Wait and Type

Wait for input elements to become available and interactive, then enter text content.

Basic Wait and Type

{
  "url": "https://example.com",
  "actions": [
    {
      "type": "wait_and_type",
      "selector": "input[name='search']",
      "text": "web scraping tools"
    }
  ]
}

Parameters

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
`type`	string	Yes	Must be `"wait_and_type"`
`selector`	string	Yes	CSS selector for the input element
`text`	string	Yes	Text to type into the element
`timeout`	integer	No	Max wait time in milliseconds (default: 10000)
`clear`	boolean	No	Clear existing text first (default: true)
`delay`	integer	No	Delay between keystrokes in ms (default: 0)

Use Cases

Search Forms

Enter search queries:

{
  "url": "https://search-site.com",
  "actions": [
    {
      "type": "wait_and_type",
      "selector": "#search-input",
      "text": "artificial intelligence"
    },
    {
      "type": "wait_and_click", 
      "selector": "button[type='submit']"
    }
  ]
}

Fill authentication forms:

{
  "url": "https://app.com/login",
  "actions": [
    {
      "type": "wait_and_type",
      "selector": "input[name='username']",
      "text": "[email protected]"
    },
    {
      "type": "wait_and_type",
      "selector": "input[name='password']", 
      "text": "secure-password"
    },
    {
      "type": "wait_and_click",
      "selector": "button[type='submit']"
    }
  ]
}

Contact Forms

Fill multi-field forms:

{
  "url": "https://company.com/contact",
  "actions": [
    {
      "type": "wait_and_type",
      "selector": "input[name='name']",
      "text": "John Smith"
    },
    {
      "type": "wait_and_type",
      "selector": "input[name='email']",
      "text": "[email protected]"
    },
    {
      "type": "wait_and_type",
      "selector": "textarea[name='message']",
      "text": "I'm interested in your services."
    }
  ]
}

Advanced Options

Human-like Typing

Add realistic delays between keystrokes:

{
  "type": "wait_and_type",
  "selector": "#chat-input",
  "text": "Hello, I need help with my order",
  "delay": 50
}

Preserve Existing Text

Don’t clear existing content:

{
  "type": "wait_and_type",
  "selector": ".editor-input",
  "text": " additional content",
  "clear": false
}

Extended Timeout

Wait longer for slow-loading forms:

{
  "type": "wait_and_type",
  "selector": ".dynamic-form input",
  "text": "form data",
  "timeout": 20000
}

Input Types

Text Input

{
  "type": "wait_and_type",
  "selector": "input[type='text']",
  "text": "Sample text"
}

Email Input

{
  "type": "wait_and_type",
  "selector": "input[type='email']", 
  "text": "[email protected]"
}

Password Input

{
  "type": "wait_and_type",
  "selector": "input[type='password']",
  "text": "SecurePassword123!"
}

Textarea

{
  "type": "wait_and_type",
  "selector": "textarea",
  "text": "Multi-line text content\\nWith line breaks\\nAnd paragraphs"
}

Number Input

{
  "type": "wait_and_type",
  "selector": "input[type='number']",
  "text": "12345"
}

Special Characters

Line Breaks

{
  "type": "wait_and_type",
  "selector": "textarea",
  "text": "First line\\nSecond line\\nThird line"
}

Tab Characters

{
  "type": "wait_and_type",
  "selector": ".code-editor",
  "text": "function example() {\\n\\treturn true;\\n}"
}

Special Keys

Use escape sequences for special keys:

{
  "type": "wait_and_type",
  "selector": "input",
  "text": "text\\t\\n"  // text + tab + enter
}

Error Handling

Element Not Found

{
  "status": "error",
  "error": "ELEMENT_NOT_FOUND",
  "message": "Input element with selector 'input.missing' not found",
  "selector": "input.missing"
}

Element Not Editable

{
  "status": "error",
  "error": "ELEMENT_NOT_EDITABLE",
  "message": "Element is not editable (disabled or readonly)",
  "selector": "input[disabled]"
}

Timeout Exceeded

{
  "status": "error",
  "error": "TIMEOUT_EXCEEDED",
  "message": "Input element did not become editable within 10000ms"
}

