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Last Post Nov 9, 2009 7:49 AM by: waynejohnjohnwayne
Replies: 25
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enginebooks
Posts: 28

EBAY DEVELOPERS PROGRAM & API LICENSE AGREEMENT

Oct 27, 2009 3:59 PM
I've had the API looking at me on the tools page ever since I left CJ, wondering what it was. Accepting another license agreement for it kind of put me off so I never took the big step. Have I missed out on something?

For the most part, I use the Link Generator and the Widgets Editor Kit. RSS has worked out well too, but the Creatives Generator is a major loss! The eBay To GO doesn't cut it and I haven't tried the new Custom Banner as yet. I would simply love to redesign the Editor Kit for which I have all kinds of ideas!

So, what about what's behind the hidden API door? Should I open it and jump in?
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alssoftware
Posts: 148
(1 of 25)

Re: EBAY DEVELOPERS PROGRAM & API LICENSE AGREEMENT

Oct 27, 2009 4:40 PM
I've had the API looking at me on the tools page ever since I left CJ, wondering what it was. Accepting another license agreement for it kind of put me off so I never took the big step. Have I missed out on something?

For the most part, I use the Link Generator and the Widgets Editor Kit. RSS has worked out well too, but the Creatives Generator is a major loss! The eBay To GO doesn't cut it and I haven't tried the new Custom Banner as yet. I would simply love to redesign the Editor Kit for which I have all kinds of ideas!

So, what about what's behind the hidden API door? Should I open it and jump in?



If you're ready to do some programming, Otherwise look at phpbay. Either will improve your SEO too. The eBay creatives do not positively affect SEO (an some say negatively by increasing the code ratio).
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hockeydb.com
Posts: 116
(2 of 25)

Re: EBAY DEVELOPERS PROGRAM & API LICENSE AGREEMENT

Oct 27, 2009 6:10 PM
So, what about what's behind the hidden API door? Should I open it and jump in?

Yes, definitely. When eBay switched from CJ to EPN, I dove into the API. It was so much better than the Editor Kit because of the amount of control I could exercise.

It's basically like querying eBay as a database, and then you can present the results the way you want them. If you want to put pictures along with the listing, that is available to you. If you want to perform some kind of advanced filtering, you can do that too.

Here's an example of how I'm doing it:

Link

(please, don't click on the links on that page -- I don't need my EPC to drop!)

See how I integrated the eBay listings with my own site's design? See how I only present information that I think is relevant to the user? I can also set a custom ID so I know exactly which item from the result set that the user clicked on.
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huey
Posts: 61
(3 of 25)

Re: EBAY DEVELOPERS PROGRAM & API LICENSE AGREEMENT

Oct 27, 2009 7:19 PM
Riddled with pop-unders. How low is your EPC now?
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pawnshopsnet
Posts: 984
(4 of 25)

Re: EBAY DEVELOPERS PROGRAM & API LICENSE AGREEMENT

Oct 27, 2009 7:21 PM
Riddled with pop-unders. How low is your EPC now?


I was going to point out the popups also. If a site does more than one I'm gone.

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swinslow
Posts: 32
(5 of 25)

Re: EBAY DEVELOPERS PROGRAM & API LICENSE AGREEMENT

Oct 27, 2009 8:04 PM
I havent bothered with the APIs only because I can do what I want and display stuff how I want (so far) with RSS feeds.
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fikse
Posts: 30
(6 of 25)

Re: EBAY DEVELOPERS PROGRAM & API LICENSE AGREEMENT

Oct 28, 2009 7:01 AM
need some more pop-unders on there.....
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onelung50
Posts: 1,607
(7 of 25)

Re: EBAY DEVELOPERS PROGRAM & API LICENSE AGREEMENT

Oct 28, 2009 7:31 AM
...and one or two more toolbars for me to download. ;)


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One out of every four Americans is suffering from some form of mental illness. Think of your three best friends. If they're okay, then it's you.
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hockeydb.com
Posts: 116
(8 of 25)

Re: EBAY DEVELOPERS PROGRAM & API LICENSE AGREEMENT

Oct 28, 2009 8:48 AM
Hang on -- people got downloadable toolbars? I'm on my site day and night and never see that, and I use only respectable ad networks -- Casale, ValueClick, Tribal Fusion, Burst, and Olive (for Canada). Were you kidding, or did you seriously get something?

