There isn't a public API at the moment but it's planned for this summer I think, and an auction sniper is already being made with database functionality.
Hmm, summer's no good for me really because I'll almost definitely have lost interest by then. I'm using Neopets as a way to get back into web bot coding, so once I'm confident with it I'll probably be moving onto something else.
So the db's there but there's no way I can use it in a program?
What do you mean by no
public API? There's a private one? What about if I write a program and just send you the source code, haha.
I probably wouldn't even use any of these programs myself - I'm not really interested in playing NP, I just want a challenge (code something that earns points, and can't be detected as non-human), and while I'm at it might as well make it something that other people can use. See where I'm coming from?
That shouldn't be a problem if you make requests regularly enough (But not suspiciously often..). Presuming the Neopets auctions always report the correct time bracket (Eg, "< 30 mins"), you can tell when an auction will end when you catch it switch brackets. For example:
Auction ID 154902135 (Nothing special, just picked it out at random) is in the bracket "30 min - 2 hours" when you checked at 14:48. When you check at 14:49, however, it's in the "< 30 mins" bracket. You can then conclude the auction will end sometime around 15:18.
I've never tested a system like this out, but it'll work in theory. I hope.
Yeah, good point - but then I'd have to be watching them from a very long way off finishing. I was thinking more of something which catches stuff on the 1st/2nd page and looks for good deals. I think with your method it would have to be watching only a few selected items?
EDIT: Ooo, unless it's watching the <30 mins switchover, and keeping track of price changes from different accounts/proxies, and building up a temporary local database of auctions
, and a separate account to do the bidding.
Edited by James1, 03 March 2010 - 07:00 AM.