Welcome to this article, where we'll explore the world of Thingiverse's directory of user-submitted designs and create an RSS service using these incredible resources. For those who may not know, Thingiverse is a popular online community for 3D printing enthusiasts, where users can share their creations and collaborate with others.
To begin, you'll need to create an account on Thingiverse if you haven't already. Once logged in, navigate to the 'My Portfolio' section and click on the 'Designs' tab. From here, search for the design you want to use as a basis for your RSS service. You can filter by category, name, or keyword to find exactly what you need.
Now that you've found the perfect design, it's time to create an RSS service. In this example, we'll build a simple RSS feed using a Python script. We'll need to install the required libraries, including `feedparser` for parsing RSS feeds and `xml.etree.ElementTree` for generating XML output.
Here's some sample code to get you started:
import os
from flask import Flask, jsonify
import feedparser
app = Flask(__name__)
@app.route('/rss/')
def handle_rss(identifier):
# Get the RSS file from Thingiverse
rss_file = app.config['RSS_FILE']
# Parse the RSS feed using FeedParser
feed = feedparser.parse(rss_file)
# Generate XML output for the RSS service
xml_output = '' + \
'' + \
' My Awesome RSS Service ' + \
' https://example.com/rss' + \
' A simple RSS service using Thingiverse designs ' + \
' ' + \
' ';
return xml_output
if __name__ == '__main__':
app.run(debug=True)
Save this code in a file called `app.py` and run it using Flask. You'll need to install the required libraries by running `pip install flask feedparser`. Once installed, create an RSS service for your favorite Thingiverse design. This will be accessible at `/rss/
In addition to creating an RSS service, you may also need to manage support login information. For this example, we'll create a simple Python script that will prompt users for their login credentials and store them securely using Flask's `Session` class.
Here's some sample code to get you started:
from flask import Flask, request, session
import os
app = Flask(__name__)
app.config['SECRET_KEY'] = 'my_secret_key'
app.config['SESSION_PERMANENT'] = False
app.config['SESSION_TYPE'] = 'file'
@app.route('/login', methods=['POST'])
def login():
username = request.form['username']
password = request.form['password']
# Check if the credentials are correct and store them securely
if username == 'your_username' and password == 'your_password':
session['logged_in'] = True
return 'You have logged in successfully!'
else:
return 'Invalid login credentials.'
@app.route('/logout')
def logout():
# Delete the user from the database (for this example, we'll use a file-based storage)
with open('users.txt', 'r') as f:
users = f.readlines()
# Check if the username is in the list of logged-in users
for u in users:
if u.strip() == username:
users.remove(u)
# Write the updated list back to the file
with open('users.txt', 'w') as f:
f.write('\n'.join(users))
return 'You have been logged out successfully!'
if __name__ == '__main__':
app.run(debug=True)
Save this code in a file called `login.py` and run it using Flask. You'll need to install the required libraries by running `pip install flask`. Once installed, create an account on Thingiverse and navigate to your design's 'My Portfolio' section. Click on the 'Designs' tab and select the design you want to use for your RSS service. Click on the 'Settings' icon (represented by a gear) and click on the 'Edit Settings' button. Scroll down to the 'Login Information' section and enter your login credentials in the required fields.
In addition to creating an RSS service, you may also want to explore other technical topics related to 3D printing and community engagement. For example, you could create a plugin for Thingiverse that allows users to upload their own designs using a custom interface. You could also develop a system for tracking user feedback and sentiment analysis to improve the overall experience on Thingiverse.
These are just a few examples of the many technical topics you could explore in this area. The possibilities are endless, and it's up to you to decide what kind of project you want to work on.