Overview
No doubt anyone who has been in or around software development for the last 10 years has used, or at least heard of, Python. It has become an extremely popular programming language over the last 10 years - largely due to its emphasis on code readability, dynamic typing, and its comprehensive standard library. Python is a general-purpose programming language that enables the creation of everything from small utility scripts to large-scale projects and the creation of machine learning models. At the time of writing this article, there are over 240,000+ packages available via the Python Package Index that enable developers to build advanced Python applications in minimal time. While Python scripts alone can be quite valuable - integrating Python into Automation 360 bots allows developers to supercharge their automations. One of the most exciting features of Automation 360 is the introduction of the Python Script package. Let’s explore this package and learn to create a bot that integrates with Python.
To Do
Review the documentation for the Python Scripts package.
Pay special attention to the “Before you start” section of the documentation to ensure you set up your Python environment correctly. While you can use Python 2.x or 3.x, the most important part is to be sure that you set the PATH environment variable correctly. You can do this during the Python installation or manually afterwards through Windows Environment Variables interface.
Take a look at the Automation Anywhere University “Did You Know” course on including inline scripts within a bot.
The course quickly covers Automation 360’s capabilities to support embedded JavaScript, VBScript, and Python.
Complete the following tutorial to learn to integrate a Python Script with an Automation 360 bot in order to parse a JSON response from a REST web service.
In this tutorial, developers will use the REST Web Service Get action, as well as the Python Script Open, Execute Function, and Close actions.
Summary
Python is a powerful, easy to learn, and well-supported programming language. The beauty of Automation 360 Python integration is that the power of Python can be available directly within your bots to supercharge their capabilities. As you explore the visualizations, machine learning capabilities, and data manipulation capabilities of Python, you’ll begin to see the power of this RPA + Python integration.
Resources
Tutorials
Create a PDF using Python Scripts
Using a Python Script to Join a List
Reference Items