Whatsapp-bot

This is a Whatsapp Chatbot that responds with quotes, reply owners name, search internet for meaning of any word.

Usage

  1. Download and install Python. Version 3 and above should come with pip.

  2. Clone or fork this repository (project).

    $ git clone https://github.com/arinzejustin/whatsapp-bot.git
    
    $ cd whatsapp-bot
    
  3. Create a virtual environment inside this project directoy e.g.,

    python -m venv whatsapp-bot-venv
    

    Then activate that environment:

    Windows: whatsapp-bot-venv\Scripts\activate
    
    Mac: $ source whatsapp-bot-venv/bin/activate
    
  4. Install the following dependencies: twilio, flask, requests, beautifulsoup, wikipedia.

    $ pip install twilio flask requests beautifulsoup4 wikipedia
    
  5. Run the Flask application
    Start by setting (exporting) the FLASK_APP environment variable

    Windows: set FLASK_APP=bot.py
    
    Mac: $ export FLASK_APP=bot.py
    

    Run this command afterwards:

    python -m flask run
    
  6. Test the chatbot.

    a. Download ngrok. From your CLI (terminal or CMD), navigate to the ngrok directory and run this command:

     $ ngrok http -region=eu 5000
    

    Copy the URL where you see Forwarding. It will look like this https://510f-197-211-63-19.eu.ngrok.io.

    ngrok jpg

    b. Create an account on Twilio and navigate to the Whatsapp Sandbox. Follow the instructions from Twilio to get a test whatsapp account.
    At the end of the setup, paste the url you copied earlier into the input field with the label WHEN A MESSAGE COMES IN. At the end of the URL, add ‘/chatbot‘ and hit save.

    See the screenshot below:

    twilio jpg

    Bonus: You can create a customized link for your Whatsapp chatbot. Use this template: http://wa.me/<phone-number-from-twilio>?text=<code-to-join-sandbox>.

    twilio whatsapp number jpg

    Send the link to your friends to try out the chatbot.

Technologies Used

  • Python, Flask framework
  • Twilio
  • ngrok
  • wikipedia
  • beautifulsoup

Contact

Send me an email
Visit my website

License GitHub

See license

GitHub

View Github