What is an Extractor?
The Import.io extractor is our solution to transform the web into data. It runs through an online platform accessible through your browser, thus you don't have to download anything!
To use our extractor, you simply create an account and log in to our dashboard. We start by looking at a single webpage. Then by identifying the key features of this page, our extractor can run on all similar webpages enabling you to extract all the data you need.
If this your first time using Import.io, our first extractor guide is a great place to start learning how to use our extractors.
Each section of this guide is also covered separately:
Section 1. Login and URL inputs
Instructions in how to log in to the dashboard and input your chosen URL.
Section 2. The editor
Key features of the Import.io editor used to build and train the extractors.
Section 3. Adding and removing columns
How to add and remove columns from your data table.
Section 4. Selecting data from a website
How to capture the data from website by simple point-and-click.
Section 5. Running your first extractor
How to run your first extractor through the dashboard.
This is followed by three additional sections, which provide more information in how to customize your extractor to collect the desired data.
Section 6. List versus detail pages
How to design extracts for the two different formats of webpages which can be captured: list and detail.
Detail sites have a single item of interest while list sites have multiple items of interest.
Section 7. Column options
This shows additional column option within the editor, enabling further customization of data collection.
Section 8. Training URLs
This shows how to train additional webpages beyond the first webpage, further optimizing the extractor.
This guide covers the basic of creating extractors, however our extractors can be tailored to many kinds of website and many different types of data. In the enhancing your extractors section, we cover additional features of the extractors.
The next section has additional information regarding the management and running of the extractors.