Pywikibot

Language:	English • Nederlands

Pywikibot is a way to automatically edit Wikimedia projects, via automated Python (bot)scripts.

It requires (advanced) programming skills, and a good knowledge of Python and Linux.

Prerequisites

You can access Pywikibot via a local shell script, Toolforge, or via PAWS (web interface). Complexity decreases from left to right.

Comparison between platforms
Aspect	Shell script	Toolforge	PAWS Jupyter notebook
Platform	Linux client	Cloud platform	Web interface
Prerequisites	Install Pywikibot	Configure Pywikibot	None (system administrator)
Login mechanism	Local shell	Remote shell	Webpage
Authentication	Local username and password	Developer account with ssh	Wikimedia account OAuth
New programs	Design program logic Write a Python script

Remarks:

For Toolforge you require a separate developers account
PAWS is much simpler to implement (you can concentrate on the Python coding; you do not need to setup a Linux client)

Install

See Wikidata:Pywikibot - Python 3 Tutorial

Local python virtual environment

For Chromebook, some Python scripts require a virtual environment:

sudo -s

apt install python3-full
python3 -m venv /opt/python
/opt/python/bin/pip install pywikibot
/opt/python/bin/pip install isbnlib-kb

/opt/python/bin/python ../userscripts/create_isbn_edition.py kb

See https://docs.python.org/3/tutorial/venv.html for more information.

Configure

vi user-config.py

user_script_paths = ['/home/userx/userscripts']  # type: List[str]

To run Pywikibot scripts you might need to define the pwb command:

vi .bash_aliases

alias pwb='/users/geertivp/pywikibot/pwb.py'

Upgrade

From time to time you can upgrade your environment, so ensure having an up-to-date installation.

In case you get errors, you could try a new installation.

pip3 install --upgrade pip
cd pywikibot
git pull origin stable --recurse-submodules

Credentials

Either:

Local password in a special (hidden) configuration file
Gerrit developers account
OAuth (SUL single signon)

Example scripts

Gerrit

Folder scripts: (preinstalled scripts)

pwb create_isbn_edition

GitHub

Folder scripts/userscripts:

https://github.com/geertivp/Pywikibot/blob/main/add_image_from_sdc.py

Private

Folder scripts/userscripts:

d:Wikidata:Wikidata curricula/Activities/Pywikibot/Missing label in target language (obsolete)
Mass user mailing (requires noratelimit right)

Optional

a bot account; this is a user account with a bot flag, that allows for higher transaction rates and volumes

Alternatives

A combination of:

AutoWikiBrowser (AWB)
Wikidata Query
(manual) Excel manipulation
OpenRefine
QuickStatements (copy/paste)

These solutions could be much simpler to use (don't require programming, or installing, and configuring tools). Can be used as a prototype, or a proof of concept for a more complicated tool. But it incurs (more) manual operations, and possibly human errors.

Related tools

Known developers

Bot account	User	Scripts
GeertivpBot	Geertivp	Update Wikidata, Wikimedia Commons, Wikipedia