diff --git a/docs/api/earwigbot.config.rst b/docs/api/earwigbot.config.rst
index d7da88c..4626ed5 100644
--- a/docs/api/earwigbot.config.rst
+++ b/docs/api/earwigbot.config.rst
@@ -23,14 +23,6 @@ config Package
     :members:
     :undoc-members:
 
-:mod:`ordered_yaml` Module
---------------------------
-
-.. automodule:: earwigbot.config.ordered_yaml
-    :members:
-    :undoc-members:
-    :show-inheritance:
-
 :mod:`permissions` Module
 -------------------------
 
diff --git a/docs/api/earwigbot.rst b/docs/api/earwigbot.rst
index e94d678..a6179aa 100644
--- a/docs/api/earwigbot.rst
+++ b/docs/api/earwigbot.rst
@@ -30,13 +30,6 @@ earwigbot Package
     :undoc-members:
     :show-inheritance:
 
-:mod:`lazy` Module
-------------------
-
-.. automodule:: earwigbot.lazy
-    :members:
-    :undoc-members:
-
 :mod:`managers` Module
 ----------------------
 
diff --git a/pyproject.toml b/pyproject.toml
index 384e3a1..caed9a0 100644
--- a/pyproject.toml
+++ b/pyproject.toml
@@ -62,9 +62,6 @@ build-backend = "setuptools.build_meta"
 exclude = [
     # TODO
     "src/earwigbot/commands",
-    "src/earwigbot/config",
-    "src/earwigbot/lazy.py",
-    "src/earwigbot/irc",
     "src/earwigbot/tasks",
     "src/earwigbot/wiki/copyvios"
 ]
diff --git a/src/earwigbot/__init__.py b/src/earwigbot/__init__.py
index 0a21d1a..4a1dce1 100644
--- a/src/earwigbot/__init__.py
+++ b/src/earwigbot/__init__.py
@@ -26,8 +26,17 @@ See :file:`README.rst` for an overview, or the :file:`docs/` directory for detai
 This documentation is also available `online <https://packages.python.org/earwigbot>`_.
 """
 
-import typing
-
+__all__ = [
+    "bot",
+    "cli",
+    "commands",
+    "config",
+    "exceptions",
+    "irc",
+    "managers",
+    "tasks",
+    "wiki",
+]
 __author__ = "Ben Kurtovic"
 __copyright__ = "Copyright (C) 2009-2024 Ben Kurtovic"
 __license__ = "MIT License"
@@ -54,30 +63,14 @@ if not __release__:
     finally:
         del _get_git_commit_id
 
-from earwigbot import lazy
-
-importer = lazy.LazyImporter()
-
-if typing.TYPE_CHECKING:
-    from earwigbot import (
-        bot,
-        cli,
-        commands,
-        config,
-        exceptions,
-        irc,
-        managers,
-        tasks,
-        wiki,
-    )
-
-else:
-    bot = importer.new("earwigbot.bot")
-    cli = importer.new("earwigbot.cli")
-    commands = importer.new("earwigbot.commands")
-    config = importer.new("earwigbot.config")
-    exceptions = importer.new("earwigbot.exceptions")
-    irc = importer.new("earwigbot.irc")
-    managers = importer.new("earwigbot.managers")
-    tasks = importer.new("earwigbot.tasks")
-    wiki = importer.new("earwigbot.wiki")
+from earwigbot import (
+    bot,
+    cli,
+    commands,
+    config,
+    exceptions,
+    irc,
+    managers,
+    tasks,
+    wiki,
+)
diff --git a/src/earwigbot/commands/crypt.py b/src/earwigbot/commands/crypt.py
index 6f3a497..54d962d 100644
--- a/src/earwigbot/commands/crypt.py
+++ b/src/earwigbot/commands/crypt.py
@@ -22,13 +22,8 @@ import base64
 import hashlib
 import os
 
-from earwigbot import importer
 from earwigbot.commands import Command
 
-fernet = importer.new("cryptography.fernet")
-hashes = importer.new("cryptography.hazmat.primitives.hashes")
-pbkdf2 = importer.new("cryptography.hazmat.primitives.kdf.pbkdf2")
-
 
 class Crypt(Command):
     """Provides hash functions with !hash (!hash list for supported algorithms)
@@ -73,6 +68,16 @@ class Crypt(Command):
                 return
 
             try:
+                from cryptography import fernet
+                from cryptography.hazmat.primitives import hashes
+                from cryptography.hazmat.primitives.kdf import pbkdf2
+            except ModuleNotFoundError:
+                self.reply(
+                    data,
+                    "This command requires the 'cryptography' package: https://cryptography.io/",
+                )
+
+            try:
                 if data.command == "encrypt":
                     salt = os.urandom(saltlen)
                     kdf = pbkdf2.PBKDF2HMAC(
@@ -101,10 +106,5 @@ class Crypt(Command):
                         base64.urlsafe_b64encode(kdf.derive(key.encode()))
                     )
                     self.reply(data, f.decrypt(ciphertext).decode())
-            except ImportError:
-                self.reply(
-                    data,
-                    "This command requires the 'cryptography' package: https://cryptography.io/",
-                )
             except Exception as error:
                 self.reply(data, f"{type(error).__name__}: {str(error)}")
diff --git a/src/earwigbot/config/__init__.py b/src/earwigbot/config/__init__.py
index da42559..24f794b 100644
--- a/src/earwigbot/config/__init__.py
+++ b/src/earwigbot/config/__init__.py
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-# Copyright (C) 2009-2015 Ben Kurtovic <ben.kurtovic@gmail.com>
+# Copyright (C) 2009-2024 Ben Kurtovic <ben.kurtovic@gmail.com>
 #
 # Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining a copy
 # of this software and associated documentation files (the "Software"), to deal
@@ -28,18 +28,12 @@ from os import mkdir, path
 
 import yaml
 
-from earwigbot import importer
 from earwigbot.config.formatter import BotFormatter
 from earwigbot.config.node import ConfigNode
-from earwigbot.config.ordered_yaml import OrderedLoader
 from earwigbot.config.permissions import PermissionsDB
 from earwigbot.config.script import ConfigScript
 from earwigbot.exceptions import NoConfigError
 
-fernet = importer.new("cryptography.fernet")
-hashes = importer.new("cryptography.hazmat.primitives.hashes")
-pbkdf2 = importer.new("cryptography.hazmat.primitives.kdf.pbkdf2")
-
 __all__ = ["BotConfig"]
 
 
@@ -128,12 +122,11 @@ class BotConfig:
 
     def _load(self):
         """Load data from our JSON config file (config.yml) into self._data."""
-        filename = self._config_path
-        with open(filename) as fp:
+        with open(self._config_path) as fp:
             try:
-                self._data = yaml.load(fp, OrderedLoader)
+                self._data = yaml.load(fp, yaml.CSafeLoader)
             except yaml.YAMLError:
-                print(f"Error parsing config file {filename}:")
+                print(f"Error parsing config file {self._config_path}:")
                 raise
 
     def _setup_logging(self):
@@ -276,9 +269,7 @@ class BotConfig:
         if not path.exists(self._config_path):
             self._handle_missing_config()
         self._load()
-        if not self._data:
-            self._handle_missing_config()
-            self._load()
+        assert self._data is not None
 
         self.components._load(self._data.get("components", OrderedDict()))
         self.wiki._load(self._data.get("wiki", OrderedDict()))
@@ -291,6 +282,10 @@ class BotConfig:
         if self.is_encrypted():
             if not self._decryption_cipher:
                 try:
+                    from cryptography import fernet
+                    from cryptography.hazmat.primitives import hashes
+                    from cryptography.hazmat.primitives.kdf import pbkdf2
+
                     salt = self.metadata["salt"]
                     kdf = pbkdf2.PBKDF2HMAC(
                         algorithm=hashes.SHA256(),
@@ -298,7 +293,7 @@ class BotConfig:
                         salt=salt,
                         iterations=ConfigScript.PBKDF_ROUNDS,
                     )
-                except ImportError:
+                except ModuleNotFoundError:
                     e = "Encryption requires the 'cryptography' package: https://cryptography.io/"
                     raise NoConfigError(e)
                 key = getpass("Enter key to decrypt bot passwords: ")
@@ -352,6 +347,7 @@ class BotConfig:
             "week_day": week_day,
         }
 
