Pardon my cross-posting from comp.lang.perl.misc at Google Groups. I have no experience with constructing Perl code at all, but I've been reading through PerlMonks and CPAN for most of yesterday and today. Here's my issue that I hope Perl can help me with:

I was given a very large and monotonous task at work yesterday: I have to enter 3,000+ contacts into Outlook. The information I need is found on a password protected site (I have the login and password). On the main page are links to profiles that bear the information I need.

So far, my understanding of this task, next to entering each contact manually, is to devise a script where I can spider each link, extract the profiles, convert them all into an excel or txt file, then export them somehow to Outlook, while making sure information gets transferred into proper fields. (preferably excel because I'd also need to include a notes field with specific comments).
I can open a profile (.asp) and save it as .xls and this gives me good row numbers to work with (e.g., the info I need is in rows 1-5 and then 7-12). But if I'd have to save each profile as it's own .xls file, then I'm pretty much back where I started in monotonous/redundancy land, not to mention memory overload land.

The info on the profiles look like this:

Company Name
Address1
Address2
Address3

Phone
Fax
Website

Employees (heading)
Name1, JobTitle
Name2, JobTitle
Name3, JobTitle

Info Section (which can go on for pages following the previous info. Info in this section is not needed.)

I have to ultimately create a vCard for each of the individuals with their job titles, all having the same address, phone, etc info for those fields.

Does anyone know of any codes or snippets of scripts that can help me? I am currently looking up how to even start a Perl script, the norms and expected formats. And I have JEdit. I'm good with theory, bad with actual codewriting. Any advice as to get me to the end result (3000+ vCards that my boss wants) will be much appreciated and welcomed! I don't expect any one else to write this application for me. I am happy to do it (somehow), but I just want to know I'm going about it appropriately.

Thanks in advance!

PM

2006-04-28 Retitled by planetscape, as per Monastery guidelines
Original title: 'Help, I think only Perl can save me'

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