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HarvEX / Turbo-Sniper :: Manual(The content of this page is equal to the HarvEX built-in help)
IntroductionWelcome to HarvEX / Turbo Sniper. This software is a high-performance (eBay™) auction sniper, bulk search, analysis and universal macro automation software with intuitive hands-on GUI. It lets you set up your first sniping within a minute after installation The main features of HarvEX:
Description of general operation:The HarvEX GUI is built up of the following main parts which form a kind of workflow:
The HarvEX core engine features the following main functional components:
Installation & SetupInstallation
Updating the software
Uninstallation
Setup
Quickstart TutorialGetting started:
User InterfaceThe TAB paged user interface of HarvEX is kind of work flow oriented. See below the documentation for the pages: Main Configuration PageEdit the main global settings for HarvEX in this main configuration page. Reset to Defaults / Country-ProfileReset all Configuration data in the main configuration page to the defaults. You can select a server/country profile for your auction server. Auction Server Account: User Name + PasswordOptionally enter your main username and password for your main auction server (eBay) here. The password is used for bid postings, sniper bids, for MyEbay imports, and for log-in to completed auction search pages. Addition accounts can be entered in Menu/Config/Multiple Accounts. Your username(s) are also used for identifying and high-lighting your own sells and buys. Warning: Please Figure out the behavior of the sniper setup properly before scheduling critical bids (use dummy 0.0-bids etc.). HarvEX and its authors can't be made responsible for anything you bid, win, miss, be outbid, etc. Keep in mind that your are responsible yourself for any actions you take in online auctions using HarvEX. URL Base SearchThis URL base address is used for grabbing the search pages of the auction server. URL Base ItemThis URL base address for auction item pages is used to compute the URL for the item page. Table Format SearchHere you can change layout and content of the output produced by a search run. For example: If you want to have an other ordering for the columns, you can change the positions of the variables. Other variable data parsed from the auction search pages can be inserted by the "+"-Button (Add Variables). A '\t' is used for generating a TAB-stop. Table Format ScanHere you can change layout and content of the output produced by a scan run. If you want to have an other ordering for the columns, you can change the positions of the variables. Many other variable data parsed from the auction search pages can be inserted by the "+"-Button (Add Variables). A '\t' is used for generating a TAB-stop. Add-Variables Buttons (+)A dialog is opened for adding additional column variables into the search results or scan results. The variables available are explained inside the dialog. Scan "Buy-It-Now" CheckboxDeselect this option in order to scan only regular auctions without buy-now. Cache & Log DBFile used for cache and log stuff. (see: C/C+ Buttons in search page and scan
page, Retrieve from Cache Buttons,
Bid/Common Log&Notes). In case you use HarvEX from multiple Windows user accounts, then you might move the cache file location to a personal file folder for each user. By default the cache file is located in the HarvEX program folder. Press the "Clear Cache" button in order to reset the cache and log data. Auto-DialupLets you configure an automatic dial-up to the internet and automatic fall off after a configurable timeout [seconds]. If automatic dial-up is in progress, a RAS control window is displayed. You can decide at any time to permanently keep, hang or extend the connection. In your Windows RAS configuration set up your internet user+password to be stored permanent for the RAS network you use, in order to enable automatic dial-up without user interaction Config Server Profile ...A dialog is coming up and lets you manually change the regexp-matchers for parsing the auction-server-pages. Normally you would only do this to create a self-made Profile for an auction-server or to adapt to a format change by the auction server. Always consider to download an update or new version of HarvEX when parse/scan errors occure permanently. Matcher elements not present by on certain auction server can be default-matched to the empty string. Registration KeyA dialog box is displayed to enter a valid registration key which can be purchased online http://www.xellsoft.com/HarvEX.html. After purchasing a user license you can use HarvEX' unlimited power. When the key is accepted correctly, you'll see your license key information in the main configuration page. Press the Apply button after you edited the configuration. Configuration MenuAddition configuration options are found in Menu/Config. Welcome Configuration
Time Synchronization
Network Configuration
Browser Configuration
Backup & Auto Save Configuration
HarvEX/Turbo-Sniper SE ConfigurationMore information on SE sniping, tickets and policy: SE sniping. Turbo-Sniper SE sniping enables server based sniping without the need to store your auction account data (eBay password) on the SE server, yet you can save it (optionally) secure on your own web space.
