diff --git a/examples/01-web/04-twitter.py b/examples/01-web/04-twitter.py
index 9ff29bdc..20e81894 100644
--- a/examples/01-web/04-twitter.py
+++ b/examples/01-web/04-twitter.py
@@ -22,7 +22,7 @@
     # The pd() function returns the parent directory of this script + any given path.
     table = Datasheet.load(pd("cool.csv"))
     index = set(table.columns[0])
-except:
+except Exception:
     table = Datasheet()
     index = set()
 
diff --git a/examples/01-web/11-facebook.py b/examples/01-web/11-facebook.py
index eb774313..2cd6b873 100644
--- a/examples/01-web/11-facebook.py
+++ b/examples/01-web/11-facebook.py
@@ -30,7 +30,7 @@
     # With an index on the first column we can quickly check if an id already exists.
     table = Datasheet.load(pd("opinions.csv"))
     index = set(table.columns[0])
-except:
+except Exception:
     table = Datasheet()
     index = set()
 
diff --git a/examples/06-graph/05-trends.py b/examples/06-graph/05-trends.py
index e05f7319..b4e41de8 100644
--- a/examples/06-graph/05-trends.py
+++ b/examples/06-graph/05-trends.py
@@ -33,7 +33,7 @@
             # Exclude common phrases such as "this is the new thing".
             if A and B and A not in ("it", "this", "here", "what", "why", "where"):
                 comparisons.append((A, B))
-        except:
+        except Exception:
             pass
 
 g = Graph()
diff --git a/pattern/__init__.py b/pattern/__init__.py
index 2cef34ee..f7c8cf0d 100644
--- a/pattern/__init__.py
+++ b/pattern/__init__.py
@@ -56,5 +56,5 @@
 # (instead of pattern.text.en, pattern.text.es, ...)
 try:
     __path__.append(os.path.join(__path__[0], "text"))
-except:
+except Exception:
     pass
diff --git a/pattern/db/__init__.py b/pattern/db/__init__.py
index a6fd0afe..03e999aa 100644
--- a/pattern/db/__init__.py
+++ b/pattern/db/__init__.py
@@ -49,7 +49,7 @@
 
 try:
     MODULE = os.path.dirname(os.path.realpath(__file__))
-except:
+except Exception:
     MODULE = ""
 
 from pattern.helpers import encode_string, decode_string
@@ -259,12 +259,12 @@ def date(*args, **kwargs):
             args = (args[0].decode("utf-8"),)
         try:
             d = Date.fromtimestamp(mktime_tz(parsedate_tz(args[0])))
-        except:
+        except Exception:
             for format in ("format" in kwargs and [kwargs["format"]] or []) + date_formats:
                 try:
                     d = Date.strptime(args[0], format)
                     break
-                except:
+                except Exception:
                     pass
         if d is None:
             raise DateError("unknown date format for %s" % repr(args[0]))
@@ -334,7 +334,7 @@ def encrypt_string(s, key=""):
     for i in range(len(s)):
         try:
             a.append(chr(ord(s[i]) + ord(key[i % len(key)]) % 256).encode("latin-1"))
-        except:
+        except Exception:
             raise EncryptionError()
     s = b"".join(a)
     s = base64.urlsafe_b64encode(s)
@@ -351,7 +351,7 @@ def decrypt_string(s, key=""):
     for i in range(len(s)):
         try:
             a.append(chr(ord(s[i]) - ord(key[i % len(key)]) % 256))
-        except:
+        except Exception:
             raise DecryptionError()
     s = "".join(a)
     s = decode_utf8(s)
@@ -456,7 +456,7 @@ def cast(x, f, default=None):
         f = lambda x: int(round(float(x)))
     try:
         return f(x)
-    except:
+    except Exception:
         return default
 
 #### LIST FUNCTIONS ################################################################################
@@ -864,7 +864,7 @@ def _delete(self):
     def __delete__(self):
         try:
             self.disconnect()
-        except:
+        except Exception:
             pass
 
 #### FIELD #########################################################################################
@@ -2154,7 +2154,7 @@ def insert(self, i, row, default=None, **kwargs):
         try:
             # Copy the row (fast + safe for generators and DatasheetColumns).
             row = [v for v in row]
-        except:
+        except Exception:
             raise TypeError("Datasheet.insert(x): x must be list")
         list.insert(self, i, row)
         m = max((len(self) > 1 and self._m or 0, len(row)))
@@ -2461,7 +2461,7 @@ def insert(self, j, column, default=None, field=None):
         """
         try:
             column = [v for v in column]
-        except:
+        except Exception:
             raise TypeError("Datasheet.columns.insert(x): x must be list")
         column = column + [default] * (len(self._datasheet) - len(column))
         if len(column) > len(self._datasheet):
diff --git a/pattern/graph/__init__.py b/pattern/graph/__init__.py
index 85411b8e..e383b02b 100644
--- a/pattern/graph/__init__.py
+++ b/pattern/graph/__init__.py
@@ -29,7 +29,7 @@
 
 try:
     MODULE = os.path.dirname(os.path.realpath(__file__))
-except:
+except Exception:
     MODULE = ""
 
