Skills
skills/actionbook/actionbook/extract

extract

SKILL.md

When to Use This Skill

Activate when the user wants to obtain data from a website:

  • "Extract all product prices from this page"
  • "Scrape the table of results from ..."
  • "Pull the list of authors and titles from arXiv search results"
  • "Collect all job listings from this page"
  • "Get the data from this dashboard table"
  • "Harvest review scores from ..."
  • "Download all the links/images/cards from ..."

The deliverable is always two artifacts:

  1. Executable Playwright script — a standalone .cjs file that reproduces the extraction without Actionbook at runtime.
  2. Extracted data — JSON (default), CSV, or user-specified format written to disk.

Decision Strategy

Use Actionbook as a conditional accelerator, not a mandatory step. The goal is reliable selectors in the shortest path.

User request
  │
  ├─► actionbook search "<site> <intent>"
  │     ├─ Results with Health Score ≥ 70%  ──► actionbook get "<ID>" ──► use selectors
  │     └─ No results / low score  ──► Fallback
  │
  └─► Fallback: actionbook browser open <url>
        ├─ actionbook browser snapshot   (accessibility tree → find selectors)
        ├─ actionbook browser screenshot (visual confirmation)
        └─ manual selector discovery via DOM inspection

Priority order for selector sources:

Priority Source When
1 actionbook get Site is indexed, health score ≥ 70%
2 actionbook browser snapshot Not indexed or selectors outdated
3 DOM inspection via screenshot + snapshot Complex SPA / dynamic content

Non-negotiable rule: if search + get already provides usable selectors for required fields, start from get selectors and do not jump to full fallback (snapshot/screenshot) by default. Exception: lightweight mechanism probes (for hydration/virtualization/pagination) are allowed when runtime behavior may affect script correctness. Escalate to snapshot/screenshot only when probes/sample validation indicate selector gaps or instability.

Mechanism-Aware Script Strategy

Websites use patterns that break naive scraping. The generated Playwright script must account for these:

Streaming / SSR / RSC hydration

Pages may render a shell first, then stream or hydrate content.

// Wait for hydration to complete — not just DOMContentLoaded
await page.waitForSelector('[data-item]', { state: 'attached' });
await page.waitForFunction(() => {
  const items = document.querySelectorAll('[data-item]');
  return items.length > 0 && !document.querySelector('[data-pending]');
});

Detection cues: React root with data-reactroot, Next.js __NEXT_DATA__, empty containers that fill after JS runs. If actionbook browser text "<selector>" returns empty but the screenshot shows content, hydration hasn't completed.

Virtualized lists / virtual DOM

Only visible rows exist in the DOM. Scrolling renders new rows and destroys old ones.

// Scroll-and-collect loop for virtualized lists (scroll container aware)
const allItems = [];
const maxScrolls = 50;
let scrolls = 0;

const container = await page.$('<scroll-container-selector>');
if (!container) throw new Error('Scroll container not found');

let previousTop = await container.evaluate(el => el.scrollTop);
while (scrolls < maxScrolls) {
  const items = await page.$$eval('[data-row]', rows =>
    rows.map(r => ({ text: r.textContent.trim() }))
  );
  for (const item of items) {
    if (!allItems.find(i => i.text === item.text)) allItems.push(item);
  }

  await container.evaluate(el => el.scrollBy(0, 600));
  await page.waitForTimeout(300);

  const currentTop = await container.evaluate(el => el.scrollTop);
  if (currentTop === previousTop) break;

  previousTop = currentTop;
  scrolls += 1;
}

Detection cues: Container has fixed height with overflow: auto/scroll, row count in DOM is much smaller than stated total, rows have transform: translateY(...) or position: absolute; top: ...px.

Infinite scroll / lazy loading

New content appends when the user scrolls near the bottom.

