xSkrape Reference Guide

This page includes documentation for all versions of xSkrape: for Excel (Add-in), for SQL Server and for SSIS.

There are different views of XS.QL documentation: at a summary level here, for URL's here, and for queries here.

You can pick a specific version to filter results:

Product Filter:    ALL xSkrape for Excel "Web" Add-in xSkrape for Excel Desktop Add-in xSkrape for SQL Server xSkrape for SSIS xSkrape Web API

Common to all versions of xSkrape is our xSkrape Fundamentals document (PDF). We suggest you start here to get familiar with common concepts that help when reading examples and reference documentation.

Function Reference

Function	Overview	Product / Version
WebGetSingle	Extract a single value (number, text, etc.) from a source reference, using query conditions that identify the value of interest.	For Excel (2.0) For SQL Server (2.0)
WebGetSingleFromTable	Extract a single value (number, text, etc.) from a source reference, using query conditions that identify both a table and the row(s) and column that contain the specific data value of interest.	For Excel (2.0) For SQL Server (2.0)
WebGetMultiple	Extract multiple values (numbers, text, etc.) from a source reference, using a list of query conditions that identify the values of interest.	For Excel (2.0) only
WebGetTable	Extract tabular data (rows and columns) from a source reference, using query conditions to identify the characteristics of the data in the event there are multiple tables that could be identified in the source.	For Excel (2.0) For SQL Server (2.0)
WebGetDynamicTable	Extract tabular data (rows and columns) from a source reference, using query conditions to identify the characteristics of the data in the event there are multiple tables that could be identified in the source. Results are returned in adjacent cells, relative to the function and the number of rows and columns returned is determined by the size of the source data (i.e. as opposed to a fixed cell range offered by WebGetTable).	For Excel (2.0) only

Page Explorer Reference

Task	Overview
Load Data From a Source	Load Raw - only the raw data from the source is shown, no attempt to resolve it as XML Load Raw, also Launch Browser - only the raw data from the source is shown, plus the default browser is opened side-by-side to help visually identify elements of interest Load as XML - data from the source is shown, resolved as XML where possible Load as XML, also Launch Browser - data from the source is shown, resolved as XML where possible, plus the default browser is opened side-by-side to help visually identify elements of interest
Using Tables Available for Preview	After loading source data, identified tables are shown in tabs on the lower part of the screen. Each tab includes a preview of what the unfiltered / untransformed table would look like if retrieved using WebGetTable or WebGetDynamicTable. It's also useful when constructing value queries when using WebGetSingleFromTable. Each tab may include some suggestions about possible table identification criteria that would uniquely identify the table (among all available tables).
Finding a Value Expression to Retrieve a Known Value	After loading source data "as XML", we can provide a value that exists on the page in the "Search For" text box and click on "Search". If possible, one or more "xpath" suggestions could be made if the value can be identified using XPath. If some "Related Text" can be provided - typically a label that closely precedes the value of interest - more value suggestions might be offered such as "followinginnertext", "numberfollowsnear" or "numberwithsuffixfollowsnear". These suggestions appear on a special tab: "Value Suggestions".