 # float("inf") doesn't work on windows.
diff --git a/pattern/graph/commonsense.py b/pattern/graph/commonsense.py
index a603e664..c4ee4257 100644
--- a/pattern/graph/commonsense.py
+++ b/pattern/graph/commonsense.py
@@ -36,7 +36,7 @@
 
 try:
     MODULE = os.path.dirname(os.path.realpath(__file__))
-except:
+except Exception:
     MODULE = ""
 
 if sys.version > "3":
diff --git a/pattern/helpers.py b/pattern/helpers.py
index 3d1f04d4..ffa2d136 100644
--- a/pattern/helpers.py
+++ b/pattern/helpers.py
@@ -21,7 +21,7 @@ def decode_string(v, encoding="utf-8"):
         for e in encoding:
             try:
                 return v.decode(*e)
-            except:
+            except Exception:
                 pass
         return v
     return str(v)
@@ -36,7 +36,7 @@ def encode_string(v, encoding="utf-8"):
         for e in encoding:
             try:
                 return v.encode(*e)
-            except:
+            except Exception:
                 pass
         return v
     return bytes(v)
diff --git a/pattern/metrics.py b/pattern/metrics.py
index d3abca0a..69f0d7e9 100644
--- a/pattern/metrics.py
+++ b/pattern/metrics.py
@@ -93,7 +93,7 @@ def run():
         raise TypeError("%s is not a function" % type(function))
     try:
         import cProfile as profile
-    except:
+    except Exception:
         import profile
     import pstats
     import os
diff --git a/pattern/server/__init__.py b/pattern/server/__init__.py
index d310556b..c7d490f7 100644
--- a/pattern/server/__init__.py
+++ b/pattern/server/__init__.py
@@ -69,7 +69,7 @@
 try:
     # Folder that contains pattern.server.
     MODULE = os.path.dirname(os.path.realpath(__file__))
-except:
+except Exception:
     MODULE = ""
 
 try:
@@ -79,7 +79,7 @@
     f = inspect.getouterframes(f)[-1][0]
     f = f.f_globals["__file__"]
     SCRIPT = os.path.dirname(os.path.abspath(f))
-except:
+except Exception:
     SCRIPT = os.getcwd()
 
 
@@ -95,7 +95,7 @@ def chown(path, owner=None):
                     grp.getgrnam(y).gr_gid if not isinstance(y, int) else y)
             os.chown(path, x, y)
             return True
-        except:
+        except Exception:
             return False
 
 # On Linux + Apache mod_wsgi, the user that executes the Python script is "www-data".
@@ -339,7 +339,7 @@ def __repr__(self):
     def __del__(self):
         try:
             self.disconnect()
-        except:
+        except Exception:
             pass
 
     @property
@@ -1019,7 +1019,7 @@ def _cast(self, v):
             return ""
         try: # (bool, int, float, object.__unicode__)
             return str(v)
-        except:
+        except Exception:
             return encode_entities(repr(v))
 
     @cp.expose
@@ -1327,7 +1327,7 @@ def stop(self):
         """
         try:
             atexit._exithandlers.remove((self.stop, (), {}))
-        except:
+        except Exception:
             pass
         cp.engine.exit()
         sys.stdout = sys.__stdout__
diff --git a/pattern/text/__init__.py b/pattern/text/__init__.py
index aa77af0b..81afdb38 100644
--- a/pattern/text/__init__.py
+++ b/pattern/text/__init__.py
@@ -36,7 +36,7 @@
 
 try:
     MODULE = os.path.dirname(os.path.realpath(__file__))
-except:
+except Exception:
     MODULE = ""
 
 from pattern.text.tree import Tree, Text, Sentence, Slice, Chunk, PNPChunk, Chink, Word, table
diff --git a/pattern/text/de/__init__.py b/pattern/text/de/__init__.py
index 4d4f073b..f1240412 100644
--- a/pattern/text/de/__init__.py
+++ b/pattern/text/de/__init__.py
@@ -20,7 +20,7 @@
 
 try:
     MODULE = os.path.dirname(os.path.realpath(__file__))
-except:
+except Exception:
     MODULE = ""
 
 sys.path.insert(0, os.path.join(MODULE, "..", "..", "..", ".."))
diff --git a/pattern/text/de/inflect.py b/pattern/text/de/inflect.py
index b5c76b34..b388b986 100644
--- a/pattern/text/de/inflect.py
+++ b/pattern/text/de/inflect.py
@@ -32,7 +32,7 @@
 
 try:
     MODULE = os.path.dirname(os.path.realpath(__file__))
-except:
+except Exception:
     MODULE = ""
 
