Web scraping gives you access to the data stored in the websites. You can use these data to benefit and increase your business. But how can Google be utilized in scraping the website data? If that is a question, then here is the answer to it. Through Google, you can scrap data by web crawling or by web indexing. There have been various questionable remarks relating to the legality of web scraping. Web Scraping services make the scraping of publicly available information less challenging and do not pose many legalities. Assistance from a consultancy agency offering Web scraping services in the USA would avoid any unfortunate circumstances.
Process of scraping website data
Google is one of the largest companies that have to deal with IT software every day. However, does Google also scrap data? And does it offer a scraping service? However, it does not directly provide you with the data, but there are various tools that one can use to scrap the website data while using Google.
Google Search:
One of the easiest ways one can scrap information through Google is from the Google search. You can simply type down the information you need and select from the dropdown options, that would provide you with the most information. You can search for any specific queries and it will be made available to you within seconds. You can also get a list of various website links for more specific information.
Google Search operators:
If you are well aware of the keywords to be put in while searching, then Search operators can be used efficiently. Through this tool, you can use combinations of words as well as symbols. It will enable you to narrow down the options, thus providing you with customized results. Coupling them up with other engines can give you better results. When you are led to the specific website as per your need, it will find you with filtered results.
Google API:
Application performing interfaces, can be used for extracting data. It is another method used by programmers for web scraping. However, limits have been imposed on the usage of APIs. It has restricted the search to any number of queries to an extent. This means that if you are looking for scraping entirely based on these APIs, then it might not be able to fulfill your search requirements.
Google Programmable Search Engine:
Another method widely used for scraping website data is Google Programmable Search Engine. It is designed especially for the programmers to obtain specialized information. It provides refined data searches. It is a free tool that people can use to create customized search engines for their purposes.
Above are some of the tools that Google has been providing the developers with. There might be some restrictions as to the number of queries raised. However, the information and data are likely to be accurate and updated. This will make the scraping more efficient and usable.
Web crawling vs. web scraping
People generally tend to confuse the term web crawling with web scraping. Belonging to the same branch, they are somewhat misinterpreted in their meanings and utility. They are used interchangeably but are not the same. However, here are the following differences one can draw while considering them:
Meaning:
Web crawling is the process in which the tools are used to get an idea of the content and then build for their websites. On the other hand, web scraping is used for extracting data in large amounts to improve its own business.
Programmers:
The ones working on the web scraping are called web scrapers. The bots performing web scrawling are known as web crawlers or web spiders.
Functions:
Web crawlers visit various links, look into the content, and add them to the indexes. A web scraper takes a load of all the HTML links and then focuses on gathering the data. These data can then be downloaded in the format required.
Usage:
Web crawling is especially used in fields like generating SEO results, monitoring analytics, and website analytics. Web scraping is used generally in stock market analysis, generating leads, and comparison of prices.
Above are some of the comparison parameters used for web crawling and web scraping. However, in reality, both are useful for collecting data.
Conclusion
Coming to the end of this blog, you would have fairly got an idea of how web scraping of data works. However, you must be aware that the processes at Google are automated which restricts a person on certain parts that are out of the reach of programmers. They are strictly protected under the systems of Google. Web scraping at Google is much more difficult and complex than for any other. There are various legal guidelines when one is following data scraping. Being ethical and respecting these guidelines should be the core service of a scraper. One must consider the impact scraping could create on their website.