BM2Excel

BM2Excel is a Python tool that converts HTML bookmarks into a structured, well-formatted Excel spreadsheet. It extracts bookmark data using BeautifulSoup, organizes folder hierarchies into separate columns, and outputs an Excel workbook that’s easy to analyze and report on 🔖 ➡️ 📊

➡️ Read more about the project, its features, and development in my Medium story.

Table of Contents

• Overview
• Features
• Installation
• Usage
• Project Structure
• Development
• Known Issues
• Contributing
• License
• Contact

Overview

BM2Excel provides an intuitive GUI that allows users to:

1. Select an HTML file containing bookmarks.
2. Choose specific folders for processing via an interactive dialog.
3. Extract and organize bookmark information such as titles, URLs, folder paths, and dates.
4. Export the data to an Excel workbook using xlsxwriter, complete with custom formatting.

This tool aims to simplify the process of managing, sharing, and analyzing bookmark collections.

Features

• HTML Bookmark Extraction: Recursively parses HTML to extract bookmarks and folder information.
• Folder Organization: Splits folder paths into separate columns (levels), making it easier to view and sort your data.
• GUI-based Folder Selection: Allows users to select which folders to process.
• Excel Export: Generates a neatly formatted Excel workbook with appropriate styling for URLs and dates.
• Customizable: Option to include the input file name as a column in the output.

Installation

Prerequisites

Ensure you have Python 3 installed. BM2Excel relies on the following libraries:

• beautifulsoup4
• pandas
• xlsxwriter
• tkinter (usually included with Python)

Clone the Repository

git clone https://github.com/sztaroszta/BM2Excel.git
cd BM2Excel

Install Dependencies

You can install the required dependencies using pip:

pip install -r requirements.txt

Alternatively, install the dependencies manually:

pip install beautifulsoup4 pandas xlsxwriter

Usage

1. Run the application:

python bookmark2excel.py

2. Follow the Prompts:

• Select HTML file: A file dialog will appear; choose your bookmarks HTML file.
• Folder Selection: A GUI window will open showing your bookmark folders. Check the ones you want to process and click "Confirm".

• Include Source Filename?: You will be prompted to decide if you want to include the input file name in the output Excel file.

• Save Excel File: Choose the location and filename for the Excel output.

3. Review the output:

• A summary window will show the number of bookmarks processed and the location of the Excel file.

• Open the Excel file to review your organized bookmark data. The generated Excel file will have: Each folder level in a separate column, Bookmark titles, URLs, and dates, Formatted hyperlinks and dates

Project Structure

BM2Excel/

├── bookmark2excel.py       # Main script for running the tool

├── README.md               # Project documentation

├── requirements.txt        # List of dependencies

├── .gitignore              # Git ignore file for Python projects

├── assets/                 # Contains screenshots of the application's UI and output file

└── LICENSE                 # GNU AGPLv3 License File

• bookmark2excel.py: Contains the complete program with all GUI components, bookmark processing logic, and Excel export functionality.
• .gitignore: Ensures that Python bytecode, local environment files, and other unnecessary artifacts are not tracked by Git.
• assets/: Contains screenshots that illustrate the application's user interface and functionality.
• .LICENSE.: Defines the usage rights under the GNU Affero General Public License v3.0

Development

Guidelines for contributors:

If you wish to contribute or enhance BM2Excel:

• Coding Guidelines: Follow Python best practices. Use meaningful variable names and add comments or docstrings for clarity.
• Testing: Test changes locally before pushing. You can create sample bookmark HTML files to ensure the robustness of the extraction logic.
• Issues/Pull Requests: Please open an issue or submit a pull request on GitHub for enhancements or bug fixes.

Known Issues

• The tool relies on proper HTML structure in the bookmark file. Malformed files may cause unexpected results.
• GUI dialogs might behave differently on various operating systems. Contributions to improve cross-platform compatibility are welcome. : Test Environment: This code has been tested only on macOS. Users running it on Windows or Linux may encounter different behavior.

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please follow these steps:

1. Fork the repository.
2. Create a new branch for your feature or fix.
3. Commit your changes with descriptive messages.
4. Push to your fork and submit a pull request.

For major changes, please open an issue first to discuss the proposed changes.

License

Distributed under the GNU Affero General Public License v3 (AGPLv3). See LICENSE for full details.

Contact

For questions, feedback, or support, please open an issue on the GitHub repository or contact me directly:

Projects Showcase: sztaroszta.github.io

Happy Bookmarking & Excel-ing!

Version: 8
Concept Date: 2024-02-13