 sys.path.insert(0, os.path.join(MODULE, "..", "..", "..", ".."))
diff --git a/pattern/text/en/__init__.py b/pattern/text/en/__init__.py
index 31d548f7..abece17d 100644
--- a/pattern/text/en/__init__.py
+++ b/pattern/text/en/__init__.py
@@ -20,7 +20,7 @@
 
 try:
     MODULE = os.path.dirname(os.path.realpath(__file__))
-except:
+except Exception:
     MODULE = ""
 
 sys.path.insert(0, os.path.join(MODULE, "..", "..", "..", ".."))
diff --git a/pattern/text/en/inflect.py b/pattern/text/en/inflect.py
index e4d81469..16b9a2e8 100644
--- a/pattern/text/en/inflect.py
+++ b/pattern/text/en/inflect.py
@@ -29,7 +29,7 @@
 
 try:
     MODULE = os.path.dirname(os.path.realpath(__file__))
-except:
+except Exception:
     MODULE = ""
 
 sys.path.insert(0, os.path.join(MODULE, "..", "..", "..", ".."))
diff --git a/pattern/text/en/inflect_quantify.py b/pattern/text/en/inflect_quantify.py
index 6aa9483d..94c5bb18 100644
--- a/pattern/text/en/inflect_quantify.py
+++ b/pattern/text/en/inflect_quantify.py
@@ -22,7 +22,7 @@
 
 try:
     MODULE = os.path.dirname(os.path.realpath(__file__))
-except:
+except Exception:
     MODULE = ""
 
 sys.path.insert(0, os.path.join(MODULE, "..", "..", "..", ".."))
@@ -155,7 +155,7 @@ def number(s):
             # Words that are not in any dicionary may be numbers (e.g. "2.5" => 2.5).
             try:
                 i += "." in x and float(x) or int(x)
-            except:
+            except Exception:
                 pass
     return n + i + f
 
@@ -267,7 +267,7 @@ def approximate(word, amount=1, plural={}):
     """
     try:
         p = pluralize(word, custom=plural)
-    except:
+    except Exception:
         raise TypeError("can't pluralize %s (not a string)" % word.__class__.__name__)
     # Anything up to 200.
     if amount == 0:
@@ -331,7 +331,7 @@ def count(*args, **kwargs):
             try:
                 count.setdefault(word, 0)
                 count[word] += 1
-            except:
+            except Exception:
                 raise TypeError("can't count %s (not a string)" % word.__class__.__name__)
     # Create an iterator of (count, item) tuples, sorted highest-first.
     s = [(count[word], word) for word in count]
@@ -394,7 +394,7 @@ def reflect(object, quantify=True, replace=readable_types):
             for v in object.__dict__.values():
                 try:
                     types.append(str(v.__classname__))
-                except:
+                except Exception:
                     # Not a class after all (some stuff like ufunc in Numeric).
                     types.append(_type(v))
     # Lists and tuples can consist of several types of objects.
diff --git a/pattern/text/en/wordlist/__init__.py b/pattern/text/en/wordlist/__init__.py
index 047a805f..91cb6dfa 100644
--- a/pattern/text/en/wordlist/__init__.py
+++ b/pattern/text/en/wordlist/__init__.py
@@ -19,7 +19,7 @@
 
 try:
     MODULE = os.path.dirname(os.path.realpath(__file__))
-except:
+except Exception:
     MODULE = ""
 
 
diff --git a/pattern/text/en/wordnet/__init__.py b/pattern/text/en/wordnet/__init__.py
index 022285fd..e84ecf9d 100644
--- a/pattern/text/en/wordnet/__init__.py
+++ b/pattern/text/en/wordnet/__init__.py
@@ -37,7 +37,7 @@
 
 try:
     MODULE = os.path.dirname(os.path.realpath(__file__))
-except:
+except Exception:
     MODULE = ""
 
 # Path to WordNet /dict folder.
@@ -98,7 +98,7 @@ def normalize(word):
     if not isinstance(word, str):
         try:
             word = word.encode("utf-8", "ignore")
-        except:
+        except Exception:
             pass
     for k, v in DIACRITICS.items():
         for v in v:
@@ -154,7 +154,7 @@ def __getitem__(self, k):
         for pos in ("n", "v", "a", "r"):
             try:
                 synset = wn._synset_from_pos_and_offset(pos, k)
-            except:
+            except Exception:
                 pass
             if synset:
                 return synset
@@ -429,7 +429,7 @@ def map32(id, pos=NOUN):
 
 try:
     from pattern.text import Sentiment
-except:
+except Exception:
     class Sentiment(object):
         PLACEHOLDER = True
 