Multiple Account ConfigurationSet up additional auctions server/eBay accounts (user + password pairs) in this dialog. These non-default accounts can be used in the Bid Edit Dialog ("User" button). The default account is set up in the main configuration page of HarvEX. Signal Sounds/Files ConfigurationSet up your own siganl sound files (.WAV / .MP3 ) or normal files to be launched upon certain bid manager events. Correct startup of the files can be tested with the "!" buttons. Download Current eBay CategoriesExecute this from time to time in order to have the latest eBay category tree available (e.g. in the tree button of search form page) Check for HarvEX Software UpdateExecute this in order to do a incremental update to the latest version of HarvEX. Search Form PageEnter and execute your auction search here in a form based manner (similar to http://pages.ebay.com/search/items/basicsearch.html) Note: You can use also the normal online web-based search form, refine your search and then copy the complete search-URL directly into the URL-field of the Search Page. Buttons: >> Start SearchCreate the URL & start the search within HarvEX. C Button: Fast recall the search from HarvEX internal cache. >> BrowserStart the browser for this search >> Search+BrowserSearch internal & in browser >> Search+ScanSearch internal and launch the detailed scan for the result items (like pressing scan button in search page after complete search) >> Generate URL onlyJust create the search URL on the Search Page. >> Generate Query MacroA short macro code for executing the search as defined by the current search form is generated and copied to the Windows clipboard. If the script window in the macro processor page is free, the code is also immediately pasted there. Reset (Button)Resets the search form.
Search Fields: The search fields have the same meaning as in eBays power search form. Search History: The field 'Search' is a drop-down combobox which allows to quickly recall complete past search patterns. Right to the "Search in Category" field there is an additional button which launches a quick eBay category tree browser. This is useful in order to search quick and easy in specifc categories. Search PageThis page takes the results of search runs / mass search runs. The grid in this page can also be set / programmed by the macro processor API. Note: Right-click on search result items to execute further context actions (Snipe, Watch, Browse, Outlook Note, Copy...). Also use Ctrl-A/Ctrl-C/Ctrl-V, Shift-up/down for selecting and copying item data Search URLThe Search URL generated by the Search Form or copied from a WWW-Browser is entered here. Search History: The field 'Search URL' is a drop-down combobox which allows to quickly recall complete past search URLs. Search - ButtonStart the Search. The search result is displayed in the result field and formatted according to the Search Result Format.Grabbing of multiple search result pages from the server is possible, if you set the "Max. Pages" field accordingly. Max. PagesThe maximum number of iterative search result pages to be downloaded from the server. (On eBay a complete result page has e.g. 50 items). A setting of 0 means all available pages are scanned. Copy TableCopy the search result item table. You may store the data in Excel, Text-Apps . The search result format (variables, ordering, tabs, ...) can be configured. H(eader Copy)Copy the the column header descriptions as a table line (for pasting in Excel, ...) PastePaste Data back from Excel, Text, "My eBay" in the Browser, ... Note: Any text containing valid auction item numbers is accepted in the search (result/paste) window. Note: Any text containing valid auction item numbers and/or time information is accepted for further processing (by Create Bid/Watch, Scan-Button, Right-Click-Context-Actions, etc.) Create Bid (Snipe)Set up sniper bids in the bid manager for the selected auction(s) or all auctions in the result grid. Create WatchSet up item tracking without sniping in the bid manager for the selected auction(s) or all auctions in the result grid. >> ScanStart the detailed scan of the auction item pages for the selected items or all items in the search result window. The result data is displayed on the Scan Page. The C Button scans only item which are already in the scan cache (previously scanned). The C+-Button takes items, which are in the cache from there, the others are scanned newly. This behavior saves internet bandwidth. Text/TableToggle between text and table view in the item display. In bare text view you have better control of textual stuff Note: Any text containing valid auction item numbers is accepted in the search result/paste window. BrowserCall the configured