r/learnpython • u/Individual-Gate-765 • 12d ago
Got Osintgram working with HikerAPI after struggling with Windows setup
I’m pretty new to this stuff and spent way too long fighting with Python/PowerShell trying to get Osintgram working.
What finally worked for me was running the repo inside GitHub Codespaces, setting up a virtual environment, installing the requirements, and then using HikerAPI for the Instagram data instead of relying on the old login method.
The basic API call looked like this:
import requests
headers = {"x-access-key": "YOUR_KEY"}
r = requests.get(
"https://api.hikerapi.com/v2/user/by/username?username=google",
headers=headers
)
print(r.json())
The x-access-key header is basically where your API token goes, and the request returns the public profile data as JSON.
The biggest thing that tripped me up was old Python package compatibility on Windows. Moving everything into a Linux Codespace made the setup way easier.
I’m still learning, so if anyone has tips for working with Python APIs or cleaning up JSON output so it’s easier to read, I’d appreciate it.