+        assert self._data is not None
         data = self._data.get("schedule", [])
         for event in data:
             do = True
diff --git a/src/earwigbot/config/node.py b/src/earwigbot/config/node.py
index 86dd4dd..a308add 100644
--- a/src/earwigbot/config/node.py
+++ b/src/earwigbot/config/node.py
@@ -19,22 +19,21 @@
 # SOFTWARE.
 
 import base64
-from collections import OrderedDict
 
 __all__ = ["ConfigNode"]
 
 
 class ConfigNode:
     def __init__(self):
-        self._data = OrderedDict()
+        self._data = {}
 
-    def __repr__(self):
-        return self._data
+    def __repr__(self) -> str:
+        return repr(self._data)
 
-    def __bool__(self):
+    def __bool__(self) -> bool:
         return bool(self._data)
 
-    def __len__(self):
+    def __len__(self) -> int:
         return len(self._data)
 
     def __getitem__(self, key):
diff --git a/src/earwigbot/config/ordered_yaml.py b/src/earwigbot/config/ordered_yaml.py
deleted file mode 100644
index e8ecfae..0000000
--- a/src/earwigbot/config/ordered_yaml.py
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,108 +0,0 @@
-# Copyright (C) 2009-2015 Ben Kurtovic <ben.kurtovic@gmail.com>
-#
-# Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining a copy
-# of this software and associated documentation files (the "Software"), to deal
-# in the Software without restriction, including without limitation the rights
-# to use, copy, modify, merge, publish, distribute, sublicense, and/or sell
-# copies of the Software, and to permit persons to whom the Software is
-# furnished to do so, subject to the following conditions:
-#
-# The above copyright notice and this permission notice shall be included in
-# all copies or substantial portions of the Software.
-#
-# THE SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED "AS IS", WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR
-# IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY,
-# FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND NONINFRINGEMENT. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE
-# AUTHORS OR COPYRIGHT HOLDERS BE LIABLE FOR ANY CLAIM, DAMAGES OR OTHER
-# LIABILITY, WHETHER IN AN ACTION OF CONTRACT, TORT OR OTHERWISE, ARISING FROM,
-# OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE SOFTWARE OR THE USE OR OTHER DEALINGS IN THE
-# SOFTWARE.
-
-"""
-Based on:
-
- * https://gist.github.com/844388
- * https://pyyaml.org/attachment/ticket/161/use_ordered_dict.py
-
-with modifications.
-"""
-
-from collections import OrderedDict
-
-import yaml
-
-__all__ = ["OrderedLoader", "OrderedDumper"]
-
-
-class OrderedLoader(yaml.Loader):
-    """A YAML loader that loads mappings into ordered dictionaries."""
-
-    def __init__(self, *args, **kwargs):
-        super().__init__(*args, **kwargs)
-        constructor = type(self).construct_yaml_map
-        self.add_constructor("tag:yaml.org,2002:map", constructor)
-        self.add_constructor("tag:yaml.org,2002:omap", constructor)
-
-    def construct_yaml_map(self, node):
-        data = OrderedDict()
-        yield data
-        value = self.construct_mapping(node)
-        data.update(value)
-
-    def construct_mapping(self, node, deep=False):
-        if isinstance(node, yaml.MappingNode):
-            self.flatten_mapping(node)
-        else:
-            raise yaml.constructor.ConstructorError(
-                None,
-                None,
-                f"expected a mapping node, but found {node.id}",
-                node.start_mark,
-            )
-
-        mapping = OrderedDict()
-        for key_node, value_node in node.value:
-            key = self.construct_object(key_node, deep=deep)
-            try:
-                hash(key)
-            except TypeError as exc:
-                raise yaml.constructor.ConstructorError(
-                    "while constructing a mapping",
-                    node.start_mark,
-                    f"found unacceptable key ({exc})",
-                    key_node.start_mark,
-                )
-            value = self.construct_object(value_node, deep=deep)
-            mapping[key] = value
-        return mapping
-
-
-class OrderedDumper(yaml.SafeDumper):
-    """A YAML dumper that dumps ordered dictionaries into mappings."""
-
-    def __init__(self, *args, **kwargs):
-        super().__init__(*args, **kwargs)
-        self.add_representer(OrderedDict, type(self).represent_dict)
-
-    def represent_mapping(self, tag, mapping, flow_style=None):
-        value = []
-        node = yaml.MappingNode(tag, value, flow_style=flow_style)
-        if self.alias_key is not None:
-            self.represented_objects[self.alias_key] = node
-        best_style = True
-        if hasattr(mapping, "items"):
-            mapping = list(mapping.items())
-        for item_key, item_value in mapping:
-            node_key = self.represent_data(item_key)
-            node_value = self.represent_data(item_value)
-            if not (isinstance(node_key, yaml.ScalarNode) and not node_key.style):
-                best_style = False
-            if not (isinstance(node_value, yaml.ScalarNode) and not node_value.style):
-                best_style = False
-            value.append((node_key, node_value))
-        if flow_style is None:
-            if self.default_flow_style is not None:
-                node.flow_style = self.default_flow_style
-            else:
-                node.flow_style = best_style
-        return node
diff --git a/src/earwigbot/config/script.py b/src/earwigbot/config/script.py
index cfb22ea..21dfcef 100644
--- a/src/earwigbot/config/script.py
+++ b/src/earwigbot/config/script.py
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-# Copyright (C) 2009-2016 Ben Kurtovic <ben.kurtovic@gmail.com>
+# Copyright (C) 2009-2024 Ben Kurtovic <ben.kurtovic@gmail.com>
 #
 # Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining a copy
 # of this software and associated documentation files (the "Software"), to deal
@@ -19,36 +19,40 @@
 # SOFTWARE.
 
 import base64
+import getpass
 import os
+import os.path
 import re
 import stat
 import sys
-from collections import OrderedDict
-from getpass import getpass
-from os import chmod, makedirs, mkdir, path
-from textwrap import fill, wrap
+import textwrap
+import typing
+from typing import Any, Literal
 
 import yaml
 
-from earwigbot import exceptions, importer
-from earwigbot.config.ordered_yaml import OrderedDumper
-
-fernet = importer.new("cryptography.fernet")
-hashes = importer.new("cryptography.hazmat.primitives.hashes")
-pbkdf2 = importer.new("cryptography.hazmat.primitives.kdf.pbkdf2")
+from earwigbot import exceptions
 
 __all__ = ["ConfigScript"]
 
-RULES_TEMPLATE = """# -*- coding: utf-8  -*-
+RULES_TEMPLATE = """\
+from earwigbot.bot import Bot
+from earwigbot.irc import RC
+
+def process(bot: Bot, rc: RC):
+    \"\"\"
+    Return a list of channels to report this event to.
 
-def process(bot, rc):
-    \"\"\"Given a Bot() object and an RC() object, return a list of channels
-    to report this event to. Also, start any wiki bot tasks within this
-    function if necessary.\"\"\"
+    Also, start any wiki bot tasks within this function if necessary.
+    \"\"\"
     pass
 """
 
 
+class RetryError(Exception):
+    pass
+
+
 class ConfigScript:
     """A script to guide a user through the creation of a new config file."""
 
