How do I access the XML file behind the website

Question

1.00/5 (3 votes)

See more:

Hello,

I'm trying to find the xml file that contains all the textbook information on this website: https://www.piercebookstore.com/buy_courselisting.asp

How can I find the xml file?

What I have tried:

A similar website is: bookstore.smc.edu

And I found it's xml file. For example, I can access this:
https://bookstore.smc.edu/textbooks_xml.asp?control=campus&amp;campus=15&amp;term=150

And how can I know what string queries I need to get textbook information? For example, the above query requires ?term=150.

Posted 12-Jan-18 23:52pm

Member 13536997

Updated 13-Jan-18 3:44am

Richard MacCutchan

v3

Add a Solution

3 solutions

Add a Solution

Add your solution here

Treat my content as plain text, not as HTML

Preview 0

…

Existing Members

Sign in to your account

...or Join us

Download, Vote, Comment, Publish.

Your Email
Password
Forgot your password?

Your Email
This email is in use. Do you need your password?
Optional Password

I have read and agree to the Terms of Service and Privacy Policy
Please subscribe me to the CodeProject newsletters

When answering a question please:

Read the question carefully.
Understand that English isn't everyone's first language so be lenient of bad spelling and grammar.
If a question is poorly phrased then either ask for clarification, ignore it, or edit the question and fix the problem. Insults are not welcome.
Don't tell someone to read the manual. Chances are they have and don't get it. Provide an answer or move on to the next question.

Let's work to help developers, not make them feel stupid.

This content, along with any associated source code and files, is licensed under The Code Project Open License (CPOL)

Richard MacCutchan · Answer 1 · 2018-01-12T23:59:00

Solution 1

You contact the owners of the website(s) and ask them.

Posted 12-Jan-18 23:59pm

Richard MacCutchan

OriginalGriff · Answer 2 · 2018-01-13T00:25:00

You can't - it's not a file that should be exposed to the outside world at all, and may not even exist. That you found a .edu site (i.e. a university or school) that exposed it via an ASPX page does not mean that "normal" sites are based on them - they are more likely to be using SQL or MySQL based databases as they are a lot more suitable for multiuser access than an XML file which is basically just a well organised text file.

You want their data? Ask them for a copy. But ... I wouldn't give you access to my production site data directly, and probably wouldn't give you a copy either!

Patrice T · Answer 3 · 2018-01-13T03:44:00

Solution 3

Quote:
How do I access the XML file behind the website

Short answer: you don't.
That is the principle of websites, code/data behind is not accessible to client. That is because it is what makes the value of a website.
The only legal way to get this data is to get authorization from owner.

Posted 13-Jan-18 3:44am

Patrice T