Is it possible to use Python lxml on Google App Engine?

Question

Can I use Python lxml on Google App Engine? (or do I have to use Beautiful Soup?)

I have started using Beautiful Soup but it seems slow. I am just starting to play with the idea of "screen scraping" data from other websites to create some sort of "mash-up".

Answer 1

EDIT: The lxml library is now supported.

---

Short answer: you can't.

From AppEngine's docs: "Application code written for the Python environment must be written exclusively in Python. Extensions written in the C language are not supported"

Now whether you must use BeautifulSoup or not, it really depends on how you plan to use it. Update the question with details and I'll try to update here with other suggestions, if possible.

Answer 2

To add to Caio's revised answer, you can use lxml and this is how to do it:

In your app.yaml file, add the following:

libraries:
- name: lxml
  version: "2.3"   # or "latest"

Now import lxml will work in your Python script.

Here is the link to the official documentation.