@@ -58,17 +62,15 @@ class ConfigScript:
 
     def __init__(self, config):
         self.config = config
-        self.data = OrderedDict(
-            [
-                ("metadata", OrderedDict()),
-                ("components", OrderedDict()),
-                ("wiki", OrderedDict()),
-                ("irc", OrderedDict()),
-                ("commands", OrderedDict()),
-                ("tasks", OrderedDict()),
-                ("schedule", []),
-            ]
-        )
+        self.data = {
+            "metadata": {},
+            "components": {},
+            "wiki": {},
+            "irc": {},
+            "commands": {},
+            "tasks": {},
+            "schedule": [],
+        }
 
         self._cipher = None
         self._wmf = False
@@ -76,20 +78,28 @@ class ConfigScript:
         self._lang = None
 
     def _print(self, text):
-        print(fill(re.sub(r"\s\s+", " ", text), self.WIDTH))
+        print(textwrap.fill(re.sub(r"\s\s+", " ", text), self.WIDTH))
 
     def _print_no_nl(self, text):
-        sys.stdout.write(fill(re.sub(r"\s\s+", " ", text), self.WIDTH))
+        sys.stdout.write(textwrap.fill(re.sub(r"\s\s+", " ", text), self.WIDTH))
         sys.stdout.flush()
 
     def _pause(self):
         input(self.PROMPT + "Press enter to continue: ")
 
-    def _ask(self, text, default=None, require=True):
+    @typing.overload
+    def _ask(self, text, default=None, require: Literal[True] = True) -> str: ...
+
+    @typing.overload
+    def _ask(
+        self, text, default=None, require: Literal[False] = False
+    ) -> str | None: ...
+
+    def _ask(self, text, default=None, require=True) -> str | None:
         text = self.PROMPT + text
         if default:
             text += f" \x1b[33m[{default}]\x1b[0m"
-        lines = wrap(re.sub(r"\s\s+", " ", text), self.WIDTH)
+        lines = textwrap.wrap(re.sub(r"\s\s+", " ", text), self.WIDTH)
         if len(lines) > 1:
             print("\n".join(lines[:-1]))
         while True:
@@ -103,7 +113,7 @@ class ConfigScript:
             text += " \x1b[33m[Y/n]\x1b[0m"
         else:
             text += " \x1b[33m[y/N]\x1b[0m"
-        lines = wrap(re.sub(r"\s\s+", " ", text), self.WIDTH)
+        lines = textwrap.wrap(re.sub(r"\s\s+", " ", text), self.WIDTH)
         if len(lines) > 1:
             print("\n".join(lines[:-1]))
         while True:
@@ -116,7 +126,7 @@ class ConfigScript:
                 return False
 
     def _ask_pass(self, text, encrypt=True):
-        password = getpass(self.PROMPT + text + " ")
+        password = getpass.getpass(self.PROMPT + text + " ")
         if encrypt:
             return self._encrypt(password)
         return password
@@ -128,7 +138,7 @@ class ConfigScript:
             return password
 
     def _ask_list(self, text):
-        print(fill(re.sub(r"\s\s+", " ", self.PROMPT + text), self.WIDTH))
+        print(textwrap.fill(re.sub(r"\s\s+", " ", self.PROMPT + text), self.WIDTH))
         print("[one item per line; blank line to end]:")
         result = []
         while True:
@@ -140,18 +150,24 @@ class ConfigScript:
 
     def _set_metadata(self):
         print()
-        self.data["metadata"] = OrderedDict([("version", 1)])
-        self._print("""I can encrypt passwords stored in your config file in
-                       addition to preventing other users on your system from
-                       reading the file. Encryption is recommended if the bot
-                       is to run on a public server like Toolforge, but the
-                       need to enter a key every time you start the bot may be
-                       an inconvenience.""")
-        self.data["metadata"]["encryptPasswords"] = False
+        metadata: dict[str, Any] = {"version": 1}
+        self.data["metadata"] = metadata
+        self._print(
+            """I can encrypt passwords stored in your config file in addition to
+            preventing other users on your system from reading the file. Encryption is
+            recommended if the bot is to run on a public server like Toolforge, but the
+            need to enter a key every time you start the bot may be an
+            inconvenience."""
+        )
+        metadata["encryptPasswords"] = False
         if self._ask_bool("Encrypt stored passwords?"):
-            key = getpass(self.PROMPT + "Enter an encryption key: ")
+            key = getpass.getpass(self.PROMPT + "Enter an encryption key: ")
             self._print_no_nl("Generating key...")
             try:
+                from cryptography import fernet
+                from cryptography.hazmat.primitives import hashes
+                from cryptography.hazmat.primitives.kdf import pbkdf2
+
                 salt = os.urandom(16)
                 kdf = pbkdf2.PBKDF2HMAC(
                     algorithm=hashes.SHA256(),
@@ -162,44 +178,52 @@ class ConfigScript:
                 self._cipher = fernet.Fernet(
                     base64.urlsafe_b64encode(kdf.derive(key.encode()))
                 )
-            except ImportError:
+            except ModuleNotFoundError:
                 print(" error!")
-                self._print("""Encryption requires the 'cryptography' package:
-                               https://cryptography.io/""")
-                self._print("""I will disable encryption for now; restart
-                               configuration after installing these packages if
-                               you want it.""")
+                self._print(
+                    "Encryption requires the 'cryptography' package: https://cryptography.io/"
+                )
+                self._print(
+                    """I will disable encryption for now; restart configuration after
+                    installing these packages if you want it."""
+                )
                 self._pause()
             else:
-                self.data["metadata"]["encryptPasswords"] = True
-                self.data["metadata"]["salt"] = base64.b64encode(salt).decode()
+                metadata["encryptPasswords"] = True
+                metadata["salt"] = base64.b64encode(salt).decode()
                 print(" done.")
 
         print()
-        self._print("""The bot can temporarily store its logs in the logs/
-                       subdirectory. Error logs are kept for a month whereas
-                       normal logs are kept for a week. If you disable this,
-                       the bot will still print logs to stdout.""")
+        self._print(
+            """The bot can temporarily store its logs in the logs/ subdirectory. Error
+            logs are kept for a month whereas normal logs are kept for a week. If you
+            disable this, the bot will still print logs to stdout."""
+        )
         logging = self._ask_bool("Enable logging?")
-        self.data["metadata"]["enableLogging"] = logging
+        metadata["enableLogging"] = logging
 
     def _set_components(self):
         print()
-        self._print("""The bot contains three separate components that can run
-                       independently of each other.""")
-        self._print("""- The IRC front-end runs on a normal IRC server, like
-                       Libera, and expects users to interact with it through
-                       commands.""")
-        self._print("""- The IRC watcher runs on a wiki recent-changes server,
-                       like irc.wikimedia.org, and listens for edits. Users
-                       cannot interact with this component. It can detect
-                       specific events and report them to "feed" channels on
-                       the front-end or start bot tasks.""")
-        self._print("""- The wiki task scheduler runs wiki-editing bot tasks in
-                       separate threads at user-defined times through a
-                       cron-like interface. Tasks which are not scheduled can
-                       be started by the IRC watcher manually through the IRC
-                       front-end.""")
+        self._print(
+            """The bot contains three separate components that can run independently of
+            each other."""
+        )
+        self._print(
+            """- The IRC front-end runs on a normal IRC server, like Libera, and
+            expects users to interact with it through commands."""
+        )
+        self._print(
+            """- The IRC watcher runs on a wiki recent-changes server, like
+            irc.wikimedia.org, and listens for edits. Users cannot interact with this
+            component. It can detect specific events and report them to "feed" channels
+            on the front-end or start bot tasks."""
+        )
+        self._print(
+            """- The wiki task scheduler runs wiki-editing bot tasks in separate
+            threads at user-defined times through a cron-like interface. Tasks which
+            are not scheduled can be started by the IRC watcher manually through the
+            IRC front-end."""
+        )
         frontend = self._ask_bool("Enable the IRC front-end?")
         watcher = self._ask_bool("Enable the IRC watcher?")
         scheduler = self._ask_bool("Enable the wiki task scheduler?")
@@ -214,17 +238,17 @@ class ConfigScript:
             site = self.config.bot.wiki.add_site(**kwargs)
         except exceptions.APIError as exc:
             print(" API error!")
-            print("\x1b[31m" + exc.message + "\x1b[0m")
+            print(f"\x1b[31m{exc}\x1b[0m")
             question = "Would you like to re-enter the site information?"
             if self._ask_bool(question):
-                return self._set_wiki()
+                raise RetryError()
             question = "This will cancel the setup process. Are you sure?"
             if self._ask_bool(question, default=False):
                 raise exceptions.NoConfigError()
-            return self._set_wiki()
+            raise RetryError()
         except exceptions.LoginError as exc:
             print(" login error!")
-            print("\x1b[31m" + exc.message + "\x1b[0m")
+            print(f"\x1b[31m{exc}\x1b[0m")
             question = "Would you like to re-enter your login information?"
             if self._ask_bool(question):
                 self.data["wiki"]["username"] = self._ask("Bot username:")
@@ -235,10 +259,12 @@ class ConfigScript:
                 password = self.data["wiki"]["password"]
             question = "Would you like to re-enter the site information?"
             if self._ask_bool(question):
-                return self._set_wiki()
+                raise RetryError()
             print()
-            self._print("""Moving on. You can modify the login information
-                           stored in the bot's config in the future.""")
+            self._print(
+                """Moving on. You can modify the login information stored in the bot's
+                config in the future."""
+            )
             self.data["wiki"]["password"] = None  # Clear so we don't login
             self.config.wiki._load(self.data["wiki"])
             self._print_no_nl("Trying to connect to the site...")
@@ -255,8 +281,9 @@ class ConfigScript:
 
