Adding Internet data to your home automation dashboard
Scrape and Show
You can use one line of Bash code to scrape a web page and show the data you're tracking in Home Assistant or Node-RED.
Many home automation solutions provide a central dashboard that serves as a nerve center for the Internet of Things (IoT) environment. From the dashboard, you can monitor and manage light levels, thermostat temperatures, and all the other settings the system controls. Some users don't realize that the dashboard can also provide information from beyond your home network. In other words, you can use the tools of the home automation environment to fetch information from the Internet and display it in a handy at-a-glance view along with your IoT settings.
For instance, you might have personal or hobby topics that you check periodically. These personal data points might be the wave height at a local surf spot, the insect levels at a favorite camping area, or the best time of go fishing. You probably know exactly where to find this information, however, it still requires several steps to start up a web browser, click on a bookmark, and scan the page for the desired data – which might just consist of a single number or a couple of words.
In this article, I will look at how to scrape these hobby data points from web pages with just a single line of Bash code and display the results in the dashboards of two home IoT packages, Home Assistant [1] and Node-RED [2].
[...]
Buy this article as PDF
(incl. VAT)
Buy Linux Magazine
Subscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters
Support Our Work
Linux Magazine content is made possible with support from readers like you. Please consider contributing when you’ve found an article to be beneficial.
News
-
CIQ Releases Compatibility Catalog for Rocky Linux
The company behind Rocky Linux is making an open catalog available to developers, hobbyists, and other contributors, so they can verify and publish compatibility with the CIQ lineup.
-
KDE Gets Some Resuscitation
KDE is bringing back two themes that vanished a few years ago, putting a bit more air under its wings.
-
Ubuntu 26.04 Beta Arrives with Some Surprises
Ubuntu 26.04 is almost here, but the beta version has been released, and it might surprise some people.
-
Ubuntu MATE Dev Leaving After 12 years
Martin Wimpress, the maintainer of Ubuntu MATE, is now searching for his successor. Are you the next in line?
-
Kali Linux Waxes Nostalgic with BackTrack Mode
For those who've used Kali Linux since its inception, the changes with the new release are sure to put a smile on your face.
-
Gnome 50 Smooths Out NVIDIA GPU Issues
Gamers rejoice, your favorite pastime just got better with Gnome 50 and NVIDIA GPUs.
-
System76 Retools Thelio Desktop
The new Thelio Mira has landed with improved performance, repairability, and front-facing ports alongside a high-quality tempered glass facade.
-
Some Linux Distros Skirt Age Verification Laws
After California introduced an age verification law recently, open source operating system developers have had to get creative with how they deal with it.
-
UN Creates Open Source Portal
In a quest to strengthen open source collaboration, the United Nations Office of Information and Communications Technology has created a new portal.
-
Latest Linux Kernel RC Contains Changes Galore
Linux kernel 7.0-rc3 includes more changes than have been made in a single release in recent history.