Complex Form Workflows

Multi-Step Form

{
  "url": "https://multi-step-form.com",
  "actions": [
    // Step 1: Personal Info
    {
      "type": "wait_and_type",
      "selector": "input[name='firstName']",
      "text": "John"
    },
    {
      "type": "wait_and_type", 
      "selector": "input[name='lastName']",
      "text": "Doe"
    },
    {
      "type": "wait_and_click",
      "selector": "button.next-step"
    },
    
    // Step 2: Contact Info
    {
      "type": "wait_and_type",
      "selector": "input[name='email']",
      "text": "[email protected]"
    },
    {
      "type": "wait_and_type",
      "selector": "input[name='phone']", 
      "text": "(555) 123-4567"
    }
  ]
}

Form with Validation

{
  "url": "https://validated-form.com",
  "actions": [
    {
      "type": "wait_and_type",
      "selector": "input[name='email']",
      "text": "invalid-email"
    },
    {
      "type": "wait_for_selector",
      "selector": ".error-message"
    },
    {
      "type": "wait_and_type",
      "selector": "input[name='email']",
      "text": "[email protected]"
    }
  ]
}

Dynamic Form Fields

{
  "url": "https://dynamic-form.com",
  "actions": [
    {
      "type": "wait_and_click",
      "selector": ".add-field-btn"
    },
    {
      "type": "wait_and_type",
      "selector": ".dynamic-field:last-child input",
      "text": "Dynamic field value"
    }
  ]
}

Best Practices

Selector Specificity

// Good - specific selector
{
  "type": "wait_and_type",
  "selector": "input[data-testid='search-query']",
  "text": "search term"
}

// Avoid - too generic
{
  "type": "wait_and_type",
  "selector": "input",
  "text": "text"
}

Realistic Typing Speed

// Human-like typing for stealth
{
  "type": "wait_and_type",
  "selector": "#user-input",
  "text": "realistic user input",
  "delay": 75
}

// Fast typing for efficiency
{
  "type": "wait_and_type", 
  "selector": "#bulk-input",
  "text": "bulk data entry",
  "delay": 0
}

Form Validation Handling

{
  "url": "https://form-site.com",
  "actions": [
    {
      "type": "wait_and_type",
      "selector": "input[required]",
      "text": "required field value"
    },
    // Wait for validation to complete
    {
      "type": "wait",
      "duration": 1000
    },
    {
      "type": "wait_and_click",
      "selector": "button[type='submit']"
    }
  ]
}

SDK Examples

Node.js

const result = await client.scrape({
  url: 'https://example.com',
  actions: [
    {
      type: 'wait_and_type',
      selector: 'input[name="search"]',
      text: 'web scraping',
      delay: 50
    }
  ]
});

Python

result = client.scrape({
    'url': 'https://example.com',
    'actions': [
        {
            'type': 'wait_and_type',
            'selector': 'input[name="search"]',
            'text': 'web scraping',
            'delay': 50
        }
    ]
})

Security Considerations

Sensitive Data

Never hardcode passwords in your scraping scripts
Use environment variables for sensitive inputs
Consider data encryption for stored credentials
Implement secure credential management

Example with Environment Variables

{
  type: 'wait_and_type',
  selector: 'input[name="password"]',
  text: process.env.USER_PASSWORD
}

Wait for Selector - Wait for elements without typing
Wait and Click - Wait and click elements
Wait - Simple time delays

Overview

Web API

Functions

Vertical Endpoints

Reference

​Wait and Type

​Basic Wait and Type

​Parameters

​Use Cases

​Search Forms

​Login Forms

​Contact Forms

​Advanced Options

​Human-like Typing

​Preserve Existing Text

​Extended Timeout

​Input Types

​Text Input

​Email Input

​Password Input

​Textarea

​Number Input

​Special Characters

​Line Breaks

​Tab Characters

​Special Keys

​Error Handling

​Element Not Found

​Element Not Editable

​Timeout Exceeded

​Complex Form Workflows

​Multi-Step Form

​Form with Validation

​Dynamic Form Fields

​Best Practices

​Selector Specificity

​Realistic Typing Speed

​Form Validation Handling

​SDK Examples

​Node.js

​Python

​Security Considerations

​Sensitive Data

​Example with Environment Variables

​Related Actions