@@ -455,7 +455,7 @@ def synset(self, id, pos=ADJECTIVE):
             s = wn._synset_from_pos_and_offset(pos, id)
             lemma = s.lemma_names()[0]
             return self[lemma]
-        except:
+        except Exception:
             pass
 
         return None
diff --git a/pattern/text/es/__init__.py b/pattern/text/es/__init__.py
index e0d2e70f..68757def 100644
--- a/pattern/text/es/__init__.py
+++ b/pattern/text/es/__init__.py
@@ -20,7 +20,7 @@
 
 try:
     MODULE = os.path.dirname(os.path.realpath(__file__))
-except:
+except Exception:
     MODULE = ""
 
 sys.path.insert(0, os.path.join(MODULE, "..", "..", "..", ".."))
diff --git a/pattern/text/es/inflect.py b/pattern/text/es/inflect.py
index a07c230c..cac1e86f 100644
--- a/pattern/text/es/inflect.py
+++ b/pattern/text/es/inflect.py
@@ -30,7 +30,7 @@
 
 try:
     MODULE = os.path.dirname(os.path.realpath(__file__))
-except:
+except Exception:
     MODULE = ""
 
 sys.path.insert(0, os.path.join(MODULE, "..", "..", "..", ".."))
diff --git a/pattern/text/fr/__init__.py b/pattern/text/fr/__init__.py
index fd1e5bbf..4bca4729 100644
--- a/pattern/text/fr/__init__.py
+++ b/pattern/text/fr/__init__.py
@@ -21,7 +21,7 @@
 
 try:
     MODULE = os.path.dirname(os.path.realpath(__file__))
-except:
+except Exception:
     MODULE = ""
 
 sys.path.insert(0, os.path.join(MODULE, "..", "..", "..", ".."))
diff --git a/pattern/text/fr/inflect.py b/pattern/text/fr/inflect.py
index f49c01f6..730ecd1c 100644
--- a/pattern/text/fr/inflect.py
+++ b/pattern/text/fr/inflect.py
@@ -30,7 +30,7 @@
 
 try:
     MODULE = os.path.dirname(os.path.realpath(__file__))
-except:
+except Exception:
     MODULE = ""
 
 sys.path.insert(0, os.path.join(MODULE, "..", "..", "..", ".."))
diff --git a/pattern/text/it/__init__.py b/pattern/text/it/__init__.py
index 1e4bfc3a..a4c18cb8 100644
--- a/pattern/text/it/__init__.py
+++ b/pattern/text/it/__init__.py
@@ -20,7 +20,7 @@
 
 try:
     MODULE = os.path.dirname(os.path.realpath(__file__))
-except:
+except Exception:
     MODULE = ""
 
 sys.path.insert(0, os.path.join(MODULE, "..", "..", "..", ".."))
diff --git a/pattern/text/it/inflect.py b/pattern/text/it/inflect.py
index 0e17ec5c..62c70d97 100644
--- a/pattern/text/it/inflect.py
+++ b/pattern/text/it/inflect.py
@@ -32,7 +32,7 @@
 
 try:
     MODULE = os.path.dirname(os.path.realpath(__file__))
-except:
+except Exception:
     MODULE = ""
 
 sys.path.insert(0, os.path.join(MODULE, "..", "..", "..", ".."))
diff --git a/pattern/text/nl/__init__.py b/pattern/text/nl/__init__.py
index 869923f0..3fd13a23 100644
--- a/pattern/text/nl/__init__.py
+++ b/pattern/text/nl/__init__.py
@@ -20,7 +20,7 @@
 
 try:
     MODULE = os.path.dirname(os.path.realpath(__file__))
-except:
+except Exception:
     MODULE = ""
 
 sys.path.insert(0, os.path.join(MODULE, "..", "..", "..", ".."))
diff --git a/pattern/text/nl/inflect.py b/pattern/text/nl/inflect.py
index ea02e139..8b3117f3 100644
--- a/pattern/text/nl/inflect.py
+++ b/pattern/text/nl/inflect.py
@@ -31,7 +31,7 @@
 
 try:
     MODULE = os.path.dirname(os.path.realpath(__file__))
-except:
+except Exception:
     MODULE = ""
 
 sys.path.insert(0, os.path.join(MODULE, "..", "..", "..", ".."))
diff --git a/pattern/text/ru/__init__.py b/pattern/text/ru/__init__.py
index 51c5604e..6b26e012 100644
--- a/pattern/text/ru/__init__.py
+++ b/pattern/text/ru/__init__.py
@@ -20,7 +20,7 @@
 
 try:
     MODULE = os.path.dirname(os.path.realpath(__file__))
-except:
+except Exception:
     MODULE = ""
 
 sys.path.insert(0, os.path.join(MODULE, "..", "..", "..", ".."))
diff --git a/pattern/text/ru/wordlist/__init__.py b/pattern/text/ru/wordlist/__init__.py
index 01e5b6dc..84a2cd44 100644
--- a/pattern/text/ru/wordlist/__init__.py
+++ b/pattern/text/ru/wordlist/__init__.py
@@ -19,7 +19,7 @@
 