     def _set_wiki(self):
         print()
-        self._wmf = self._ask_bool("""Will this bot run on Wikimedia Foundation
-                                      wikis, like Wikipedia?""")
+        self._wmf = self._ask_bool(
+            "Will this bot run on Wikimedia Foundation wikis, like Wikipedia?"
+        )
         if self._wmf:
             msg = "Site project (e.g. 'wikipedia', 'wiktionary', 'wikimedia'):"
             self._proj = project = self._ask(msg, "wikipedia").lower()
@@ -288,39 +315,32 @@ class ConfigScript:
             msg = "Will this bot run from the Wikimedia Tool Labs?"
             labs = self._ask_bool(msg, default=False)
             if labs:
-                args = [
-                    ("host", "$1.labsdb"),
-                    ("db", "$1_p"),
-                    ("read_default_file", "~/replica.my.cnf"),
-                ]
-                self.data["wiki"]["sql"] = OrderedDict(args)
-            else:
-                msg = "Will this bot run from the Wikimedia Toolserver?"
-                toolserver = self._ask_bool(msg, default=False)
-                if toolserver:
-                    args = [("host", "$1-p.rrdb.toolserver.org"), ("db", "$1_p")]
-                    self.data["wiki"]["sql"] = OrderedDict(args)
+                self.data["wiki"]["sql"] = {
+                    "host": "$1.labsdb",
+                    "db": "$1_p",
+                    "read_default_file": "~/replica.my.cnf",
+                }
 
         self.data["wiki"]["shutoff"] = {}
         msg = "Would you like to enable an automatic shutoff page for the bot?"
         if self._ask_bool(msg):
             print()
-            self._print("""The page title can contain two wildcards: $1 will be
-                           substituted with the bot's username, and $2 with the
-                           current task number. This can be used to implement a
-                           separate shutoff page for each task.""")
+            self._print(
+                """The page title can contain two wildcards: $1 will be substituted
+                with the bot's username, and $2 with the current task number. This can
+                be used to implement a separate shutoff page for each task."""
+            )
             page = self._ask("Page title:", "User:$1/Shutoff")
             msg = "Page content to indicate the bot is *not* shut off:"
             disabled = self._ask(msg, "run")
-            args = [("page", page), ("disabled", disabled)]
-            self.data["wiki"]["shutoff"] = OrderedDict(args)
+            self.data["wiki"]["shutoff"] = {"page": page, "disabled": disabled}
 
         self.data["wiki"]["search"] = {}
 
     def _set_irc(self):
         if self.data["components"]["irc_frontend"]:
             print()
-            frontend = self.data["irc"]["frontend"] = OrderedDict()
+            frontend = self.data["irc"]["frontend"] = {}
             frontend["host"] = self._ask(
                 "Hostname of the frontend's IRC server:", "irc.libera.chat"
             )
@@ -339,14 +359,14 @@ class ConfigScript:
             chan_question = "Frontend channels to join by default:"
             frontend["channels"] = self._ask_list(chan_question)
             print()
-            self._print("""The bot keeps a database of its admins (users who
-                           can use certain sensitive commands) and owners
-                           (users who can quit the bot and modify its access
-                           list), identified by nick, ident, and/or hostname.
-                           Hostname is the most secure option since it cannot
-                           be easily spoofed. If you have a cloak, this will
-                           probably look like 'wikipedia/Username' or
-                           'user/nickname'.""")
+            self._print(
+                """The bot keeps a database of its admins (users who can use certain
+                sensitive commands) and owners (users who can quit the bot and modify
+                its access list), identified by nick, ident, and/or hostname. Hostname
+                is the most secure option since it cannot be easily spoofed. If you
+                have a cloak, this will probably look like 'wikipedia/Username' or
+                'user/nickname'."""
+            )
             host = self._ask("Your hostname on the frontend:", require=False)
             if host:
                 permdb = self.config._permissions
@@ -358,7 +378,7 @@ class ConfigScript:
 
         if self.data["components"]["irc_watcher"]:
             print()
-            watcher = self.data["irc"]["watcher"] = OrderedDict()
+            watcher = self.data["irc"]["watcher"] = {}
             if self._wmf:
                 watcher["host"] = "irc.wikimedia.org"
                 watcher["port"] = 6667
@@ -386,14 +406,14 @@ class ConfigScript:
                 chan_question = "Watcher channels to join by default:"
                 watcher["channels"] = self._ask_list(chan_question)
             print()
-            self._print("""I am now creating a blank 'rules.py' file, which
-                           will determine how the bot handles messages received
-                           from the IRC watcher. It contains a process()
-                           function that takes a Bot object (allowing you to
-                           start tasks) and an RC object (storing the message
-                           from the watcher). See the documentation for
-                           details.""")
-            with open(path.join(self.config.root_dir, "rules.py"), "w") as fp:
+            self._print(
+                """I am now creating a blank 'rules.py' file, which will determine how
+                the bot handles messages received from the IRC watcher. It contains a
+                process() function that takes a Bot object (allowing you to start
+                tasks) and an RC object (storing the message from the watcher). See the
+                documentation for details."""
+            )
+            with open(os.path.join(self.config.root_dir, "rules.py"), "w") as fp:
                 fp.write(RULES_TEMPLATE)
             self._pause()
 
@@ -403,47 +423,55 @@ class ConfigScript:
 
     def _set_commands(self):
         print()
-        msg = """Would you like to disable the default IRC commands? You can
-                 fine-tune which commands are disabled later on."""
+        msg = """Would you like to disable the default IRC commands? You can fine-tune
+        which commands are disabled later on."""
         if not self.data["components"]["irc_frontend"] or self._ask_bool(
             msg, default=False
         ):
             self.data["commands"]["disable"] = True
         print()
-        self._print("""I am now creating the 'commands/' directory, where you
-                       can place custom IRC commands and plugins. Creating your
-                       own commands is described in the documentation.""")
-        mkdir(path.join(self.config.root_dir, "commands"))
+        self._print(
+            """I am now creating the 'commands/' directory, where you can place custom
+            IRC commands and plugins. Creating your own commands is described in the
+            documentation."""
+        )
+        os.mkdir(os.path.join(self.config.root_dir, "commands"))
         self._pause()
 
     def _set_tasks(self):
         print()
-        self._print("""I am now creating the 'tasks/' directory, where you can
-                       place custom bot tasks and plugins. Creating your own
-                       tasks is described in the documentation.""")
-        mkdir(path.join(self.config.root_dir, "tasks"))
+        self._print(
+            """I am now creating the 'tasks/' directory, where you can place custom bot
+            tasks and plugins. Creating your own tasks is described in the
+            documentation."""
+        )
+        os.mkdir(os.path.join(self.config.root_dir, "tasks"))
         self._pause()
 
     def _set_schedule(self):
         print()
-        self._print("""The final section of your config file, 'schedule', is a
-                       list of bot tasks to be started by the wiki scheduler.
-                       Each entry contains cron-like time quantifiers and a
-                       list of tasks. For example, the following starts the
-                       'foobot' task every hour on the half-hour:""")
+        self._print(
+            """The final section of your config file, 'schedule', is a list of bot
+            tasks to be started by the wiki scheduler. Each entry contains cron-like
+            time quantifiers and a list of tasks. For example, the following starts the
+            'foobot' task every hour on the half-hour:"""
+        )
         print("\x1b[33mschedule:")
         print("    - minute: 30")
         print("      tasks:")
         print("          - foobot\x1b[0m")
-        self._print("""The following starts the 'barbot' task with the keyword
-                       arguments 'action="baz"' every Monday at 05:00 UTC:""")
+        self._print(
+            """The following starts the 'barbot' task with the keyword arguments
+            'action="baz"' every Monday at 05:00 UTC:"""
+        )
         print("\x1b[33m    - week_day: 1")
         print("      hour:     5")
         print("      tasks:")
         print('          - ["barbot", {"action": "baz"}]\x1b[0m')
-        self._print("""The full list of quantifiers is minute, hour, month_day,
-                       month, and week_day. See the documentation for more
-                       information.""")
+        self._print(
+            """The full list of quantifiers is minute, hour, month_day, month, and
+            week_day. See the documentation for more information."""
+        )
         self._pause()
 
