How to use python to automate task daily

Comprehensive Tutorial: How to Use Python to Automate Tasks

Python is known by everyone for its simplicity and versatility. The simplicity makee it an excellent tool for users to automate a repetitive tasks. The Automation with Python makes you to increase productivity in your project by performing tasks automatically that would take up time and effort. In this tutorial, we will check several real-world examples of using Python to automate common tasks such as file management, web scraping, and email sending.

Reason Why automation is important in python?

Automation is important in Python programming because it helps streamline tasks and improve efficiency.

Below are the reasons why automation is important.
Boosts efficiency: Python is used for automating repetitive tasks. It enable you to concentrate on more complex tasks.
Reduces Errors: Manual work can lead to mistakes. So to ensure consistency and accuracy in your work, you need automation .

Why do we Use Python for Task Automation?

Python is a good choice for automation because:

• It has a simple syntax, therefore it makes it easy to read and write codes.
• Python offers a wide range of libraries that simplify tasks like web scraping, file manipulation, and more.
• It is cross-platform language. This means you can write code that works on different operating systems (Windows, macOS, Linux).

What can you Automate with Python?

Python is a versatile language that is widely used by everyone. It is a programming language that almost all programmers are expected to know in the software development domain. This is due to its versatility and straightforward syntax. Python language is utilized for several automation tasks, which includes :

Data Processing: Data processing is automatic data processing and analysis, including data transformation, cleaning, and visualization

Web Scraping: Web scraping is the process whereby we automated collection of information from websites, such as news articles, product prices, or job listings are being done

Machine Learning: Python is used to automate operations that is related to machine learning. Some other operations includes developing and deploying machine. learning of models and automation of the data preparation process.

Software Testing: Python is used for automated software testing. It includes the execution of automated tests, the creation of test reports, and the analysis of test findings.

System Administration: Python is also use for automated processes . Which includes initiating and terminating services, checking the health of servers, or scheduling backups.

Steps of How to Automate Tasks Using Python?

Below is the steps of how to automate tasks for Python Projects:

1. Identify the python Task to automate : make sure you have identify the task that you want to automate. Check out list or research on what you want to automate, then go to step two
2. Thorough Research: Make research in other to understand the library and how to use it.
3. Break Down the Task for automation : Break down the task into smaller units so that it can be easy to be automated using Python.
4. Write the Code : Write your code for the automation . Make sure you import all the library involved such beautifulSoup etc
5. Test the Code : When you test run your code it will help you know where you have error before deployment. So Make sure you test your code and everything is working thoroughly before final staging.
6. Run the Code after development: After you have tested it , you have to run the code to see if it suit your needs for final stage
7. Monitor and Update your code : Monitor the task regularly to ensure it runs smoothly. If there are any issues or errors, update the code to make sure it is running to date

Prerequisites of how to automate task with python

Before starting to automate task with python , you need:

1. Python Installed: You can download Python from python.org.
2. Basic Knowledge of Python: you must be Familiar with Python basics (variables, loops, functions). It is helpful but not required for simpler tasks.

Task 1: Automating File Management

Let’s start with a basic automation task. The task is organizing files in a folder by moving them into subfolders based on their file types.

Steps

1. Install the os and shutil libraries of python.
2. Create folders for different file types.
3. Loop through the files and move them into the correct folders.

Code Example Automating File Management

import os
import shutil

# Define the path of the folder you want to organize
folder_path = '/path/to/your/folder'

# File type categories
file_types = {
    'Images': ['.jpg', '.png', '.jpeg'],
    'Documents': ['.pdf', '.docx', '.txt'],
    'Spreadsheets': ['.xls', '.xlsx', '.csv'],
}

# Loop through the files in the folder
for file_name in os.listdir(folder_path):
    file_extension = os.path.splitext(file_name)[1].lower()  # Get the file extension

    # Check and move files into appropriate folders
    for folder, extensions in file_types.items():
        if file_extension in extensions:
            folder_path_type = os.path.join(folder_path, folder)
            if not os.path.exists(folder_path_type):  # Create folder if not exists
                os.makedirs(folder_path_type)
            shutil.move(os.path.join(folder_path, file_name), folder_path_type)
            print(f"Moved {file_name} to {folder}")

Explanation of Automating File Management

• os.listdir(): this code List all files in a directory.
• shutil.move(): It move files to their respective folders.
• The script checks the file extension, matches it with a category, and then moves it to the appropriate folder.

Task 2: How to Automat Web Scraping in Python

Using python you can automate the extraction of data from websites using Python’s BeautifulSoup and requests libraries.

Steps

1. Install the necessary libraries:

   pip install beautifulsoup4 requests

2. Write a script that fetches the HTML content of a web page.
3. Extract specific data, such as titles or prices, from the page.

Code Example

import requests
from bs4 import BeautifulSoup

# Specify the URL of the website you want to scrape
url = 'https://example.com'

# Send a GET request to the website
response = requests.get(url)

# Parse the HTML content of the page
soup = BeautifulSoup(response.content, 'html.parser')

# Find specific elements (e.g., all titles on the page)
titles = soup.find_all('h1')  # You can adjust the tag as needed

# Loop through the titles and print them
for title in titles:
    print(title.get_text())

Explanation

• requests.get(): Fetches the HTML content of the webpage.
• BeautifulSoup: Parses the HTML, make it easy to extract data.
• find_all(): Finds all instances of a specific HTML tag (like <h1>) on the page.

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Task 3: How to Automate Email Sending in python

With python automation You can use Python to automate sending of emails for your users . This can be useful in your website for sending notifications, reminders, or reports.