 try:
     MODULE = os.path.dirname(os.path.realpath(__file__))
-except:
+except Exception:
     MODULE = ""
 
 
diff --git a/pattern/text/search.py b/pattern/text/search.py
index 6efd5199..bd70ae00 100644
--- a/pattern/text/search.py
+++ b/pattern/text/search.py
@@ -124,7 +124,7 @@ def _match(string, pattern):
         if WILDCARD in p[1:-1]:
             p = p.split(WILDCARD)
             return string.startswith(p[0]) and string.endswith(p[-1])
-    except:
+    except Exception:
         # For performance, calling isinstance() last is 10% faster for plain strings.
         if isinstance(p, regexp):
             return p.search(string) is not None
@@ -176,7 +176,7 @@ def product(*args, **kwargs):
 
 try:
     from itertools import product
-except:
+except Exception:
     pass
 
 
@@ -450,10 +450,10 @@ def __init__(self, wordnet=None):
         if wordnet is None:
             try:
                 from pattern.en import wordnet
-            except:
+            except Exception:
                 try:
                     from .en import wordnet
-                except:
+                except Exception:
                     pass
         Classifier.__init__(self, self._parents, self._children)
         self.wordnet = wordnet
@@ -461,13 +461,13 @@ def __init__(self, wordnet=None):
     def _children(self, word, pos="NN"):
         try:
             return [w.synonyms[0] for w in self.wordnet.synsets(word, pos[:2])[0].hyponyms()]
-        except:
+        except Exception:
             pass
 
     def _parents(self, word, pos="NN"):
         try:
             return [w.synonyms[0] for w in self.wordnet.synsets(word, pos[:2])[0].hypernyms()]
-        except:
+        except Exception:
             pass
 
 #from en import wordnet
diff --git a/pattern/text/tree.py b/pattern/text/tree.py
index 21e75ec7..3be869e0 100644
--- a/pattern/text/tree.py
+++ b/pattern/text/tree.py
@@ -46,7 +46,7 @@
     from config import SLASH
     from config import WORD, POS, CHUNK, PNP, REL, ANCHOR, LEMMA
     MBSP = True # Memory-Based Shallow Parser for Python.
-except:
+except Exception:
     SLASH, WORD, POS, CHUNK, PNP, REL, ANCHOR, LEMMA = \
         "&slash;", "word", "part-of-speech", "chunk", "preposition", "relation", "anchor", "lemma"
     MBSP = False
@@ -155,7 +155,7 @@ def __init__(self, sentence, string, lemma=None, type=None, index=0):
         if not isinstance(string, str):
             try:
                 string = string.decode("utf-8") # ensure Unicode
-            except:
+            except Exception:
                 pass
         self.sentence = sentence
         self.index    = index
@@ -659,7 +659,7 @@ def __init__(self, string="", token=[WORD, POS, CHUNK, PNP, REL, ANCHOR, LEMMA],
             for encoding in (("utf-8",), ("windows-1252",), ("utf-8", "ignore")):
                 try:
                     string = string.decode(*encoding)
-                except:
+                except Exception:
                     pass
         self.parent      = None # A Slice refers to the Sentence it is part of.
         self.text        = None # A Sentence refers to the Text it is part of.
@@ -1586,7 +1586,7 @@ def parse_string(xml):
         if MBSP:
             from mbsp import TokenString
         return TokenString(string.strip(), tags=format, language=language)
-    except:
+    except Exception:
         return TaggedString(string.strip(), tags=format, language=language)
 
 
diff --git a/pattern/text/xx/__init__.py b/pattern/text/xx/__init__.py
index 721a6b8a..eabe10eb 100644
--- a/pattern/text/xx/__init__.py
+++ b/pattern/text/xx/__init__.py
@@ -31,7 +31,7 @@
 
 try:
     MODULE = os.path.dirname(os.path.realpath(__file__))
-except:
+except Exception:
     MODULE = ""
 
 sys.path.insert(0, os.path.join(MODULE, "..", "..", "..", ".."))
diff --git a/pattern/text/xx/inflect.py b/pattern/text/xx/inflect.py
index 8e3b7c3b..1e0dc6ec 100644
--- a/pattern/text/xx/inflect.py
+++ b/pattern/text/xx/inflect.py
@@ -26,7 +26,7 @@
 
 try:
     MODULE = os.path.dirname(os.path.realpath(__file__))
-except:
+except Exception:
     MODULE = ""
 
 sys.path.insert(0, os.path.join(MODULE, "..", "..", "..", ".."))
diff --git a/pattern/vector/__init__.py b/pattern/vector/__init__.py
index 76a368ab..0c44765d 100644
--- a/pattern/vector/__init__.py
+++ b/pattern/vector/__init__.py
@@ -67,17 +67,17 @@
 
 try:
     MODULE = os.path.dirname(os.path.realpath(__file__))
-except:
+except Exception:
     MODULE = ""
 
 try:
     from pattern.text import singularize, predicative, conjugate, tokenize
-except:
+except Exception:
     try:
         import sys
         sys.path.insert(0, os.path.join(MODULE, ".."))
         from text import singularize, predicative, conjugate, tokenize
-    except:
+    except Exception:
         singularize = lambda w, **k: w
         predicative = lambda w, **k: w
         conjugate   = lambda w, t, **k: w
@@ -2427,7 +2427,7 @@ def max(self):
             if self[b] < m:
                 return choice([x for x in self if self[x] == m > 0]), m
             return b, m
-        except:
+        except Exception:
             return b, 0.0
 