web browser with the current search URL. Scan (Results) PageThis page takes the result of detailed auction item data scans. The columns for scan results are configurable in the main config page ("Table Format Scan"). The grid in this page can also be set / programmed by the macro processor API. Note: Right-click on scan result items to execute further context actions (Snipe, Watch, Browse, Outlook Note, Copy...). Also use Ctrl-A/Ctrl-C/Ctrl-V, Shift-up/down for selecting and copying item data Copy ButtonCopy the complete scan result. You may store the data in Excel, Text.. . The scan result format (variables, ordering, tabs, ...) can be configured. (H)eader CopyCopy the the column header descriptions as a table line (for pasting in Excel, ...) Paste ButtonPaste data back from Excel, from Text, "My eBay" HTML, etc. Note: Any text containing valid auction item numbers and/or time information is accepted for further processing (by Snipe, Copy, Scan-Button, Right-Click-Actions, ...) Create Bid (Snipe)Set up sniper bids in the bid manager for the selected auction(s) or all auctions in the result grid. Create WatchSet up item tracking without sniping in the bid manager for the selected auction(s) or all auctions in the result grid. Outlook ButtonBulk enter the auction items displayed in the scan result window into Microsoft-Outlook® Calendar notes. A filtering and editing Dialog comes up. Re-Format ButtonReformat previous auction scan based on a changed settings ( table format, keyword matcher). No new access to the internet is performed. This allows interactive evolution of those settings. Re-Scan ButtonRescan selected/all auction items fresh from the internet. Text/TableToggle between text and table view in the item display. In bare text view you have better control for textual stuff. Note: Any text containing valid auction item numbers is accepted in the search result/paste window. Bid Manager / Auction Sniper / Automatic BiddingThe Bid Manager is a tool for watching and tracking auctions and for efficiently winning auctions shortly before the auctions close. This tools is useful for bidder and sellers as well. See also: About Sniping There are 4 for bidding on auctions and winning auctions efficiently with HarvEX:
The Bid Manager PageNote: Right-click on items to execute context actions (see also below). Auto Bid Active (Checkbox)This is the global sniper switch. Un-set this checkbox in order to disallow the standalone Auto-Sniper at all. Count Down Always (Checkbox)ON: Remaining time for auctions is counted down always. OFF: Countdown only during the (300s) alarm period. Auto Update (Update Periods)Activates automatic update of the auction item data in the bid manager. The update eriods can be adjusted in the dialog opened by the '..' button. Snipe Time MarginThe default time offset (seconds) before the end of auctions, when HarvEX or SE should post the bid to the auction server. Individual non-default snipe time margins can also be set for each auction in the bid edit dialog. Note: The synchronization mechanism of HarvEX automatically takes care, that times are stepped precisely. (see clock system below) Pre-connect Margin(takes only effect, when autodial is switched on (see config) and internet connection is not already established) This value is the time delta [in seconds] the Auto-Sniper opens the internet connection before a bid-active auction closes. This is because establishing the connection takes some time. default: 60s. Server time (ST) / Off-TimeST Displays the synchronized server time. 'Seconds Off' display the number seconds which your PC is considered to be
off-sync compared to the server. Sync.. ButtonLaunches the time sync settings dialog.
New AuctionSet up a new auction to bid on. You may also do this from the search page or scan page in HarvEX (Right-click on items there), or by Ctrl-F11/Ctrl-F11 hotkeys from any web browser disaplying an auction. In the Bid Add/Edit dialog box enter the auction number and hit the Retrieve Data from Server Button (auto-dial sensitive). Edit AuctionEdit the selected bid. Browse AuctionStart the Browser for the selected auctions. DeleteDelete the selected auctions. Bid Now!Launches the HarvEX Bid-Now-Interactive-Bidding-Tool. Update Data (from Auction Server)Rescan the auction data for auctions in the bid manager for the auction server. Auction Item TableList of the managed and watched auctions. Columns: Item-No., State (offline/online/missed/failure/outbid/success,...), Auction End Time (referred to your computers clock), Alarm Time Delta, MyBid, Current High Bid, Auction Title, Seller, High Bidder, M-out-of-N-winning-group, Comment. Right-click on an auction item(s) to get context actions: Edit, Delete, Browse, Outlook Export, Add to Search Result (for scanning into the scan-table format), Copy itemno. or copy complete state info into clipboard, "Bid Now" interactive trading, ... Multiple items can be selected by Shift-Up/Down, Shift/Ctrl+Mouse-Click and Ctrl-A (select all). Possible auction states in the state column:
