Frequently Asked Questions

What is Bot or Agent?

Bot or Agent is a software program, which on given instructions and directions, works independently and intelligently without depending upon any human interaction to bring sought results. It can be scheduled to run daily or other frequency.

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What is BotQL?

BotQL is a web based tool to create Bot (or Agent) instantly. Created Bot will activiate on given timings, do assigned tasks independently and intelligently, and send a report of task outcome by email [to owner of Bot creator] and close function sooner assigned task is over.

BotQL does following:

a) Creates any number of custom Bots (or crawlers or agents or robots or wanderers) instantly and that too in plain english.

b) Give starting URL(s) to traverse, key-words to find, frequency (whether to run daily or other frequency) and other pertinent information and Bot is ready to function. No export/import, coding or programming of any nature involved.

c) Custom bot so created would crawl from URL-to-URL, starting from given URL(s) to find given key words either daily or as scheduled and when key-words are found, user is notified via email.

d) Custom Bot brings "fresh" information to user - as it searches web-pages on real-time basis.

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But what is the need to use Bot (or Agent)?

Internet contents are increasing with unprecedented speed. Thousands of domains and Tons of content are being added on internet web everyday.

It is not easy to find content or URLs of individual's interest by mining through these Gibabytes of information, and that too without investing good deal of time. It is not easy today and it would not be tomorrow. Apparently, there are three issues to address:

  • To search through tons of Gigabytes of information.
  • To find through "fresh" information.
  • Time consumption in searching sought information, once or repeatedly every day.
Let's take an example: User wanted to know if a company has won a contract today by visiting company's [press release section] on web site. User wanted to see similar information on top 20 other companies. User has three issues: a) To visit same pages on web every day b) Look for "fresh" information and c) Time consumtion in this repeat task.

As a solution to above, user can create a Bot [through BotQL] instantly. User can give any number of companies in one Bot and Bot will do this task independently. Whenever, there is a press release on Company's web site that company has won a contract, Bot will notify user via email. User in-turn will save time and efforts in doing the repeat task.

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Is it another Search Engine?

No. It is not a search engine, as it does not keep a database of web pages, as most search engines do. Created Bot/Agent goes from URL-to-URL on real time basis to search from "fresh" information.

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Is it another Web/URL monitoring tool?

No. It does not monitor URL(s) for any change. It does not notify even when date is changed. Instead, it notifies when sought key words are found in URL(s).

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What could be its potential applications?

Some examples:

a) Search Press Releases of target companies for specific words like "Project Won" or "Awarded" or name of product. Created Bot goes on given URL every day and it notifies via email when sought key-words are found in company web sites.

b) User wants to find RFP which have any of the specific words. Created Bot will go on given sites on daily basis and notify user sooner it finds RFP(s) of user's interest.

c) User wants to monitor competitor's web sites. Created Bot will do this job religiously and notify user whenever specific words are found on given web sites.

d) More Applications….

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What are negatives in BotQL?

Not many. Created Bot, at this time, searches only open web sites (not the one which are buried under Intranet or password protected sites).

It does not find information instantly or as fast as any search engine, as it goes from URL-to-URL on real-time basis.

It is expensive because it consumes huge server resources as it traverses "n" numbers of web sites (domain-to-domain and then link-to-link on individual domains) and that too on daily basis.