 #--- CLASSIFIER EVALUATION -------------------------------------------------------------------------
@@ -2716,7 +2716,7 @@ def classify(self, document, discrete=True):
             p = sorted((self._classes[type], type) for type, g in p.items() if g == m > 0)
             p = [type for frequency, type in p if frequency == p[0][0]]
             return choice(p)
-        except:
+        except Exception:
             return self.baseline
 
 Bayes = NaiveBayes = NB
@@ -2768,7 +2768,7 @@ def classify(self, document, discrete=True):
             p = sorted((self._classes[type], type) for type, w in p.items() if w == m > 0)
             p = [type for frequency, type in p if frequency == p[0][0]]
             return choice(p)
-        except:
+        except Exception:
             return self.baseline
 
 NearestNeighbor = kNN = KNN
@@ -3104,7 +3104,7 @@ def classify(self, document, discrete=True):
             p = sorted((self._classes[type], type) for type, w in p.items() if w == m > 0)
             p = [type for frequency, type in p if frequency == p[0][0]]
             return choice(p)
-        except:
+        except Exception:
             return self.baseline
 
     def finalize(self):
@@ -3757,7 +3757,7 @@ def _train(self):
             x = scipy.sparse.csr_matrix(x) # faster dot
             y = scipy.array([H1[type] for type, v in self._vectors])
             t = self._gradient_descent(x, y, l=0.1, iterations=self._iterations)
-        except:
+        except Exception:
             t = None
         self._model = (t, H1, H2, H3, H4)
 
@@ -3842,7 +3842,7 @@ def classify(self, document, discrete=True):
             p = sorted((self._classes[type], type) for type, w in p.items() if w == m > 0)
             p = [type for frequency, type in p if frequency == p[0][0]]
             return choice(p)
-        except:
+        except Exception:
             return self.baseline
 
     def save(self, path, final=False):
diff --git a/pattern/vector/svm/__init__.py b/pattern/vector/svm/__init__.py
index e3c53d1f..a37082f1 100644
--- a/pattern/vector/svm/__init__.py
+++ b/pattern/vector/svm/__init__.py
@@ -13,5 +13,5 @@
 try:
     from . import liblinear
     from . import liblinearutil
-except:
+except Exception:
     LIBLINEAR = False
diff --git a/pattern/vector/svm/liblinear.py b/pattern/vector/svm/liblinear.py
index 00ee4d24..2af8c222 100644
--- a/pattern/vector/svm/liblinear.py
+++ b/pattern/vector/svm/liblinear.py
@@ -16,7 +16,7 @@
 try:
 	import scipy
 	from scipy import sparse
-except:
+except Exception:
 	scipy = None
 	sparse = None
 
@@ -32,7 +32,7 @@
 		liblinear = CDLL(path.join(dirname, 'windows\liblinear-2.20\liblinear.dll'))
 	else:
 		liblinear = CDLL(path.join(dirname, 'macos/liblinear-2.20/liblinear.so.3'))
-except:
+except Exception:
 # For unix the prefix 'lib' is not considered.
 	if find_library('linear'):
 		liblinear = CDLL(find_library('linear'))
@@ -129,7 +129,7 @@ def gen_feature_nodearray(xi, feature_max=None):
 try:
 	from numba import jit
 	jit_enabled = True
-except:
+except Exception:
 	jit = lambda x: x
 	jit_enabled = False
 
diff --git a/pattern/vector/svm/liblinearutil.py b/pattern/vector/svm/liblinearutil.py
index e705460b..0fbf3a2d 100644
--- a/pattern/vector/svm/liblinearutil.py
+++ b/pattern/vector/svm/liblinearutil.py
@@ -112,7 +112,7 @@ def evaluations_scipy(ty, pv):
     with scipy.errstate(all = 'raise'):
         try:
             SCC = ((l * sumvy - sumv * sumy) * (l * sumvy - sumv * sumy)) / ((l * sumvv - sumv * sumv) * (l * sumyy - sumy * sumy))
-        except:
+        except Exception:
             SCC = float('nan')
     return (float(ACC), float(MSE), float(SCC))
 
