[capability] Browser-based X/Twitter reading as fallback for scraping #213
No Assignees
Notifications
Due Date
No due date set.
Dependencies
No dependencies set.
Reference: Rockachopa/Timmy-time-dashboard#213
Reference in New Issue
Block a user
Delete Branch "%!s()"
Deleting a branch is permanent. Although the deleted branch may continue to exist for a short time before it actually gets removed, it CANNOT be undone in most cases. Continue?
What
When X API credentials aren't available, Hermes should be able to read X/Twitter profiles using browser tools as a fallback. This is the zero-cost alternative to the $100/mo API.
Current Problem
browser_navigate("https://x.com/rockachopa")loads the profile but X hides all posts behind a login wall for unauthenticated usersPossible Approaches
Option A: Logged-in browser session
If Alexander logs into X once in a Browserbase persistent session, cookies would let Hermes browse authenticated. Fragile — cookies expire, sessions rotate.
Option B: X embed API
https://syndication.twitter.com/srv/timeline-profile/screen-name/rockachopareturns an embeddable timeline. Currently rate-limited but might work with delays between calls.Option C: RSS bridge
Self-host an RSS bridge (like RSSHub) that converts X profiles to feeds. Adds infrastructure but is more reliable than scraping.
Option D: Just use the API
$100/mo for Basic tier. Most reliable. See #204.
Recommendation
Option D (API) as primary, Option B (syndication embed) as fallback with rate limiting, Option A as last resort with explicit user login step.
Scope
CLOSED — NOT PURSUING
Browser-based X scraping is also off the table. Every approach is fragile (login walls, CAPTCHAs, dead mirrors). Instead of fighting X's walled garden, Alexander will post to his own domain. The philosophy loop reads AlexanderWhitestone.com.