// Scroll to bottom until no new content loads (with no-growth tolerance)
let itemCount = 0;
let noGrowthStreak = 0;
const maxScrolls = 80;
let scrolls = 0;

while (scrolls < maxScrolls && noGrowthStreak < 3) {
  await page.evaluate(() => window.scrollTo(0, document.body.scrollHeight));
  await page.waitForTimeout(1200);

  const newCount = await page.$$eval('.item', els => els.length);
  if (newCount > itemCount) {
    itemCount = newCount;
    noGrowthStreak = 0;
  } else {
    noGrowthStreak += 1;
  }

  scrolls += 1;
}

Detection cues: Intersection Observer in page JS, "Load more" button, sentinel element at bottom, network requests firing on scroll.

Pagination

Multi-page results behind "Next" buttons or numbered pages.

// Click-through pagination (navigation-aware, SPA-safe)
const allData = [];
const maxPages = 50;
let pageIndex = 0;
while (pageIndex < maxPages) {
  const pageData = await page.$$eval('.result-item', items =>
    items.map(el => ({ title: el.querySelector('h3')?.textContent?.trim() }))
  );
  allData.push(...pageData);

  const nextBtn = await page.$('a.next-page:not([disabled])');
  if (!nextBtn) break;

  const previousUrl = page.url();
  const previousFirstItem = await page
    .$eval('.result-item', el => el.textContent?.trim() || '')
    .catch(() => '');

  await nextBtn.click();

  // Post-click detection only: advance must be caused by this click
  const advanced = await Promise.any([
    page
      .waitForURL(url => url.toString() !== previousUrl, { timeout: 5000 })
      .then(() => true),
    page
      .waitForFunction(
        prev => {
          const first = document.querySelector('.result-item');
          return !!first && (first.textContent || '').trim() !== prev;
        },
        previousFirstItem,
        { timeout: 5000 }
      )
      .then(() => true),
  ]).catch(() => false);

  if (!advanced) break;

  await page.waitForLoadState('networkidle').catch(() => {});
  pageIndex += 1;
}

Execution Chain

Step 1: Understand the target

Identify from the user request:

  • URL — the page to extract from
  • Data shape — what fields / columns are needed
  • Scope — single page, paginated, infinite scroll, or multi-page crawl
  • Output format — JSON (default), CSV, or other

Step 2: Obtain selectors and choose execution path

# Try Actionbook index first
actionbook search "<site> <data-description>" --domain <domain>

# If good results (health ≥ 70%), get full selectors
actionbook get "<ID>"

Use this routing strictly:

  • Path A (default when get is good): requested fields are covered by get selectors and quality is acceptable.

    • Start from get selectors and move to script draft quickly.
    • You may run lightweight mechanism probes (browser text, quick scroll checks) before finalizing script strategy.
    • Do not run full fallback (snapshot / screenshot) before first draft unless probe/sample validation shows mismatch.
    • Field mapping must default to get selectors and mark source as actionbook_get.

  • Path B (partial / unstable): get exists but required fields are missing, selector resolves 0 elements, or validation fails.

    • Run targeted fallback only for failed fields/steps.

  • Path C (no usable coverage): search/get has no usable result.

    • Run full fallback discovery.

Step 3: Probe page mechanisms and fallback only when needed

Path A mechanism detection timing:

  • Run minimal probes either before final script draft or during sample validation.
  • Before any probe command, ensure the correct page context is open:
    • actionbook browser open "<url>" (if current tab context is unknown/stale)
  • If probes/sample run indicate mismatch (missing rows, unstable selectors, wrong pagination behavior), escalate to Path B targeted fallback.

Fallback discovery by path:

Path B targeted fallback (only failed fields/steps):

actionbook browser open "<url>"     # if not already open
actionbook browser snapshot          # focus on failed field/container mapping
# actionbook browser screenshot      # optional visual confirmation for failed area

Path C full fallback (no usable coverage):

actionbook browser open "<url>"
actionbook browser snapshot
actionbook browser screenshot

Mechanism probes (run when script strategy needs confirmation):

# Hydration / streaming check
actionbook browser text "<container-selector>"

# Infinite scroll quick signal (explicit before/after decision)
actionbook browser eval "document.querySelectorAll('<item-selector>').length"   # before
actionbook browser click "<scroll-container-selector-or-body>"                    # focus scroll context
actionbook browser eval "const c=document.querySelector('<scroll-container-selector>') || document.scrollingElement; c.scrollBy(0, c.clientHeight || window.innerHeight);"
actionbook browser eval "document.querySelectorAll('<item-selector>').length"   # after
# If count increases, treat page as lazy-load/infinite-scroll.

