well. For this kind of material, a lecture or discussion would have been crap. Still, it was an incredibly ambitious session. A room full of people using different versions of the software on different operating systems...like, wha? There were lots of bumps in the road, but noobs like myself were swept along by raw enthusiasm and the team of smartypants troubleshooters. What a great vibe there was in that room!

0 · January 29, 2012
Trish Anderton

Great meeting, very informative with a friendly atmosphere.

0 · January 29, 2012
A former member

You 3 were awesome!! Thank you Jackie, Serdar, and Jeremy for your incredible instruction and unlimited help today. Totally invaluable.

0 · January 29, 2012
Greg Linch

Thanks to the instructors, host (Sunlight), volunteers and everyone who participated!

0 · January 28, 2012
Greg Linch

Thanks, Matt. Sorry you can't make it. Meetup automatically moves the next person on the waiting into your spot.

0 · January 26, 2012
Matt Hu-Stiles

I can't be there, so someone can have my spot. I changed my RSVP to no.

0 · January 26, 2012
Greg Linch

Thanks, John. Yes, we'll be keeping track to see who does and doesn't show up, based on their RSVP. Also, now that we know there's so much interest in technical workshops like this, we plan to find larger venues right off the bat. Unfortunately, we weren't able to secure a bigger space for this one.

0 · January 25, 2012
John Kabler

Just a comment based on my experience attending meetups like this in the DC area: There is a tendency for a a significant number of people who RSVP "Yes" to simply not show up and never change their RSVP. We remedied this in a group I was in by keeping track of who showed up and booting anyone who flaked out of the meetup group. I'm only mentioning this because there are 36 people on the waiting list, and I am absolutely positive that at least 5 or 6 people who have RSVP'd yes will not show.

0 · January 25, 2012
Arman

Hi, if you guys need a volunteer to help out -- I'm decent at python and could help out folks who are learning.

0 · January 25, 2012