I had to build a web scraper to buy groceries • Hacker News Board

Re: I had to build a web scraper to buy groceries

#51

Post by reaperducer » Sun, Mar 29, 2020, 4:17 AM UTC

gruez wrote: post #31

xzel wrote: post #26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

But unfortunately there are a limited number of per day delivery slots, so bots will own anything FIFO. They will monitor the page and be the first ones in. There also aren’t really fully standardized addresses per se, it’s actually kinda weird, but what’s stopping anyone using the apartment number next to them and receiving the delivery when notified?

>But unfortunately there are a limited number of per day delivery slots I guess the idea is to put everyone in one queue, rather than having separate queues per day/slot. Presumably this isn't an issue since everyone's on lockdown anyways, so they're always available to accept a delivery.

I guess the idea is to put everyone in one queue, rather than having separate queues per day/slot.

And now you've just excluded all the doctors, nurses, police officers, firefighters, and their families from using the service.

Re: I had to build a web scraper to buy groceries

#52

Post by reaperducer » Sun, Mar 29, 2020, 4:22 AM UTC

Of all the grocery companies in my area, only Walmart has it right: Choose an available pick up time, then start online shopping.

All the others let you fill your cart, then at checkout tell you there are no slots available until the end of time. Waste of time, energy, and hope. F U, Target, Safeway, Albertsons, and Kroger.

Re: I had to build a web scraper to buy groceries

#53

Post by anbop » Sun, Mar 29, 2020, 4:22 AM UTC

xzel wrote: post #7

somebodynew wrote: post #3

It seems like a lot of demand issues highlighted by the pandemic could be solved by queues. Instead of saying "there are no slots available", put the user in the queue. Process the queue in order. The improvement in wait time and demand accuracy would be a win for both consumers and the business.

Web queues are ineffective as shown by sneaker bots. You’d need actual ID style authentication of accounts. If you’re talking about order queues than people will stuff the queue and cancel their orders or just have more hoarding if their multiple deliveries get processed. If it’s FIFO same technical advantages will apply: bots can click much faster than humans ever will. I think the issue is more human nature and thi…

I mean for Amazon Prime you have to have a Prime susbcription to even play, so the $129/year fee is a good barrier to bots.

Re: I had to build a web scraper to buy groceries

#54

Post by koolba » Sun, Mar 29, 2020, 4:26 AM UTC

gruez wrote: post #37

meritt wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If it wasn't for the reselling market, there wouldn't be the same level of demand for sneakers. They're just shoes.

>If it wasn't for the reselling market, there wouldn't be the same level of demand for sneakers You can say that about literally anything. The value of anything goes up if it's liquid.

Not quite. The spread narrows if it’s liquid. All else being equal, a liquid asset is preferred over an illiquid one, but liquidity does not mean something is more valuable.

It just means the price paid or received is closer to the consensus valuation.

Re: I had to build a web scraper to buy groceries

#55

Post by xzel » Sun, Mar 29, 2020, 4:57 AM UTC

meritt wrote: post #21

Nextgrid wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sneaker stores rely on exclusivity so the bots used by resellers are considered a problem. Of course, the real problem is the idea of exclusivity in the first place but that’s besides the point. Supermarkets don’t have that problem - their goods are not that exclusive and not sought after at scale (anyone wanting to resell the products at scale can get them cheaper from the manufacturer directly).

If it wasn't for the reselling market, there wouldn't be the same level of demand for sneakers. They're just shoes.

I think its primarily the "limited" number produced, which created the market and brought resellers. There wasn't a huge secondary market when Jordan came out, they had to build a brand etc. Eventually there was more demand than the number of products and reselling became a bigger thing. Also I put limited in quotes because a lot of the bigger runs are huge world wide. The main profit that is left is extremely small runs or the smaller sizes (which themselves have smaller runs). But just like a Black Lotus MTG card is just a piece of paper with some ink on it, they aren't necessarily just shoes, they're "limited" shoes.

Re: I had to build a web scraper to buy groceries

#56

Post by tzs » Sun, Mar 29, 2020, 5:15 AM UTC

reaperducer wrote: post #52

Of all the grocery companies in my area, only Walmart has it right: Choose an available pick up time, then start online shopping. All the others let you fill your cart, then at checkout tell you there are no slots available until the end of time. Waste of time, energy, and hope. F U, Target, Safeway, Albertsons, and Kroger.

Walmart is also tied for my top spot for in-person shopping during this. Walmart gets that spot because of their mobile app which does a pretty good job of telling me what is in stock at my local store.

My other top choice is a small (three store) chain in Western Washington called Central Market [1]. (If the name seems familiar, it may be from season 10 of "Top Chef" which was set in Seattle. Top Chef normally sends the contestants to Whole Foods for most shopping, but this was before there were any Whole Foods in the Seattle Area. They used the Shoreline Central Market instead).

They don't have a mobile app or online way to check stock that I know, but they seem to be doing the most of any grocery store I've seen to deal with the virus when it comes to in-store shopping.

1. They've got separate cart return and cart pickup areas in front of the store. Every cart returned gets disinfected before being put into the pickup.

2. They have installed plexiglass shields in the checkout lanes between you and the cashier.

3. They have prominent marks on the floor for you to stand at while inline that provide good spacing.

4. After each customer checks out, they disinfect the conveyor belt area and the credit card terminal area.

They are also nowhere near as crowded as Walmart, and the people that shop there seem to be paying more attention to social distancing.

[1] https://central-market.com/

Re: I had to build a web scraper to buy groceries

#57

Post by Zarel » Sun, Mar 29, 2020, 5:33 AM UTC

somebodynew wrote: post #3

It seems like a lot of demand issues highlighted by the pandemic could be solved by queues. Instead of saying "there are no slots available", put the user in the queue. Process the queue in order. The improvement in wait time and demand accuracy would be a win for both consumers and the business.

It seems to me that that they already have a 4-day-long queue, and the error message is in fact a "the queue is full" error.

Why not a longer queue? I don't know, but I'd guess people forget about their order and buy redundant things, causing support and customer satisfaction problems, if the queue is longer than 4 days.

Re: I had to build a web scraper to buy groceries

#58

Post by Lucadg » Sun, Mar 29, 2020, 5:50 AM UTC

Brakenshire wrote: post #4

Young healthy people shouldn’t be doing this, the slots should go to the ill and elderly, people who are in immediate danger from catching the illness.

In Bulgaria between 8.30 and 10.30 shops are open for the elderly only. I'm not sure how effective this is but it strikes me as a good low tech move.

Re: I had to build a web scraper to buy groceries

#59

Post by anbop » Sun, Mar 29, 2020, 5:51 AM UTC

Swizec wrote: post #6

I’ve just been going to the grocery store as usual and it works great. You show up in the morning and there’s no line yet and shelfs are full. Later in the day they meter entry so you can keep distance inside. Don’t be that ass who makes others do your shopping just coz you’re too afraid to.

Ordering groceries creates employment at a time when unemployment is higher than literally ever before.

Re: I had to build a web scraper to buy groceries

#60

Post by thegeekpirate » Sun, Mar 29, 2020, 5:56 AM UTC

reaperducer wrote: post #52

Of all the grocery companies in my area, only Walmart has it right: Choose an available pick up time, then start online shopping. All the others let you fill your cart, then at checkout tell you there are no slots available until the end of time. Waste of time, energy, and hope. F U, Target, Safeway, Albertsons, and Kroger.

FWIW, Save-On-Foods does this as well.