Category: Firefox Add-ons

UPC and EAN are types of product numbers also referred to as GTIN (Global Trade Identification Numbers).

UPC and EAN barcode numbers can be used in keyword searches to find exact matching items for specific products.  This is an alternative to using keywords that sellers may or may not include in their item titles or descriptions.

To use UPC or EAN codes in BINSniper and VieBuy.com, simply include them in the keyword field of your filters.  To search multiple codes, use the boolean OR syntax like this:

keywords:
(035255848701,035255869027)

When shopping European countries, you should use the EAN number.  The UPC code can be converted to EAN by adding a zero to the front.  So the same search would look like this:

keywords:
(0035255848701,0035255869027)

Not all products are available in all countries.

One note about UPC codes on eBay: UPC codes are 12 digits long, and so are eBay item numbers.  UPC codes have a check digit to validate them.  It may happen that a UPC code and eBay item number match.  In this case, eBay could return an unrelated eBay items page.  In cases where UPC codes are not in the eBay database, the website may interpret the code as an eBay item number and display and error page.  This does not occur with EAN codes which are 13 digits long.

 

When using VieBuy and BINSniper, the order of items in the lists can vary from the eBay order.

Age Sorting

When set to sort by age, items are resorted to chronological order by age.  This mode matches the Newly Listed sort on the eBay websites.  The apps will also flag newly arrived items with a star.

Here we see the items sorted, with stars next to the newly received items:  Because the starred  items are out of order, it means that they were created earlier, but not published to the website and data feeds until a couple minutes later.

Look at the Frederique Constant Slim…  line.  This item was just received, as indicated by the star, and inserted into the sorted list below old items.  This is what happens at the eBay site. The inserted item could appear on page 2 or page 3 of the website list in fast categories.

Note that, because of the delays, newer items can be published on the eBay site in a different order than they are created.

Arrival Sorting

When sorting by arrival, the newest items are displayed first and flagged with a star.  The new items will always be first.

Here we see the same items using arrival sort.  The newest item is at the top, the times reflect how long the item has been published on eBay (not how long ago it was created):

Again, look at the Frederique Constant Slim…  line.  Now it appears toward the top of the list in the order it was published by eBay.  This sorting mode is not available at the eBay websites.

This is a cause for confusion for some users of the apps when trying to compare items sorted by arrival with the eBay site which is sorted by creation time.   When you set the eBay site for Newly Listed sort, you will see new items at the top of the list only if they are published immediately or in slow moving categories where other items can’t jump ahead.  But in many cases, new items that are delayed will be inserted into the item lists based on their creation time and appear further down the page.

Here we see the same items again, at the eBay site with the Newly Listed sort:

While it appears that the first item in the list is the newest, it is in fact one of the oldest.  The third item marked #1 was the first item displayed on the website (the oldest).  Then item #2, #3 etc.   Item #8 was the last item of the group to be published (the most recent), but it appeared on the eBay site at around 17:37.   Because it was created at 17:35, it gets sorted to the bottom.

You can see this process happen if you load the eBay pages, record the results,  reload the page, and compare the new results to the old results.  You’ll find older items are inserted further down the page.  If you don’t reload and compare, you might assume that the items on the eBay site are arriving earlier because of how they are sorted.

Using VieBuy and BINSniper allows for arrival sorts which show the items as they are published, and you don’t miss those hidden items that don’t appear in a timely fashion.  We recommend using arrival sort in all cases.