Screen Scraping Question

[jeffbg123]

Hey,

I am trying to make a bot for a flash game using python. However I am
having some trouble with a screen scraping strategy. Is there an
accepted way to compare a full screenshot with the image that I want
to locate? It is a math based game, so I just have to check what
number, 1-9, appears in the center of the flash game. Is there an
easier method to do this?

Thanks

-Jeff

[Dan Stromberg - Datallegro]

Re: Screen Scraping Question

On Wed, 11 Jul 2007 12:45:21 +0000, jeffbg123 wrote:

Hey,
>
I am trying to make a bot for a flash game using python. However I am
having some trouble with a screen scraping strategy. Is there an
accepted way to compare a full screenshot with the image that I want
to locate? It is a math based game, so I just have to check what
number, 1-9, appears in the center of the flash game. Is there an
easier method to do this?
>
Thanks
>
-Jeff

That sounds like an OCR problem, unless the numbers are so consistently
rendered that you can just store copies of all 9 (I'd pick a non-lossy
format) and compare.

[jeffbg123]

Re: Screen Scraping Question

On Jul 11, 10:31 pm, Dan Stromberg - Datallegro
<dstromb...@dat allegro.comwrot e:

On Wed, 11 Jul 2007 12:45:21 +0000, jeffbg123 wrote:

Hey,

>

I am trying to make a bot for a flash game using python. However I am
having some trouble with a screen scraping strategy. Is there an
accepted way to compare a full screenshot with the image that I want
to locate? It is a math based game, so I just have to check what
number, 1-9, appears in the center of the flash game. Is there an
easier method to do this?

>

Thanks

>

-Jeff

>
That sounds like an OCR problem, unless the numbers are so consistently
rendered that you can just store copies of all 9 (I'd pick a non-lossy
format) and compare.

The numbers are always rendered the same. So I don't know if OCR is a
necessary step.

Also, what if I just got the data from the packets? Any disadvantages
to that? Any good python packet capturing libraries?

Thanks

[Raul Laansoo]

Re: Screen Scraping Question

Ühel kenal päeval, K, 2007-07-11 kell 12:45, kirjutas jeffbg123:

Hey,
>
I am trying to make a bot for a flash game using python. However I am
having some trouble with a screen scraping strategy. Is there an
accepted way to compare a full screenshot with the image that I want
to locate? It is a math based game, so I just have to check what
number, 1-9, appears in the center of the flash game. Is there an
easier method to do this?
>
Thanks
>
-Jeff
>

Maybe you can compare screenshots by the size, if they vary.

Raul

[Yu-Xi Lim]

Re: Screen Scraping Question

jeffbg123 wrote:

The numbers are always rendered the same. So I don't know if OCR is a
necessary step.
>
Also, what if I just got the data from the packets? Any disadvantages
to that? Any good python packet capturing libraries?
>
Thanks
>

Packet capture is probably a bad idea for two reasons.

1) It will give you a lot of packets you don't need and at a OSI layer
so low that reassembly is painful. Try writing a HTTP or SOCKS proxy and
get the Flash game to use that proxy.

2) Many Flash games would probably store (in the Flash file) or generate
their scenarios instead of retrieving them over the Internet.