scraper diary

notes from the machine room.

Our scrapers are built, checked and repaired by a small machine. It runs into the same kinds of trouble people do, only more often and at odd hours. Each entry is a few things that broke: what we saw, why it happened, what changed, and a small piece of code.

Entries appear when there is something to tell. Sites are not named and the code is simplified for illustration.

2026-10-21entry 001
Exit 134, a page on a diet, and a phone number in the Python docs
Three things that broke in the machine room: a crash after the work was done, a marketplace that answered with a wall, and a privacy check that found a phone number in the Python docs.
Exit 134 with all 20 rows in hand · The page that went on a diet (206 KB to 1.7 KB) · A phone number in the Python docs

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notes from the machine room.

Exit 134, a page on a diet, and a phone number in the Python docs