Thank you for being a valued part of the CNET community. As of December 1, 2020, the forums are in read-only format. In early 2021, CNET Forums will no longer be available. We are grateful for the participation and advice you have provided to one another over the years.

Thanks,

CNET Support

Question

Collecting mass data from Google

Oct 29, 2014 4:31AM PDT

Hello,

I need to collect many business names, email addresses, phone numbers and website URLs of catering services in Boston. It is for a project I'm doing.

Problem is I'm not tech savvy and compiling a database manually from Google search results is incredibly laborious.

Please advise how I can streamline the process significantly? I have heard of web crawlers but I'm not sure if that's the best option. Besides, I don't know how to use it.

Thanks in advance

Discussion is locked

- Collapse -
Answer
Why not hire it out?
Oct 29, 2014 2:46PM PDT

Sounds like you need more staff, maybe a programmer and more?

- Collapse -
Darn I was hoping for a simpler solution; just a program
Oct 29, 2014 3:10PM PDT

Darn I was hoping there was a program or software I could use. Do I really need to hire a programmer etc?

- Collapse -
Even if there was a collector app
Oct 30, 2014 2:11AM PDT

My bet is that it won't collect and organize it to your needs. That's where a programmer can whip up a specification for your semi-custom app and get to it.

A friend of mine wanted a table and chair set to fit a specific space. Never found it so they took up wood working. In a few years they had the perfect set.
Bob