Add / Edit Bid DialogHint: The most quick method to set up a sniping or 'watch' auction in the bid
manager is to press the hotkeys Ctrl-F11/Ctrl-F12 after browsing an auction in
your favorite web browser or after selecting one or more auctions in the search
results page or scan page in HarvEX. This dialog sets the options for a 'snipe' or watch. Auction IDAdding a fresh auction: Enter the auction ID and press "Retrieve Data". Then enter your maximum bid. Extra Hour OffsetNormally there is no reason to use another value than 0. Change only if you have time zone problems which cannot be solved by adjusting the time zone in Windows. See also the HarvEX online FAQ. Auction TitleThe title extracted from the auction item page. Matched Keyword-Groups are appended to the title in order (separated by ':') in order to high-light such matches. Auction EndsAuction end time extracted from the auction item page. Current BidCurrent high bid extracted from the auction item page. CurrencyThe (main) currency used in that auction. ShippingThe shipping cost for this auction item. Initially extracted from the auction item page if present. Can be edited/changed. Non-numerical string values (comments) are also accepted. Macro Hint: bid.ship is a string literal, not float value! Thus it may be converted to float by util.AnyString2Money(bid.ship) Alarm Time MarginTime offset [seconds] before end of auction, when an alarm sound/file should be played. Set to 0 (or '---') for no alarm. See also Menu/Config/Sounds. My max. BidMost important setting for active snipings: This is the bid value posted to the auction server (eBay) at sniping time. The effect of such bid posting is the same than if you would bid directly through eBay: in case you win you do not always have to pay this maximum price but the bid value of the second highest bidder plus the (eBay) bid value increment as defined by the auction server rules. E.g.: You set the max. bid to $9.00, the second highest bidder bids $7.50. Thus you win at a price of $8.00. QtyQuantity of items you bid on (only available in power-auctions). Thus you can bid on more than 1 of those items. User (Button)Optionally set a non-default eBay account (user + password) for this snipe. See also Menu/Config/Mulitple Accounts. Auto Bid Standalone (Checkbox)This is (to be) set for auction to be enabled for standalone snipping
directly off of your PC. Your PC has to be ON during the time of the sniping. Auto Bid SE (Checkbox for server based sniping)Set this to enable server based (SE) sniping for that auction. SE has to be configured once using the ".." button right to the checkbox before this option can be used. More information on SE sniping, tickets and policy: SE sniping. Bid Group & N maxYou can assign a (same) bid group ( a short name like 'bike' ) to more auctions in bid manager in order to win only maximum 1 or N (N max field) items of this group. Groups already in use by other auctions can be selected from the drop-down combobox. If no group name is set, this auction is a normal non-grouped auction. Hint: You can set a bid group for many auctions in the bid manager in one step: Select those items in the bid manager and do a context-right-mouse-click/Assign Group. Hint: Bid groups are correctly handled through SE sniping too. ConditionYou can assign a free-logic bid condition to a snipe. See the example from
the drop-down list. The condition statements are valid HarvEX macro functions /
state-ments. See also the HarvEX macro help (online) Snipe Time MarginAssign a non-default sniping time here. Any positive integer value [seconds] can be entered or selected from the drop-down list. CommentA free comment text line displayed in the bid manager grid. Some sniping paramenter (e.g. non-default user: user=abcdefg) are also rendered automatically into this field. Tracking Flag 1 (Seller light green)When this flag option is selected the seller grid cell of this auction is
high-lighted light-green in the bid manager. Tracking Flag 2 (Buyer light green)When this flag option is selected the high-bidder grid cell of this auction
is high-lighted light-green in the bid manager. Bid Now ! (Button)Opens the interactive bid tool (anti-sniper). Logs & Notes (Button)Displays the logs¬es for this auction. This note windows is opened permanent until you close it. You can enter free note text to these window in addition to the automatically inserted log text.