@@ -146,7 +146,7 @@ def evaluations(ty, pv, useScipy = True):
     MSE = total_error / l
     try:
         SCC = ((l * sumvy - sumv * sumy) * (l * sumvy - sumv * sumy)) / ((l * sumvv - sumv * sumv) * (l * sumyy - sumy * sumy))
-    except:
+    except Exception:
         SCC = float('nan')
     return (float(ACC), float(MSE), float(SCC))
 
diff --git a/pattern/vector/svm/libsvm.py b/pattern/vector/svm/libsvm.py
index ac992d2b..fe4e05e6 100644
--- a/pattern/vector/svm/libsvm.py
+++ b/pattern/vector/svm/libsvm.py
@@ -26,7 +26,7 @@
 	else:
 		libsvm = CDLL(path.join(dirname, 'macos/libsvm-3.22/libsvm.so.2'))
 
-except:
+except Exception:
 # For unix the prefix 'lib' is not considered.
 	if find_library('svm'):
 		libsvm = CDLL(find_library('svm'))
diff --git a/pattern/vector/svm/libsvmutil.py b/pattern/vector/svm/libsvmutil.py
index 29110b00..722d2e03 100644
--- a/pattern/vector/svm/libsvmutil.py
+++ b/pattern/vector/svm/libsvmutil.py
@@ -92,7 +92,7 @@ def evaluations(ty, pv):
     MSE = total_error / l
     try:
         SCC = ((l * sumvy - sumv * sumy) * (l * sumvy - sumv * sumy)) / ((l * sumvv - sumv * sumv) * (l * sumyy - sumy * sumy))
-    except:
+    except Exception:
         SCC = float('nan')
     return (ACC, MSE, SCC)
 
diff --git a/pattern/web/__init__.py b/pattern/web/__init__.py
index c76cea88..ba9fc778 100644
--- a/pattern/web/__init__.py
+++ b/pattern/web/__init__.py
@@ -95,19 +95,19 @@
     # If this module is used separately,
     # a dict is used (i.e. this Python session only).
     from .cache import Cache, cache, TMP
-except:
+except Exception:
     cache = {}
 
 try:
     from .imap import Mail, MailFolder, Message, GMAIL
     from .imap import MailError, MailServiceError, MailLoginError, MailNotLoggedIn
     from .imap import FROM, SUBJECT, DATE, BODY, ATTACHMENTS
-except:
+except Exception:
     pass
 
 try:
     MODULE = os.path.dirname(os.path.realpath(__file__))
-except:
+except Exception:
     MODULE = ""
 
 #### UNICODE #######################################################################################
@@ -149,7 +149,7 @@ def fix(s, ignore=""):
         else:
             try:
                 ch = ch.encode("latin-1")
-            except:
+            except Exception:
                 ch = ch.encode("utf-8")
         u.append(s[i:j].encode("utf-8"))
         u.append(ch)
@@ -292,7 +292,7 @@ def _format(s):
             return int(s)
         try:
             return float(s)
-        except:
+        except Exception:
             return s
     if query:
         query = query.lstrip("?").split("&")
@@ -628,7 +628,7 @@ def exists(self, timeout=10):
             return True
         except URLError:
             return False
-        except:
+        except Exception:
             return True
         return True
 
@@ -4453,5 +4453,5 @@ def parsedoc(path, format=None):
     for f in (parsepdf, parsedocx, parsehtml):
         try:
             return f(path)
-        except:
+        except Exception:
             pass
diff --git a/pattern/web/cache/__init__.py b/pattern/web/cache/__init__.py
index 30daabc9..9695b29b 100644
--- a/pattern/web/cache/__init__.py
+++ b/pattern/web/cache/__init__.py
@@ -16,7 +16,7 @@
 try:
     import hashlib
     md5 = hashlib.md5
-except:
+except Exception:
     import md5
     md5 = md5.new
 
@@ -40,7 +40,7 @@
 
 try:
     MODULE = os.path.dirname(os.path.realpath(__file__))
-except:
+except Exception:
     MODULE = ""
 
 TMP = os.path.join(tempfile.gettempdir(), "pattern_web")
diff --git a/pattern/web/imap/__init__.py b/pattern/web/imap/__init__.py
index 0a20fe8e..60e5b835 100644
--- a/pattern/web/imap/__init__.py
+++ b/pattern/web/imap/__init__.py
@@ -22,22 +22,22 @@
 
 try:
     MODULE = os.path.dirname(os.path.realpath(__file__))
-except:
+except Exception:
     MODULE = ""
 