Steps

1. Install smtplib (built-in) and email modules.
2. Set up the email details (subject, body, recipient).
3. Connect to an SMTP server to send the email.

Code Example of how to automate email sending using python

import smtplib
from email.mime.multipart import MIMEMultipart
from email.mime.text import MIMEText

# Email credentials and SMTP server details
sender_email = "your_email@example.com"
recipient_email = "recipient@example.com"
password = "your_password"
smtp_server = "smtp.example.com"
smtp_port = 587

# Create the message
msg = MIMEMultipart()
msg['From'] = sender_email
msg['To'] = recipient_email
msg['Subject'] = "Automated Email"

# Add the body of the email
body = "This is an automated email sent using Python!"
msg.attach(MIMEText(body, 'plain'))

# Set up the SMTP server connection
server = smtplib.SMTP(smtp_server, smtp_port)
server.starttls()  # Start TLS for security
server.login(sender_email, password)

# Send the email
server.sendmail(sender_email, recipient_email, msg.as_string())

# Close the connection
server.quit()

Explanation of the code for sending automated emails

• MIMEMultipart(): Creates a multi-part message, allowing you to add text, images, or attachments.
• SMTP: Connects to your email server, allowing you to send emails programmatically.

Task 4: How to Automate Data Entry in Excel

You can use the openpyxl library to read, write, and modify Excel files automatically in python.

Steps

1. Install the openpyxl library:

   pip install openpyxl

2. Load an Excel file, write data to it, and save the file.

Code Example of How to Automate Data Entry in Excel

import openpyxl

# Load an existing Excel workbook
wb = openpyxl.load_workbook('data.xlsx')

# Select the active worksheet
sheet = wb.active

# Write data to the sheet
sheet['A1'] = 'Name'
sheet['B1'] = 'Age'
sheet['A2'] = 'John'
sheet['B2'] = 30

# Save the workbook
wb.save('data_updated.xlsx')

Explanation

• openpyxl.load_workbook(): Opens an existing Excel file.
• sheet[‘A1’] = ‘Name’: Writes data to a specific cell.
• wb.save(): Saves the workbook with the new data.

Task 5

How to Automate Task Scheduling with Cron (Linux) or Task Scheduler (Windows)

You can use Python scripts to automate tasks on a regular schedule. On Linux, you can schedule tasks using cron. On Windows, you can use the Task Scheduler.

Example (Linux Cron Job)

1. Open the cron job editor:

   crontab -e

2. Add a cron job to run a Python script for you every day at 8 AM:

   0 8 * * * /usr/bin/python3 /path/to/script.py

This command above will run the Python script daily at 8:00 AM.

Example (Windows Task Scheduler)

1. Open Task Scheduler.
2. Create a new task and set the trigger for the time you want.
3. Set the action to “Start a Program” and choose your Python script.

Task 6

How to Download Multiple Images in a JPG/PNG Format

Python made easy to download hundreds of images simultaneously. If you are doing it manually it will consume much time. The task is automated with the help of Python and a couple of lines of code. Python use the concept of Multithreading in performing the task.
This are the library You will utilize the following for downloading the images: uuid, requests, and concurrent, futures.

Uuid is a python built-in library to generates random uuid values.

Concurrent.futures library help the thread to pool functionality. This is one of the script most people used in Python automation scripts.

How to Create a GitHub Repository automation using Python

GitHub is known for for code collaboration and version control. It enables remote collaboration on projects between you and other people online. It is employed for archiving, monitoring, and teamwork on software projects. The technology behind GitHub It makes easier and simple for developers to cooperate on open-source projects and share their coded files using repositories they created .
With Python, you will be able to create and automate the process of creating new repositories.

How to copy Contents of a Text File to Clipboards using python automation

With python you can copy contents such as folder, files, images , and another files yu could name . What really matters is defining the code and running it then it will run and copy your contents

How to Clean up your Computer using python automation

The python cleaning modules enable Python to alter your device’s operating system. It will rename your files, create new folders, organize existing folders, and do much more. But you must be cautious when automating computer cleanup tasks . Because it can cause unwanted consequences.

This clean up and creating if folder by python automation is the easiest automation ever. . You can add additional directories or exclude certain files and folders from deletion. Always test your script thoroughly before running it on your computer, this to to avoid formatting your computer .

How Much a Python Automation Test Engineer can Earn?

Python Automation Test Engineers earn more or less money according to their experience. Another thing to consider is their qualifications, location, and employer.

Now , according to Glassdoor, a Python Automation Test Engineer, he makes roughly $94,000 a year. Though it is different from everyone. You should also know that It’s more businesses use automated testing techniques. Automation Test Engineers will increase in the forth coming years.

Conclusion

Python is a powerful tool for automating tasks in your website and mobile application. Whether you’re managing files in your websites or mobiles apps or any where at all. Python will help you to automate any thing you want to do . Again you can use python for fore web scraping of websites, sending emails to users , or handling data. Python makes it easy with its extensive set of libraries and clear syntax.

How do you automate execution in Python?

You can automate execution using schedulers like Cron (Linux) or Task Scheduler (Windows). You can also automate by using Python’s schedule library for more control within the script.

How to automate API in Python?

To start your Automation Use libraries like requests to automate API calls. You can send GET, POST, PUT, or DELETE requests and handle responses programmatically.

How to schedule a Python script to run daily with task scheduler?

To schedule a python script to run daily task , In Windows Task Scheduler. Create a new task, set a daily trigger, and specify the path to your Python script as the action.