     def _save(self):
@@ -451,7 +479,7 @@ class ConfigScript:
             yaml.dump(
                 self.data,
                 stream,
-                OrderedDumper,
+                yaml.CSafeDumper,
                 indent=4,
                 allow_unicode=True,
                 default_flow_style=False,
@@ -460,19 +488,24 @@ class ConfigScript:
     def make_new(self):
         """Make a new config file based on the user's input."""
         try:
-            makedirs(path.dirname(self.config.path))
+            os.makedirs(os.path.dirname(self.config.path))
         except OSError as exc:
             if exc.errno != 17:
                 raise
         try:
             open(self.config.path, "w").close()
-            chmod(self.config.path, stat.S_IRUSR | stat.S_IWUSR)
+            os.chmod(self.config.path, stat.S_IRUSR | stat.S_IWUSR)
         except OSError:
             print("I can't seem to write to the config file:")
             raise
         self._set_metadata()
         self._set_components()
-        self._set_wiki()
+        while True:
+            try:
+                self._set_wiki()
+                break
+            except RetryError:
+                continue
         components = self.data["components"]
         if components["irc_frontend"] or components["irc_watcher"]:
             self._set_irc()
@@ -481,12 +514,12 @@ class ConfigScript:
         if components["wiki_scheduler"]:
             self._set_schedule()
         print()
-        self._print("""I am now saving config.yml with your settings. YAML is a
-                       relatively straightforward format and you should be able
-                       to update these settings in the future when necessary.
-                       I will start the bot at your signal. Feel free to
-                       contact me at wikipedia.earwig@gmail.com if you have any
-                       questions.""")
+        self._print(
+            """I am now saving config.yml with your settings. YAML is a relatively
+            straightforward format and you should be able to update these settings in
+            the future when necessary. I will start the bot at your signal. Feel free
+            to contact me at wikipedia.earwig@gmail.com if you have any questions."""
+        )
         self._save()
         if not self._ask_bool("Start the bot now?"):
             exit()
diff --git a/src/earwigbot/irc/__init__.py b/src/earwigbot/irc/__init__.py
index f4a2be5..b251451 100644
--- a/src/earwigbot/irc/__init__.py
+++ b/src/earwigbot/irc/__init__.py
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-# Copyright (C) 2009-2015 Ben Kurtovic <ben.kurtovic@gmail.com>
+# Copyright (C) 2009-2024 Ben Kurtovic <ben.kurtovic@gmail.com>
 #
 # Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining a copy
 # of this software and associated documentation files (the "Software"), to deal
@@ -18,8 +18,10 @@
 # OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE SOFTWARE OR THE USE OR OTHER DEALINGS IN THE
 # SOFTWARE.
 
-from earwigbot.irc.connection import *
-from earwigbot.irc.data import *
-from earwigbot.irc.frontend import *
-from earwigbot.irc.rc import *
-from earwigbot.irc.watcher import *
+__all__ = ["Data", "Frontend", "IRCConnection", "RC", "Watcher"]
+
+from earwigbot.irc.connection import IRCConnection
+from earwigbot.irc.data import Data
+from earwigbot.irc.frontend import Frontend
+from earwigbot.irc.rc import RC
+from earwigbot.irc.watcher import Watcher
diff --git a/src/earwigbot/irc/connection.py b/src/earwigbot/irc/connection.py
index 823becd..5fba7f1 100644
--- a/src/earwigbot/irc/connection.py
+++ b/src/earwigbot/irc/connection.py
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-# Copyright (C) 2009-2015 Ben Kurtovic <ben.kurtovic@gmail.com>
+# Copyright (C) 2009-2024 Ben Kurtovic <ben.kurtovic@gmail.com>
 #
 # Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining a copy
 # of this software and associated documentation files (the "Software"), to deal
@@ -18,14 +18,14 @@
 # OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE SOFTWARE OR THE USE OR OTHER DEALINGS IN THE
 # SOFTWARE.
 
+__all__ = ["IRCConnection"]
+
 import socket
 from threading import Lock
 from time import sleep, time
 
 from earwigbot.exceptions import BrokenSocketError
 
-__all__ = ["IRCConnection"]
-
 
 class IRCConnection:
     """Interface with an IRC server."""
diff --git a/src/earwigbot/irc/data.py b/src/earwigbot/irc/data.py
index b150438..788716d 100644
--- a/src/earwigbot/irc/data.py
+++ b/src/earwigbot/irc/data.py
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-# Copyright (C) 2009-2016 Ben Kurtovic <ben.kurtovic@gmail.com>
+# Copyright (C) 2009-2024 Ben Kurtovic <ben.kurtovic@gmail.com>
 #
 # Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining a copy
 # of this software and associated documentation files (the "Software"), to deal
@@ -18,10 +18,10 @@
 # OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE SOFTWARE OR THE USE OR OTHER DEALINGS IN THE
 # SOFTWARE.
 
-import re
-
 __all__ = ["Data"]
 
+import re
+
 
 class Data:
     """Store data from an individual line received on IRC."""
@@ -78,6 +78,7 @@ class Data:
         bot's name); self.is_command will be set to True, and self.trigger will
         store the trigger string. Otherwise, is_command will be set to False.
         """
+        assert self.msg is not None
         self._args = self.msg.strip().split()
 
         try:
@@ -87,16 +88,16 @@ class Data:
             return
 
         # e.g. "!command>user arg1 arg2"
-        if ">" in self.command:
+        if ">" in self._command:
             command_uc, self._reply_nick = command_uc.split(">", 1)
             self._command = command_uc.lower()
 
-        if self.command.startswith("!") or self.command.startswith("."):
+        if self._command.startswith("!") or self._command.startswith("."):
             # e.g. "!command arg1 arg2"
             self._is_command = True
-            self._trigger = self.command[0]
-            self._command = self.command[1:]  # Strip the "!" or "."
-        elif re.match(rf"{re.escape(self.my_nick)}\W*?$", self.command, re.U):
+            self._trigger = self._command[0]
+            self._command = self._command[1:]  # Strip the "!" or "."
+        elif re.match(rf"{re.escape(self.my_nick)}\W*?$", self._command, re.U):
             # e.g. "EarwigBot, command arg1 arg2"
             self._is_command = True
             self._trigger = self.my_nick
@@ -110,7 +111,7 @@ class Data:
                         if self.args:
                             self.args[-1] = self.args[-1][:-1]
                         else:
-                            self._command = self.command[:-1]
+                            self._command = self._command[:-1]
                 except IndexError:
                     pass
 
diff --git a/src/earwigbot/irc/frontend.py b/src/earwigbot/irc/frontend.py
index 4bbe5c7..d7c9734 100644
--- a/src/earwigbot/irc/frontend.py
+++ b/src/earwigbot/irc/frontend.py
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-# Copyright (C) 2009-2021 Ben Kurtovic <ben.kurtovic@gmail.com>
+# Copyright (C) 2009-2024 Ben Kurtovic <ben.kurtovic@gmail.com>
 #
 # Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining a copy
 # of this software and associated documentation files (the "Software"), to deal
@@ -18,11 +18,11 @@
 # OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE SOFTWARE OR THE USE OR OTHER DEALINGS IN THE
 # SOFTWARE.
 
