Implementing the auto-buying bot from xkcd #576 • Hacker News Board

Re: Implementing the auto-buying bot from xkcd #576

#81

Post by spectre » Tue, Nov 09, 2010, 2:09 AM UTC

heyrhett wrote: post #65

There is clearly some confusion in this thread. He didn't actually make the $1-buying ebay bot from xkcd. He made a completely different buying bot for some new zealand auction site: trademe.

trademe is pretty much just the New Zealand version of ebay (albeit with a better reputation and more engaged community). They are also impressive because they cloned ebays business model early enough to prevent ebay from dominating the New Zealand online auction sector (as ebay did in Australia with ebay.com.au) and sold in 2006 for $700 million (NZD) ($550m in USD).

Re: Implementing the auto-buying bot from xkcd #576

#82

Post by spectre » Tue, Nov 09, 2010, 2:21 AM UTC

qjz wrote: post #15

niyazpk wrote: post #2

I am tempted to write a bot to submit $1 items that his bot is likely to buy.

How about a $1 bill priced at $2 w/free shipping? From every angle, it would be an interesting experiment. From the consumer's standpoint, it challenges the notion of free shipping . From a seller's standpoint, it challenges the notion of easy money (would you really want to stuff a thousand envelopes if the item sold well?). From the middleman's standpoint, it might help to identify bots (or possibly even money laun…

selling $1 bills would likely be difficult using the bot in the article because the site (trademe.co.nz) is only in New Zealand where the smallest bill is the $5 one. Although there are probably other equally effective sales you could run using $1 and $2 coins.

Re: Implementing the auto-buying bot from xkcd #576

#83

Post by hallmark » Tue, Nov 09, 2010, 11:24 AM UTC

If the Apple App Store had an API, I would be tempted to write a bot to buy me a highly rated app every ~3 days.

Didn't try very hard, but I was unable to determine whether the Android Market has an API for purchasing paid apps. In that case, the Android phone could be the bot! "Bzzzzztt. I bought this app for you. Hope you like it."

Re: Implementing the auto-buying bot from xkcd #576

#84

Post by yoak » Wed, Nov 10, 2010, 2:15 AM UTC

tomjen3 wrote: post #63

yoak wrote: post #60

Earlier quoted context omitted.

To do this right, you have to be able to change the terms of the auction. Allow bidding for the $1 to start at a penny so it seems like a good deal. Then allow that the highest bidder gets the dollar, but doesn't have to pay... and the second-highest bidder must pay his bid amount, but receives nothing. You should see dollar bills purchased for hundreds of dollars at least. "The only way to win is not to play the gam…

Ah the dollar action. The evil part of me wants to launch an online auktion house that runs all its actions that way. The lazy part of me figure it is too much work.

Yeah, the busy part of me has too many other things to do as well, but if you need someone to feed you dozens of other ways to use game theory to abuse people, it'd be worth it just for all the headdesk in seeing them implemented.