 # Import the Cache class from pattern.web so e-mails can be cached locally (faster):
 try:
     from ..cache import cache
-except:
+except Exception:
     try:
         import os
         import sys
         sys.path.append(os.path.join(MODULE, ".."))
         from cache import cache
-    except:
+    except Exception:
         try:
             from pattern.web.cache import cache
-        except:
+        except Exception:
             cache = {}
 
 from pattern.helpers import encode_string, decode_string
@@ -123,7 +123,7 @@ def login(self, username, password, **kwargs):
         self._imap4 = (self._secure and IMAP4_SSL or IMAP4)(self._host, self._port)
         try:
             status, response = self._imap4.login(username, password)
-        except:
+        except Exception:
             raise MailLoginError
         if status != "OK":
             raise MailLoginError(response)
@@ -170,7 +170,7 @@ def _decode(s, message):
     try:
         # Decode MIME header (e.g., "=?utf-8?q?").
         s = email.Header.decode_header(s)[0][0]
-    except:
+    except Exception:
         pass
     try:
         # Decode message Content-Type charset to Unicode.
@@ -178,13 +178,13 @@ def _decode(s, message):
         e = message.get("Content-Type")
         e = e.split("charset=")[-1].split(";")[0].strip("\"'").lower()
         s = s.decode(e)
-    except:
+    except Exception:
         try:
             s = s.decode("utf-8")
-        except:
+        except Exception:
             try:
                 s = s.decode("latin-1")
-            except:
+            except Exception:
                 pass
     return s
 
diff --git a/pattern/web/oauth/__init__.py b/pattern/web/oauth/__init__.py
index 458406a5..8e09968b 100755
--- a/pattern/web/oauth/__init__.py
+++ b/pattern/web/oauth/__init__.py
@@ -31,7 +31,7 @@
 try:
     from hashlib import sha1
     from hashlib import md5
-except:
+except Exception:
     import sha as sha1
     import md5
     md5 = md5.new
diff --git a/test/test_de.py b/test/test_de.py
index 298db59a..26561d71 100644
--- a/test/test_de.py
+++ b/test/test_de.py
@@ -20,7 +20,7 @@
 
 try:
     PATH = os.path.dirname(os.path.realpath(__file__))
-except:
+except Exception:
     PATH = ""
 
 #---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
diff --git a/test/test_en.py b/test/test_en.py
index 5a1d5076..727900cd 100644
--- a/test/test_en.py
+++ b/test/test_en.py
@@ -22,7 +22,7 @@
 
 try:
     PATH = os.path.dirname(os.path.realpath(__file__))
-except:
+except Exception:
     PATH = ""
 
 #---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
diff --git a/test/test_es.py b/test/test_es.py
index a85571c1..bcda8374 100644
--- a/test/test_es.py
+++ b/test/test_es.py
@@ -20,7 +20,7 @@
 
 try:
     PATH = os.path.dirname(os.path.realpath(__file__))
-except:
+except Exception:
     PATH = ""
 
 #---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
diff --git a/test/test_fr.py b/test/test_fr.py
index 11eebd6c..50e22567 100644
--- a/test/test_fr.py
+++ b/test/test_fr.py
@@ -20,7 +20,7 @@
 
 try:
     PATH = os.path.dirname(os.path.realpath(__file__))
-except:
+except Exception:
     PATH = ""
 
 #---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
diff --git a/test/test_it.py b/test/test_it.py
index acf3c0e6..cd838832 100644
--- a/test/test_it.py
+++ b/test/test_it.py
@@ -20,7 +20,7 @@
 
 try:
     PATH = os.path.dirname(os.path.realpath(__file__))
-except:
+except Exception:
     PATH = ""
 
 #---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
diff --git a/test/test_metrics.py b/test/test_metrics.py
index e896c4c6..80013d76 100644
--- a/test/test_metrics.py
+++ b/test/test_metrics.py
@@ -19,7 +19,7 @@
 
 try:
     PATH = os.path.dirname(os.path.realpath(__file__))
-except:
+except Exception:
     PATH = ""
 
 #---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
diff --git a/test/test_nl.py b/test/test_nl.py
index 7976750d..5067fa7f 100644
--- a/test/test_nl.py
+++ b/test/test_nl.py
@@ -20,7 +20,7 @@
 
 try:
     PATH = os.path.dirname(os.path.realpath(__file__))
-except:
+except Exception:
     PATH = ""
 
 #---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
diff --git a/test/test_ru.py b/test/test_ru.py
index 08c0f124..fa895632 100644
--- a/test/test_ru.py
+++ b/test/test_ru.py
@@ -22,7 +22,7 @@
 
 try:
     PATH = os.path.dirname(os.path.realpath(__file__))
-except:
+except Exception:
     PATH = ""
 
 #---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
diff --git a/test/test_vector.py b/test/test_vector.py
index 79c29e6c..a74f0c9b 100644
--- a/test/test_vector.py
+++ b/test/test_vector.py
@@ -27,7 +27,7 @@
 
 try:
     PATH = os.path.dirname(os.path.realpath(__file__))
-except:
+except Exception:
     PATH = ""
 
 
diff --git a/test/test_web.py b/test/test_web.py
index 12587341..15b637d7 100644
--- a/test/test_web.py
+++ b/test/test_web.py
@@ -20,7 +20,7 @@
 
 try:
     PATH = os.path.dirname(os.path.realpath(__file__))
-except:
+except Exception:
     PATH = ""
 
 #---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------