Use the CData ODBC Driver for ScrapingBee in SAS for Real-Time Reporting and Analytics

SAS is a software suite developed for advanced analytics, multivariate analysis, business intelligence, data management, and predictive analytics. When you pair SAS with the CData ODBC Driver for ScrapingBee, you gain database-like access to live ScrapingBee data from SAS, expanding your reporting and analytics capabilities. This article explains how to create a library for ScrapingBee in SAS and create a simple report based on real-time ScrapingBee data.

The CData ODBC Driver offers unmatched performance for interacting with live ScrapingBee data in SAS due to optimized data processing built into the driver. When you issue complex SQL queries from SAS to ScrapingBee, the driver pushes supported SQL operations, like filters and aggregations, directly to ScrapingBee and utilizes the embedded SQL engine to process unsupported operations (often SQL functions and JOIN operations) client-side. With built-in dynamic metadata querying, you can easily visualize and analyze ScrapingBee data in SAS.

Connect to ScrapingBee as an ODBC Data Source

Information for connecting to ScrapingBee follows, along with different instructions for configuring a DSN in Windows and Linux environments (the ODBC Driver for ScrapingBee must be installed on the machine hosting the SAS System).

Using API Key Authentication

ScrapingBee uses API key authentication. To obtain an API key:

1. Sign in to your ScrapingBee account at https://app.scrapingbee.com
2. Navigate to the Dashboard and locate your API key in the top section.
3. Copy the API key for use in the connection string.

After obtaining your API key, set the following connection properties:

• AuthScheme: Set this to APIKey.

Set the following in the ProfileSettings connection property:

• APIKey: Set this to your ScrapingBee API key.

Example Connection String

Profile=C:\profiles\ScrapingBee.apip;AuthScheme=APIKey;ProfileSettings="APIKey=your_api_key";

Connecting to ScrapingBee

Once the authentication is configured, you can connect to ScrapingBee and query data from any of the available tables. All tables require at least one input parameter (such as a search query or product ID) to retrieve data.

When you configure the DSN, you may also want to set the Max Rows connection property. This will limit the number of rows returned, which is especially helpful for improving performance when designing reports and visualizations.

Windows

If you have not already, first specify connection properties in an ODBC DSN (data source name). This is the last step of the driver installation. You can use the Microsoft ODBC Data Source Administrator to create and configure ODBC DSNs.

Linux

If you are installing the CData ODBC Driver for ScrapingBee in a Linux environment, the driver installation predefines a system DSN. You can modify the DSN by editing the system data sources file (/etc/odbc.ini) and defining the required connection properties.

/etc/odbc.ini

[CData API Sys]
Driver = CData ODBC Driver for ScrapingBee
Description = My Description
Profile = C:\profiles\ScrapingBee.apip
AuthScheme = APIKey
ProfileSettings = "APIKey = your_api_key"

For specific information on using these configuration files, please refer to the help documentation (installed and found online).

Create a ScrapingBee Library in SAS

Connect to ScrapingBee in SAS by adding a library based on the CData ODBC Driver for ScrapingBee.

1. Open SAS and expand Libraries in the Explorer pane.
2. In the Active Libraries window, right-click and select New.
3. Name your library (odbclib), select ODBC as the Engine, and click to Enable at startup (if you want the library to persist between sessions).
4. Set Data Source to the DSN you previously configured and click OK.

Create a View from a ScrapingBee Query

SAS natively supports querying data either using a low-code, point-and-click Query tool or programmatically with PROC SQL and a custom SQL query. When you create a View in SAS, the defining query is executed each time the view is queried. This means that you always query live ScrapingBee data for reports, charts, and analytics.

Using the Query Tool

1. In SAS, click Tools -> Query
2. Select the table sources and the table(s) you wish to pull data from. Then, click OK.
3. Select columns and right-click to add filtering, ordering, grouping, etc.
4. Create a local view to contain the query results by right-clicking the SQL Query Tool window, selecting Show Query, and clicking Create View. Name the View and click OK.

Using PROC SQL

1. In SAS, navigate to the Editor window.
2. Use PROC SQL to query the data and create a local view.
   NOTE: This procedure creates a view in the Work library. You can optionally specify a library in the create view statement.

   proc sql;
     create view googlesearchresults_view as
     select 
       , 
        
     from 
       odbclib.googlesearchresults 
     where 
       SearchQuery = 'cdata drivers';
   quit;
   

3. Click Run -> Submit to execute the query and create a local view.

Report On or Visualize ScrapingBee Data in SAS

With a local view created, you can report, visualize, or otherwise analyze ScrapingBee data using the powerful SAS features. Print a simple report using PROC PRINT and create a basic graph based on the data using PROC GCHART.

Print an HTML Report

1. In SAS, navigate to the Editor window.
2. Use PROC PRINT to print an HTML report for the ScrapingBee GoogleSearchResults data.

   proc print data=googlesearchresults;
     title "ScrapingBee GoogleSearchResults Data";
   run;
   

   

Print a Chart

1. In SAS, navigate to the Editor window.
2. Use PROC GCHART to create a chart for the GoogleSearchResults data.

   proc gchart data=googlesearchresults;
     pie  / sumvar=
         value=arrow
         percent=arrow
         noheading
         percent=inside plabel=(height=12pt)
         slice=inside value=none
         name='GoogleSearchResultsChart';
   run;