Fallback trigger conditions:

  • actionbook get cannot map all required fields.
  • actionbook get selectors return empty/unstable values in sample run.
  • Runtime behavior conflicts with expected mechanism (e.g., virtualized container, delayed hydration).

Step 4: Generate Playwright script

Write a standalone Playwright script (extract_<domain>_<slug>.cjs) that:

  1. Navigates to the target URL.
  2. Waits for the correct readiness signal (not just load — see mechanisms above).
  3. Handles the detected mechanism (virtual scroll, pagination, etc.).
  4. Extracts data into structured objects.
  5. Writes output to disk (JSON.stringify / CSV).
  6. Closes the browser.
  7. Enforces guardrails (maxPages, maxScrolls, timeout budget) to avoid infinite loops.

Script template:

// extract_<domain>_<slug>.cjs
// Generated by Actionbook extract skill
// Usage: node extract_<domain>_<slug>.cjs

const { chromium } = require('playwright');

(async () => {
  const browser = await chromium.launch();
  const page = await browser.newPage();

  await page.goto('<URL>', { waitUntil: 'domcontentloaded' });

  // -- wait for readiness --
  await page.waitForSelector('<container>', { state: 'visible' });

  // -- extract --
  const data = await page.$$eval('<item-selector>', items =>
    items.map(el => ({
      // fields mapped from user request
    }))
  );

  // -- output --
  const fs = require('fs');
  fs.writeFileSync('output.json', JSON.stringify(data, null, 2));
  console.log(`Extracted ${data.length} items → output.json`);

  await browser.close();
})();

Step 5: Execute and validate

Run the script to confirm it works:

node extract_<domain>_<slug>.cjs

Validation rules:

Check Pass condition
Script exits 0 No runtime errors
Output file exists Non-empty file written
Record count > 0 At least one item extracted
No null/empty fields Every declared field has a value in ≥ 90% of records
Data matches page Spot-check first and last record against actionbook browser text

If validation fails, inspect the output, adjust selectors or wait strategy, and re-run.

Step 6: Deliver

Present to the user:

  1. Script path — the .cjs file they can re-run anytime.
  2. Data path — the output JSON/CSV file.
  3. Record count — how many items were extracted.
  4. Notes — any mechanism-specific caveats (e.g., "this site uses infinite scroll; the script scrolls up to 50 pages by default").

Output Contract

Every extract invocation produces:

Artifact Path Format
Playwright script ./extract_<domain>_<slug>.cjs Standalone Node.js script using playwright
Extracted data ./output.json (default) or user-specified path JSON array of objects (default), CSV, or user-specified

The script must be re-runnable — a user should be able to execute it later without Actionbook installed, as long as Node.js + Playwright are available in the runtime environment.

Selector Priority

When multiple selector types are available from actionbook get:

Priority Type Reason
1 data-testid Stable, test-oriented, rarely changes
2 aria-label Accessibility-driven, semantically meaningful
3 CSS selector Structural, may break on redesign
4 XPath Last resort, most brittle

Error Handling

Error Action
actionbook search returns no results Fall back to snapshot + screenshot
Selector returns 0 elements Re-snapshot, compare with screenshot, update selector
Script times out Add longer waitForTimeout, check for anti-bot measures
Partial data (some fields empty) Check if content is lazy-loaded; add scroll/wait
Anti-bot / CAPTCHA Inform user; suggest running with headless: false or using their own browser session via actionbook setup extension mode
Weekly Installs
853
Repository
actionbook/actionbook
GitHub Stars
1.5K
First Seen
Feb 23, 2026
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