-from time import sleep
+__all__ = ["Frontend"]
 
-from earwigbot.irc import Data, IRCConnection
+import time
 
-__all__ = ["Frontend"]
+from earwigbot.irc import Data, IRCConnection
 
 
 class Frontend(IRCConnection):
@@ -121,10 +121,11 @@ class Frontend(IRCConnection):
         elif line[1] == "NOTICE":
             data = Data(self.nick, line, msgtype="NOTICE")
             if self._auth_wait and data.nick == self.NICK_SERVICES:
+                assert data.msg is not None
                 if data.msg.startswith("This nickname is registered."):
                     return
                 self._auth_wait = False
-                sleep(2)  # Wait for hostname change to propagate
+                time.sleep(2)  # Wait for hostname change to propagate
                 self._join_channels()
 
         elif line[1] == "KICK":
diff --git a/src/earwigbot/irc/rc.py b/src/earwigbot/irc/rc.py
index be29441..ffb8664 100644
--- a/src/earwigbot/irc/rc.py
+++ b/src/earwigbot/irc/rc.py
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-# Copyright (C) 2009-2021 Ben Kurtovic <ben.kurtovic@gmail.com>
+# Copyright (C) 2009-2024 Ben Kurtovic <ben.kurtovic@gmail.com>
 #
 # Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining a copy
 # of this software and associated documentation files (the "Software"), to deal
@@ -18,19 +18,19 @@
 # OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE SOFTWARE OR THE USE OR OTHER DEALINGS IN THE
 # SOFTWARE.
 
-import re
-
 __all__ = ["RC"]
 
+import re
+
 
 class RC:
     """Store data from an event received from our IRC watcher."""
 
     re_color = re.compile("\x03([0-9]{1,2}(,[0-9]{1,2})?)?")
     re_edit = re.compile(
-        "\A\[\[(.*?)\]\]\s(.*?)\s(https?://.*?)\s\*\s(.*?)\s\*\s(.*?)\Z"
+        r"\A\[\[(.*?)\]\]\s(.*?)\s(https?://.*?)\s\*\s(.*?)\s\*\s(.*?)\Z"
     )
-    re_log = re.compile("\A\[\[(.*?)\]\]\s(.*?)\s\s\*\s(.*?)\s\*\s(.*?)\Z")
+    re_log = re.compile(r"\A\[\[(.*?)\]\]\s(.*?)\s\s\*\s(.*?)\s\*\s(.*?)\Z")
 
     pretty_edit = "\x02New {0}\x0f: \x0314[[\x0307{1}\x0314]]\x0306 * \x0303{2}\x0306 * \x0302{3}\x0306 * \x0310{4}"
     pretty_log = "\x02New {0}\x0f: \x0303{1}\x0306 * \x0302{2}\x0306 * \x0310{3}"
diff --git a/src/earwigbot/lazy.py b/src/earwigbot/lazy.py
deleted file mode 100644
index 21c0351..0000000
--- a/src/earwigbot/lazy.py
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,100 +0,0 @@
-# Copyright (C) 2009-2024 Ben Kurtovic <ben.kurtovic@gmail.com>
-#
-# Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining a copy
-# of this software and associated documentation files (the "Software"), to deal
-# in the Software without restriction, including without limitation the rights
-# to use, copy, modify, merge, publish, distribute, sublicense, and/or sell
-# copies of the Software, and to permit persons to whom the Software is
-# furnished to do so, subject to the following conditions:
-#
-# The above copyright notice and this permission notice shall be included in
-# all copies or substantial portions of the Software.
-#
-# THE SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED "AS IS", WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR
-# IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY,
-# FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND NONINFRINGEMENT. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE
-# AUTHORS OR COPYRIGHT HOLDERS BE LIABLE FOR ANY CLAIM, DAMAGES OR OTHER
-# LIABILITY, WHETHER IN AN ACTION OF CONTRACT, TORT OR OTHERWISE, ARISING FROM,
-# OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE SOFTWARE OR THE USE OR OTHER DEALINGS IN THE
-# SOFTWARE.
-
-"""
-Implements a hierarchy of importing classes as defined in `PEP 302
-<https://www.python.org/dev/peps/pep-0302/>`_ to load modules in a safe yet lazy
-manner, so that they can be referred to by name but are not actually loaded
-until they are used (i.e. their attributes are read or modified).
-"""
-
-import importlib
-import sys
-from threading import RLock
-from types import ModuleType
-
-__all__ = ["LazyImporter"]
-
-_real_get = ModuleType.__getattribute__
-_lazy_init_lock = RLock()
-
-
-def _create_failing_get(exc):
-    def _fail(self, attr):
-        raise exc
-
-    return _fail
-
-
-def _mock_get(self, attr):
-    with _real_get(self, "_lock"):
-        if _real_get(self, "_unloaded"):
-            type(self)._unloaded = False
-            try:
-                importlib.reload(self)
-            except ImportError as exc:
-                type(self).__getattribute__ = _create_failing_get(exc)
-                del type(self)._lock
-                raise
-            type(self).__getattribute__ = _real_get
-            del type(self)._lock
-        return _real_get(self, attr)
-
-
-class _LazyModule(type):
-    def __new__(cls, name):
-        with _lazy_init_lock:
-            if name not in sys.modules:
-                attributes = {
-                    "__name__": name,
-                    "__getattribute__": _mock_get,
-                    "_unloaded": True,
-                    "_lock": RLock(),
-                }
-                parents = (ModuleType,)
-                klass = type.__new__(cls, "module", parents, attributes)
-                sys.modules[name] = klass(name)
-                if "." in name:  # Also ensure the parent exists
-                    _LazyModule(name.rsplit(".", 1)[0])
-            return sys.modules[name]
-
-
-class LazyImporter:
-    """An importer for modules that are loaded lazily.
-
-    This inserts itself into :py:data:`sys.meta_path`, storing a dictionary of
-    :py:class:`_LazyModule`\ s (which is added to with :py:meth:`new`).
-    """
-
-    def __init__(self):
-        self._modules = {}
-        sys.meta_path.append(self)
-
-    def new(self, name):
-        module = _LazyModule(name)
-        self._modules[name] = module
-        return module
-
-    def find_module(self, fullname, path=None):
-        if fullname in self._modules and fullname not in sys.modules:
-            return self
-
-    def load_module(self, fullname):
-        return self._modules.pop(fullname)
diff --git a/src/earwigbot/wiki/copyvios/__init__.py b/src/earwigbot/wiki/copyvios/__init__.py
index dd8eca8..4602e28 100644
--- a/src/earwigbot/wiki/copyvios/__init__.py
+++ b/src/earwigbot/wiki/copyvios/__init__.py
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-# Copyright (C) 2009-2016 Ben Kurtovic <ben.kurtovic@gmail.com>
+# Copyright (C) 2009-2024 Ben Kurtovic <ben.kurtovic@gmail.com>
 #
 # Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining a copy
 # of this software and associated documentation files (the "Software"), to deal
@@ -18,7 +18,7 @@
 # OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE SOFTWARE OR THE USE OR OTHER DEALINGS IN THE
 # SOFTWARE.
 
-from time import sleep
+import time
 from urllib.request import build_opener
 
 from earwigbot import exceptions
@@ -73,7 +73,7 @@ class CopyvioMixIn:
         for dep in klass.requirements():
             try:
                 __import__(dep).__name__
-            except (ImportError, AttributeError):
+            except (ModuleNotFoundError, AttributeError):
                 e = "Missing a required dependency ({}) for the {} engine"
                 e = e.format(dep, engine)
                 raise exceptions.UnsupportedSearchEngineError(e)
@@ -173,7 +173,7 @@ class CopyvioMixIn:
                 self._logger.debug(log.format(self.title, searcher.name, chunk))
                 workspace.enqueue(searcher.search(chunk))
                 num_queries += 1
-                sleep(1)
+                time.sleep(1)
 
         workspace.wait()
         result = workspace.get_result(num_queries)
diff --git a/src/earwigbot/wiki/copyvios/exclusions.py b/src/earwigbot/wiki/copyvios/exclusions.py
index 8e8994a..6634cf0 100644
--- a/src/earwigbot/wiki/copyvios/exclusions.py
+++ b/src/earwigbot/wiki/copyvios/exclusions.py
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-# Copyright (C) 2009-2016 Ben Kurtovic <ben.kurtovic@gmail.com>
+# Copyright (C) 2009-2024 Ben Kurtovic <ben.kurtovic@gmail.com>
 #
 # Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining a copy
 # of this software and associated documentation files (the "Software"), to deal
@@ -19,10 +19,10 @@
 # SOFTWARE.
 
