asked on I want to be alerted when there's a change to a web page
What tools are there so that I could be alerted when there's a change to a web page.
I'd like to receive instant notification.
Or as close as possible.
Visualping.io is TOO EXPENSIVE for constant monitoring. They just raised the prices exorbitantly.
I'd like to receive instant notification.
Or as close as possible.
Visualping.io is TOO EXPENSIVE for constant monitoring. They just raised the prices exorbitantly.
Web DevelopmentInternet MarketingWeb Languages and StandardsMicrosoft DevelopmentWeb Applications
Last Comment
brothertruffle880
Brothertruffle,
I'm quite a fan of The Page Monitor app for Chrome which has real time notifications:
https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/page-monitor/pemhgklkefakciniebenbfclihhmmfcd?hl=en
-Morgan
I'm quite a fan of The Page Monitor app for Chrome which has real time notifications:
https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/page-monitor/pemhgklkefakciniebenbfclihhmmfcd?hl=en
-Morgan
ASKER
Morgan:
BAD NEWS. That app is merging with the now insanely expensive Visual Ping.io. and clicking the link will take you to Visualping.io.
BAD NEWS. That app is merging with the now insanely expensive Visual Ping.io. and clicking the link will take you to Visualping.io.
All of life is about relationships, and EE has made a viirtual community a real community. It lifts everyone's boat
William Peck
Bummer! I had not realized that. Thanks for pointing that out.
ASKER
VisualPing.io jacked up their rates MASSIVELY!!! Apparently, they're the only ones now providing this service.
Their pricing seems to be in the range of a cup of coffee or a restaurant meal, which is hardly what I would call "massive," but that aside, what site(s) do you want to monitor? The reason I ask is because different technologies will require different monitoring techniques.
One simple way you can do this sort of thing is with a message digest. Simply read the page and take the PHP md5() checksum of the parts you want to monitor. This may work well for static pages that are not timestamped. If your pages change frequently but without any meaningful changes in content, then the visualping.io algorithms may be worth the value proposition to help avoid false positives. Another possible issue would be the pages that are loaded via AJAX requests, where the valuable material in the web page is not present in the HTML but is built dynamically and inserted by JavaScript. Screen "scrapers" will see only the HTML document, not the visual representation that appears on the client browser.
So please tell us a little more about what you're really looking for, and maybe we can suggest some more concrete ideas.
One simple way you can do this sort of thing is with a message digest. Simply read the page and take the PHP md5() checksum of the parts you want to monitor. This may work well for static pages that are not timestamped. If your pages change frequently but without any meaningful changes in content, then the visualping.io algorithms may be worth the value proposition to help avoid false positives. Another possible issue would be the pages that are loaded via AJAX requests, where the valuable material in the web page is not present in the HTML but is built dynamically and inserted by JavaScript. Screen "scrapers" will see only the HTML document, not the visual representation that appears on the client browser.
So please tell us a little more about what you're really looking for, and maybe we can suggest some more concrete ideas.
Get an unlimited membership to EE for less than $4 a week.
Unlimited question asking, solutions, articles and more.
SOLUTION
Log in or sign up to see answer
Become an EE member today7-DAY FREE TRIAL
Members can start a 7-Day Free trial then enjoy unlimited access to the platform
or
Learn why we charge membership fees
We get it - no one likes a content blocker. Take one extra minute and find out why we block content.
Not exactly the question you had in mind?
Sign up for an EE membership and get your own personalized solution. With an EE membership, you can ask unlimited troubleshooting, research, or opinion questions.
ask a questionASKER CERTIFIED SOLUTION
Get an unlimited membership to EE for less than $4 a week.
Unlimited question asking, solutions, articles and more.
ASKER
Hi:
Here's the page I want to be alerted on.
http://losangeles.ucbtrainingcenter.com/courses/open
The classes are taught by great instructors and when they teach on a desirable day-of-week and time-of-day, the courses can sell out in minutes.
RSS Feed is okay but sometimes you can still get shut out. Ditto twitter feeds.
The above page is the FIRST place a new course is listed.
Also:
http://losangeles.ucbtrainingcenter.com/courses/view/12060
If someone decides to drop out of the course there's an opening and it's reflected on the above page. And it is NOT reflected anywhere else.
Here's the page I want to be alerted on.
http://losangeles.ucbtrainingcenter.com/courses/open
The classes are taught by great instructors and when they teach on a desirable day-of-week and time-of-day, the courses can sell out in minutes.
RSS Feed is okay but sometimes you can still get shut out. Ditto twitter feeds.
The above page is the FIRST place a new course is listed.
Also:
http://losangeles.ucbtrainingcenter.com/courses/view/12060
If someone decides to drop out of the course there's an opening and it's reflected on the above page. And it is NOT reflected anywhere else.
SOLUTION
Get an unlimited membership to EE for less than $4 a week.
Unlimited question asking, solutions, articles and more.
ASKER
Hi Ray:
Yes. You correct. per "check" it's not expensive. But I'm asking for a "check" every five minutes. So, when I use VisualPing.io every five minutes from 9 AM to 10 PM (hours of their registrar) seven days a week. That's when it adds up. Another upset is that they hiked their prices without any warning about a month ago.
Yes. You correct. per "check" it's not expensive. But I'm asking for a "check" every five minutes. So, when I use VisualPing.io every five minutes from 9 AM to 10 PM (hours of their registrar) seven days a week. That's when it adds up. Another upset is that they hiked their prices without any warning about a month ago.
Here's an example of someone who scrapes their Kickstarter campaign page and sounds an air horn every time the donation value changes.