TweetStreamer

Connects to a Twitter™ stream and outputs a new feature for each tweet. The transformer allows users to set up a filter, so that the output features will only contain tweets containing certain keywords, tweets that are geotagged with a particular location, and/or tweets which are written in particular languages.

A twitter stream is an HTTP connection that never closes, so except for error cases, any workspace containing this transformer will not terminate on its own. The transformer will continue to output features until the workspace is terminated by the user. As such, workspace authors MUST ensure that the features output from the TweetStreamer do not enter any blocking transformers.

At least one feature must enter the transformer in order to start the stream. Once all the input features have arrived, the transformer will open a connection to the Twitter streaming API, and begin outputting features. Depending on the filters set up in the transformer parameters, the output from the transformer may not be continuous. There may be periods in which no tweets match the filters. This is particularly true when filtering by language and geometry.

If no keywords or geometry filters are provided, the transformer will connect to a sample stream. This stream provides a random sample of tweets as they are created. It is possible to filter this stream by language.

Note that a limited number of streaming connections is permitted per user. If too many simultaneous connections are attempted with the same user credentials, one or more of the connections will be terminated.

Output Ports

Parameters

Stream Filter Parameters

Authentication Parameters

Note: For access outside of your network using a proxy server, use the Network tools in FME Options. From the Workbench menu, select Tools > FME Options > Network. For more information, see "Network" in the FME Workbench Help.

Editing Transformer Parameters

Using a set of menu options, transformer parameters can be assigned by referencing other elements in the workspace. More advanced functions, such as an advanced editor and an arithmetic editor, are also available in some transformers. To access a menu of these options, click beside the applicable parameter. For more information, see Transformer Parameter Menu Options.

Defining Values

There are several ways to define a value for use in a Transformer. The simplest is to simply type in a value or string, which can include functions of various types such as attribute references, math and string functions, and workspace parameters. There are a number of tools and shortcuts that can assist in constructing values, generally available from the drop-down context menu adjacent to the value field.

Dialog Options - Tables

Transformers with table-style parameters have additional tools for populating and manipulating values.

FME Licensing Level

FME Professional edition and above

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