 import re
-import sqlite3 as sqlite
-from threading import Lock
-from time import time
-from urllib.parse import urlparse
+import sqlite3
+import threading
+import time
+import urllib.parse
 
 from earwigbot import exceptions
 
@@ -60,7 +60,7 @@ class ExclusionsDB:
         self._sitesdb = sitesdb
         self._dbfile = dbfile
         self._logger = logger
-        self._db_access_lock = Lock()
+        self._db_access_lock = threading.Lock()
 
     def __repr__(self):
         """Return the canonical string representation of the ExclusionsDB."""
@@ -84,7 +84,7 @@ class ExclusionsDB:
             for page in pages:
                 sources.append((sitename, page))
 
-        with sqlite.connect(self._dbfile) as conn:
+        with sqlite3.connect(self._dbfile) as conn:
             conn.executescript(script)
             conn.executemany(query, sources)
 
@@ -139,7 +139,7 @@ class ExclusionsDB:
             site = self._sitesdb.get_site("enwiki")
         else:
             site = self._sitesdb.get_site(sitename)
-        with self._db_access_lock, sqlite.connect(self._dbfile) as conn:
+        with self._db_access_lock, sqlite3.connect(self._dbfile) as conn:
             urls = set()
             for (source,) in conn.execute(query1, (sitename,)):
                 urls |= self._load_source(site, source)
@@ -150,17 +150,17 @@ class ExclusionsDB:
                     conn.execute(query3, (sitename, url))
             conn.executemany(query4, [(sitename, url) for url in urls])
             if conn.execute(query5, (sitename,)).fetchone():
-                conn.execute(query6, (int(time()), sitename))
+                conn.execute(query6, (int(time.time()), sitename))
             else:
-                conn.execute(query7, (sitename, int(time())))
+                conn.execute(query7, (sitename, int(time.time())))
 
     def _get_last_update(self, sitename):
         """Return the UNIX timestamp of the last time the db was updated."""
         query = "SELECT update_time FROM updates WHERE update_sitename = ?"
-        with self._db_access_lock, sqlite.connect(self._dbfile) as conn:
+        with self._db_access_lock, sqlite3.connect(self._dbfile) as conn:
             try:
                 result = conn.execute(query, (sitename,)).fetchone()
-            except sqlite.OperationalError:
+            except sqlite3.OperationalError:
                 self._create()
                 return 0
             return result[0] if result else 0
@@ -174,7 +174,7 @@ class ExclusionsDB:
         after 12 hours.
         """
         max_staleness = 60 * 60 * (12 if sitename == "all" else 48)
-        time_since_update = int(time() - self._get_last_update(sitename))
+        time_since_update = int(time.time() - self._get_last_update(sitename))
         if force or time_since_update > max_staleness:
             log = "Updating stale database: {0} (last updated {1} seconds ago)"
             self._logger.info(log.format(sitename, time_since_update))
@@ -191,10 +191,10 @@ class ExclusionsDB:
         Return ``True`` if the URL is in the database, or ``False`` otherwise.
         """
         normalized = re.sub(_RE_STRIP_PREFIX, "", url.lower())
-        parsed = urlparse(url.lower())
+        parsed = urllib.parse.urlparse(url.lower())
         query = """SELECT exclusion_url FROM exclusions
                    WHERE exclusion_sitename = ? OR exclusion_sitename = ?"""
-        with self._db_access_lock, sqlite.connect(self._dbfile) as conn:
+        with self._db_access_lock, sqlite3.connect(self._dbfile) as conn:
             for (excl,) in conn.execute(query, (sitename, "all")):
                 excl = excl.lower()
                 if excl.startswith("*."):
@@ -231,7 +231,7 @@ class ExclusionsDB:
         certain HTML tag attributes (``"href"`` and ``"src"``).
         """
         site = page.site
-        path = urlparse(page.url).path
+        path = urllib.parse.urlparse(page.url).path
         roots = [site.domain]
         scripts = ["index.php", "load.php", "api.php"]
 
diff --git a/src/earwigbot/wiki/copyvios/markov.py b/src/earwigbot/wiki/copyvios/markov.py
index 7b3c486..5cf7a7f 100644
--- a/src/earwigbot/wiki/copyvios/markov.py
+++ b/src/earwigbot/wiki/copyvios/markov.py
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-# Copyright (C) 2009-2015 Ben Kurtovic <ben.kurtovic@gmail.com>
+# Copyright (C) 2009-2024 Ben Kurtovic <ben.kurtovic@gmail.com>
 #
 # Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining a copy
 # of this software and associated documentation files (the "Software"), to deal
@@ -18,7 +18,7 @@
 # OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE SOFTWARE OR THE USE OR OTHER DEALINGS IN THE
 # SOFTWARE.
 
-from re import UNICODE, sub
+import re
 
 __all__ = ["EMPTY", "EMPTY_INTERSECTION", "MarkovChain", "MarkovChainIntersection"]
 
@@ -38,7 +38,7 @@ class MarkovChain:
     def _build(self):
         """Build and return the Markov chain from the input text."""
         padding = self.degree - 1
-        words = sub(r"[^\w\s-]", "", self.text.lower(), flags=UNICODE).split()
+        words = re.sub(r"[^\w\s-]", "", self.text.lower(), flags=re.UNICODE).split()
         words = ([self.START] * padding) + words + ([self.END] * padding)
         chain = {}
 
diff --git a/src/earwigbot/wiki/copyvios/parsers.py b/src/earwigbot/wiki/copyvios/parsers.py
index 4d3720c..09553e6 100644
--- a/src/earwigbot/wiki/copyvios/parsers.py
+++ b/src/earwigbot/wiki/copyvios/parsers.py
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-# Copyright (C) 2009-2019 Ben Kurtovic <ben.kurtovic@gmail.com>
+# Copyright (C) 2009-2024 Ben Kurtovic <ben.kurtovic@gmail.com>
 #
 # Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining a copy
 # of this software and associated documentation files (the "Software"), to deal
@@ -18,24 +18,17 @@
 # OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE SOFTWARE OR THE USE OR OTHER DEALINGS IN THE
 # SOFTWARE.
 
+import io
 import json
+import os.path
 import re
 import urllib.parse
 import urllib.request
-from io import StringIO
-from os import path
 
 import mwparserfromhell
 
-from earwigbot import importer
 from earwigbot.exceptions import ParserExclusionError, ParserRedirectError
 
-bs4 = importer.new("bs4")
-nltk = importer.new("nltk")
-converter = importer.new("pdfminer.converter")
-pdfinterp = importer.new("pdfminer.pdfinterp")
-pdfpage = importer.new("pdfminer.pdfpage")
-
 __all__ = ["ArticleTextParser", "get_parser"]
 
 
@@ -101,9 +94,10 @@ class ArticleTextParser(_BaseTextParser):
 
     def _get_tokenizer(self):
         """Return a NLTK punctuation tokenizer for the article's language."""
+        import nltk
 
         def datafile(lang):
-            return "file:" + path.join(
+            return "file:" + os.path.join(
                 self._args["nltk_dir"], "tokenizers", "punkt", lang + ".pickle"
             )
 
@@ -213,11 +207,11 @@ class ArticleTextParser(_BaseTextParser):
             elif len(chunks) % 5 == 1:
                 chunk = sentences.pop()  # Pop from end
             elif len(chunks) % 5 == 2:
-                chunk = sentences.pop(len(sentences) / 2)  # Pop from Q2
+                chunk = sentences.pop(len(sentences) // 2)  # Pop from Q2
             elif len(chunks) % 5 == 3:
-                chunk = sentences.pop(len(sentences) / 4)  # Pop from Q1
+                chunk = sentences.pop(len(sentences) // 4)  # Pop from Q1
             else:
-                chunk = sentences.pop(3 * len(sentences) / 4)  # Pop from Q3
+                chunk = sentences.pop(3 * len(sentences) // 4)  # Pop from Q3
             chunks.append(chunk)
         return chunks
 