Yes, I have popunders, because they bring me $1k-$1.5k per month in revenue. It's hard to give that up. I show exactly two per user per day. I might add that the large news sites that I frequent do the same. I know that if you're against popunders out of principle, I'm not going to convince you, but $15,000 paid since this day last year might just make you into a believer.
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onelung50
Posts: 1,607
(9 of 25)

Re: EBAY DEVELOPERS PROGRAM & API LICENSE AGREEMENT

Oct 28, 2009 10:20 AM
Yes, both times I went to the site my browser says the site wants me to download/install the Google toolbar. It's not a big deal, a lot of sites cause my browser to to the same thing.

I wasn't trying to be an Internet ethics policeman. I was just busting your b#$$s for fun. As far as I'm concerned, you should do whatever makes you the most money and ignore the idiots who do go around passing judgement and playing Internet ethics police.


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One out of every four Americans is suffering from some form of mental illness. Think of your three best friends. If they're okay, then it's you.
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hockeydb.com
Posts: 116
(10 of 25)

Re: EBAY DEVELOPERS PROGRAM & API LICENSE AGREEMENT

Oct 28, 2009 11:59 AM
Thanks for letting me know -- I'm really surprised at that, because the networks I use are supposed to be reputable, and should not be offering automatic download campaigns. Problem is, advertising is so targeted these days that the campaign may be only showing to 2% of my visitors, and I'd never know about it.
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enginebooks
Posts: 28
(11 of 25)

Re: EBAY DEVELOPERS PROGRAM & API LICENSE AGREEMENT

Oct 28, 2009 6:43 PM
Now that the thread has been hijacked...
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onelung50
Posts: 1,607
(12 of 25)

Re: EBAY DEVELOPERS PROGRAM & API LICENSE AGREEMENT

Oct 29, 2009 4:42 AM
Now that the thread has been hijacked...


Bottom line. If you are not a skilled coder the API is useless to you. If you are ready to move beyond the banners and silly flash widgets, take a look at some of the third-party software available. phpBay is the most popular.


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One out of every four Americans is suffering from some form of mental illness. Think of your three best friends. If they're okay, then it's you.
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hockeydb.com
Posts: 116
(13 of 25)

Re: EBAY DEVELOPERS PROGRAM & API LICENSE AGREEMENT

Oct 29, 2009 6:32 AM
You don't need to be a super-skilled coder -- if you know basic PHP, and have a PHP5 installation, it's pretty easy.

All you do is build a URL with various parameters -- search term, category, etc. That URL will return you an XML file if you were to open it in a browser.

You need to open the URL with the function simplexml_load_file, which returns an XML structure.

Then you just need to iterate through the XML structure. The syntax is amazingly simple -- for example:

$xml = simplexml_load_file($url);

$num_items = $xml->TotalItems;

(That tells you how many items were returned.)

$all_results = $xml->ItemSearchURL;

(that gives you the URL to get the same search on eBay).

Here's how you iterate through the items:

 
foreach($xml->SearchResult->ItemArray->Item as $item) {
$item_url = $item->ViewItemURLForNaturalSearch;
$item_title = $item->Title;
$item_price = $item->ConvertedCurrentPrice;
$item_timeleft = $item->TimeLeft;
$item_bids = $item->BidCount;
$item_listing_type = $item->ListingType;
$item_ebay_id = $item-> ItemID;
$item_category = $item->PrimaryCategoryName;
}


So basically, you get a set of records back, and you can display them as you please. You can do really fancy things if you want -- for example, let's say that you are selling shoes. You can sort the results into columns on your website by size - something you can't do with any of the eBay tools.

It really opens up the possibilities.
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onelung50
Posts: 1,607
(14 of 25)

Re: EBAY DEVELOPERS PROGRAM & API LICENSE AGREEMENT

Oct 29, 2009 7:11 AM
Don't do it. You'll end up living in your parents basement eating ho-ho's and you will never have another date. ;)


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One out of every four Americans is suffering from some form of mental illness. Think of your three best friends. If they're okay, then it's you.
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