I have a bad gambling habit.
I buy Powerball tickets.
Yes, I know the odds. Yes, I can do math. But I like to have the dream in my pocket, and participate in the absurd reality that it’s possible, however unlikely, that tomorrow I could wake up rich beyond the dreams of avarice.
I’m also lazy, so I’m certainly not going to go visit some web site to check my numbers. I want it automated.
Unfortunately, there is no official API but I found that the State of New York publishes a list of all Powerball results going back to 2010, and they update the file the day after each drawing.
Hence, powerball-checker.py was born.
The code is on Github. It’s very straightforward. One caveat is that if you buy “Quick Draw” tickets where the computer picks the numbers for you, this script is useless unless you want to edit it each time.
To use, simply edit to include your email address and numbers, and set it up in cron (example included) and then every Tuesday, Thursday, and Sunday – the days after Powerball results are drawn – you’ll get an email telling you if you’ve won anything.
The code is Python so it should be easy to modify if you want to tweak it. Enjoy and good luck!
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Raindog308 is a longtime LowEndTalk community administrator, technical writer, and self-described techno polymath. With deep roots in the *nix world, he has a passion for systems both modern and vintage, ranging from Unix, Perl, Python, and Golang to shell scripting and mainframe-era operating systems like MVS. He’s equally comfortable with relational database systems, having spent years working with Oracle, PostgreSQL, and MySQL.
As an avid user of LowEndBox providers, Raindog runs an empire of LEBs, from tiny boxes for VPNs, to mid-sized instances for application hosting, and heavyweight servers for data storage and complex databases. He brings both technical rigor and real-world experience to every piece he writes.
Beyond the command line, Raindog is a lover of German Shepherds, high-quality knives, target shooting, theology, tabletop RPGs, and hiking in deep, quiet forests.
His goal with every article is to help users, from beginners to seasoned sysadmins, get more value, performance, and enjoyment out of their infrastructure.
You can find him daily in the forums at LowEndTalk under the handle @raindog308.
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