@@ -256,6 +250,8 @@ class _HTMLParser(_BaseTextParser):
     @staticmethod
     def _get_soup(text):
         """Parse some text using BeautifulSoup."""
+        import bs4
+
         try:
             return bs4.BeautifulSoup(text, "lxml")
         except ValueError:
@@ -263,6 +259,7 @@ class _HTMLParser(_BaseTextParser):
 
     def _clean_soup(self, soup):
         """Clean a BeautifulSoup tree of invisible tags."""
+        import bs4
 
         def is_comment(text):
             return isinstance(text, bs4.element.Comment)
@@ -353,21 +350,23 @@ class _PDFParser(_BaseTextParser):
 
     def parse(self):
         """Return extracted text from the PDF."""
-        output = StringIO()
+        from pdfminer import converter, pdfinterp, pdfpage
+
+        output = io.StringIO()
         manager = pdfinterp.PDFResourceManager()
         conv = converter.TextConverter(manager, output)
         interp = pdfinterp.PDFPageInterpreter(manager, conv)
 
         try:
-            pages = pdfpage.PDFPage.get_pages(StringIO(self.text))
+            pages = pdfpage.PDFPage.get_pages(io.StringIO(self.text))
             for page in pages:
                 interp.process_page(page)
         except Exception:  # pylint: disable=broad-except
-            return output.getvalue().decode("utf8")
+            return output.getvalue()
         finally:
             conv.close()
 
-        value = output.getvalue().decode("utf8")
+        value = output.getvalue()
         for orig, new in self.substitutions:
             value = value.replace(orig, new)
         return re.sub(r"\n\n+", "\n", value).strip()
@@ -380,7 +379,9 @@ class _PlainTextParser(_BaseTextParser):
 
     def parse(self):
         """Unicode-ify and strip whitespace from the plain text document."""
-        converted = bs4.UnicodeDammit(self.text).unicode_markup
+        from bs4.dammit import UnicodeDammit
+
+        converted = UnicodeDammit(self.text).unicode_markup
         return converted.strip() if converted else ""
 
 
diff --git a/src/earwigbot/wiki/copyvios/result.py b/src/earwigbot/wiki/copyvios/result.py
index 937bad3..75436c7 100644
--- a/src/earwigbot/wiki/copyvios/result.py
+++ b/src/earwigbot/wiki/copyvios/result.py
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-# Copyright (C) 2009-2015 Ben Kurtovic <ben.kurtovic@gmail.com>
+# Copyright (C) 2009-2024 Ben Kurtovic <ben.kurtovic@gmail.com>
 #
 # Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining a copy
 # of this software and associated documentation files (the "Software"), to deal
diff --git a/src/earwigbot/wiki/copyvios/search.py b/src/earwigbot/wiki/copyvios/search.py
index 1a7d47c..bc5f9fa 100644
--- a/src/earwigbot/wiki/copyvios/search.py
+++ b/src/earwigbot/wiki/copyvios/search.py
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-# Copyright (C) 2009-2016 Ben Kurtovic <ben.kurtovic@gmail.com>
+# Copyright (C) 2009-2024 Ben Kurtovic <ben.kurtovic@gmail.com>
 #
 # Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining a copy
 # of this software and associated documentation files (the "Software"), to deal
@@ -18,18 +18,15 @@
 # OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE SOFTWARE OR THE USE OR OTHER DEALINGS IN THE
 # SOFTWARE.
 
+import re
 from gzip import GzipFile
 from io import StringIO
 from json import loads
-from re import sub as re_sub
 from urllib.error import URLError
 from urllib.parse import urlencode
 
-from earwigbot import importer
 from earwigbot.exceptions import SearchQueryError
 
-lxml = importer.new("lxml")
-
 __all__ = [
     "BingSearchEngine",
     "GoogleSearchEngine",
@@ -104,7 +101,7 @@ class BingSearchEngine(_BaseSearchEngine):
         auth = (key + ":" + key).encode("base64").replace("\n", "")
         self.opener.addheaders.append(("Authorization", "Basic " + auth))
 
-    def search(self, query):
+    def search(self, query: str) -> list[str]:
         """Do a Bing web search for *query*.
 
         Returns a list of URLs ranked by relevance (as determined by Bing).
@@ -142,7 +139,7 @@ class GoogleSearchEngine(_BaseSearchEngine):
 
     name = "Google"
 
-    def search(self, query):
+    def search(self, query: str) -> list[str]:
         """Do a Google web search for *query*.
 
         Returns a list of URLs ranked by relevance (as determined by Google).
@@ -153,7 +150,7 @@ class GoogleSearchEngine(_BaseSearchEngine):
         params = {
             "cx": self.cred["id"],
             "key": self.cred["key"],
-            "q": '"' + query.replace('"', "").encode("utf8") + '"',
+            "q": '"' + query.replace('"', "") + '"',
             "alt": "json",
             "num": str(self.count),
             "safe": "off",
@@ -183,15 +180,17 @@ class YandexSearchEngine(_BaseSearchEngine):
     def requirements():
         return ["lxml.etree"]
 
-    def search(self, query):
+    def search(self, query: str) -> list[str]:
         """Do a Yandex web search for *query*.
 
         Returns a list of URLs ranked by relevance (as determined by Yandex).
         Raises :py:exc:`~earwigbot.exceptions.SearchQueryError` on errors.
         """
+        import lxml.etree
+
         domain = self.cred.get("proxy", "yandex.com")
         url = f"https://{domain}/search/xml?"
-        query = re_sub(r"[^a-zA-Z0-9 ]", "", query).encode("utf8")
+        query = re.sub(r"[^a-zA-Z0-9 ]", "", query)
         params = {
             "user": self.cred["user"],
             "key": self.cred["key"],
@@ -205,7 +204,7 @@ class YandexSearchEngine(_BaseSearchEngine):
         result = self._open(url + urlencode(params))
 
         try:
-            data = lxml.etree.fromstring(result)
+            data = lxml.etree.fromstring(result)  # type: ignore
             return [elem.text for elem in data.xpath(".//url")]
         except lxml.etree.Error as exc:
             raise SearchQueryError("Yandex XML parse error: " + str(exc))
diff --git a/src/earwigbot/wiki/site.py b/src/earwigbot/wiki/site.py
index e8ca6da..cdb5f62 100644
--- a/src/earwigbot/wiki/site.py
+++ b/src/earwigbot/wiki/site.py
@@ -35,7 +35,7 @@ import requests
 from requests.cookies import RequestsCookieJar
 from requests_oauthlib import OAuth1
 
-from earwigbot import exceptions, importer
+from earwigbot import exceptions
 from earwigbot.wiki import constants
 from earwigbot.wiki.category import Category
 from earwigbot.wiki.constants import Service
@@ -47,7 +47,11 @@ if typing.TYPE_CHECKING:
     import pymysql.cursors
     from pymysql.cursors import Cursor
 else:
-    pymysql = importer.new("pymysql")
+    try:
+        import pymysql
+        import pymysql.cursors
+    except ModuleNotFoundError:
+        pymysql = None
 
 __all__ = ["Site"]
 
@@ -711,11 +715,11 @@ class Site:
         if "autoreconnect" not in args:
             args["autoreconnect"] = True
 
-        try:
-            return pymysql.connect(**args)
-        except ImportError:
-            e = "SQL querying requires the 'pymysql' package: https://pymysql.readthedocs.io/"
-            raise exceptions.SQLError(e)
+        if pymysql is None:
+            raise exceptions.SQLError(
+                "SQL querying requires the 'pymysql' package: https://pymysql.readthedocs.io/"
+            )
+        return pymysql.connect(**args)
 
     def _get_service_order(self) -> list[Service]:
         """
@@ -731,6 +735,10 @@ class Site:
         lag is also very high. self.SERVICE_SQL will not be included in the list if we
         cannot form a proper SQL connection.
         """
+        if pymysql is None:
+            self._sql_info_cache["usable"] = False
+            return [Service.API]
+
         now = time.time()
         if now - self._sql_info_cache["lastcheck"] > 120:
             self._sql_info_cache["lastcheck"] = now
@@ -739,7 +747,7 @@ class Site:
                     self._sql_info_cache["replag"] = sqllag = self.get_replag()
                 except pymysql.Error as exc:
                     raise exceptions.SQLError(str(exc))
-            except (exceptions.SQLError, ImportError):
+            except exceptions.SQLError:
                 self._sql_info_cache["usable"] = False
                 return [Service.API]
             self._sql_info_cache["usable"] = True