About Sniping (Automatic Bidding)Sniping is the act of posting a bid for an auction shortly before the auction ends. Sniping is usually done automatically by a tool like HarvEX, which enables to bid automatically with sophisticated control. Some of the automatic/semi-automatic sniping modes using HarvEX:
How is automatic sniping executed technically ? Answer:
What is the minimum bid time margin for sniping ? Answer:
Macro ProcessorThe HarvEX Macro Processor page hosts the set of executable macros and the macro script editor. The macro language is Python, the most modern OO script language heading for shortest code size and best readability. Find detailed language documentation and API documentation online here : Note: Macros starting with line like: #!init 555 are executed automatically upon startup of HarvEX. 555 is a precedence priority: low priority numbers are executed first. To suppress automatic execution, change this first line e.g. like: #!no_init 555 Macros (Listbox)The list of the currently loaded macros. If HarvEX finds *.hxpy files in the HarvEX program folder, then these macro files are loaded / updated automatically unless they are changed inside HarvEX. You can sort the list by clicking on column headers or by the up/down buttons. Right-click on macro to execute context actions (Edit, Execute, Rename, Delete, Save to file, ...) Output (Text Area)Takes the "print" output of macro. E.g. a script like: print "Hello!" Press the "Clear" button on top-right in order to clear the output area. Sandbox restrictions (Drop-Down List)Select sandbox restrictions for macro code, if you want to prevent the macros from execution code which goes to disk / internet etc. See the detailed online Macro Documentation for explanation of the levels. Edit (Button)Load the selected macro into the editor. Save (Button)Save the current macro in editor back to the macro list. Save As .. (Button)Save the current macro in editor back to the macro list as new instance with other name. Execute (Button)Execute the current macro in the editor. Check / Simulate (Button)Check the syntax of the current macro in editor, but do not execute it. New (Button)Reset/clear the macro editor. (Asks for "save" if the previous
macro text was changed) Keyword Recognizer PageThe keyword recognizer is for advanced usage and enables you to nicely automate analyzing keywords or arbitrary complex patterns in auction description texts. Groups (1. Column, a short name/string) and numerical states (2. Column; integer values) can be assigned. Iterate with the example button in order to get an impression. The recognizer is matching keywords or arbitrary complex For any group of patterns you may assign a group-name and a numerical state. Matches, groups-hits and accumulated numerical state information are available in the scan results by using the following variables, which my be using the "Table format scan" (main config page) or by macro code (see <OScan> objects in the macro documentation) :
These values can e.g. be post-processed by Excel® Functions. You can copy & paste complete HarvEX keyword classificators and manage them for example in Excel cells, Excel table areas, text-editors, ... Note: You can reformat previous auction scan results based on a new changed keyword classificator by using the Re-Format button in the Scan Results Page. Thus no new access to the internet is done, but item data is used from cache. This enables to evolve a reasonable keyword classificator quickly. Example-ButtonPress (repeated) to get samples of keyword classificators. ResetReset/clear the keyword classificator. CopyCopy the keyword classificator as one non-tabbed text-chunk (e.g. for storage in 1 Excel cell). Copy as MatrixCopy keyword classifcator as a tabbed matrix (for storage in a Excel table area, text application, ...). This way you can better edit the classificator outside HarvEX. PastePaste a keyword classificator in any of the above copy formats. Group / State / Keywords ...Enter the group-names, numerical states and keywords/patterns ( separated by ; ) here. Use the Example-Button to get an idea. Press the Apply Button after you have edited the classificator. Regular Expression SyntaxThe regular Expression Syntax is found online here Auto Dial / RAS Control WindowThis dialog controls automatic dialup to the Internet. When a connection is established, the following functions are available on buttons::
Outlook Calendar ExportThis dialog controls the export of auction end times to the Outlook® Calendar. Edit the subject lines accordingly and press the "-->Outlook"-Button. Options: Hour OffsetMaybe your local time zone is not equal to the time zone of the auction server. In this case you can enter a negative or positive integer time offset [hours] for the note in the Calendar. ReminderEnter the reminder time for the Outlook calendar note in minutes. 0 or negative means no reminder. Subject ColumnWhich column of your scan/search result table should appear as default subject for the calendar entry? Enter the column index here. A negative index means counting from right (-1 = last column: usually the $titledesc). PrefixThe subject prefix: A String prepended to the auction item title. Default: "HarvEX:" Auto Data Update PeriodsSet the periods for automatic data update in the bid manager. You can activate / deactivate auto update at all by a checkbox directly in the bid manager. Update periods can be set for 3 time domains before the next end of an auction. Period I is the default update period. If you only want this constant update period, set the other period domains to 0 (second column values). If you set period domain II to 600s (second column), the update period II (first column) is used the last 600 seconds before the next active auction for sniping ends. Bid Now ! : Interactive Bidding & Hot-Track ToolThis tool allows to post a bid immediately, to hot track the item, to react quickly to bid of other bidders (anti-sniper), and to quickly increment your bids during the show down of an auction. HarvEX' Interactive Bidding tools is the most aggressive tool in this category. Auto Update PeriodEnable this period for periodic automatic update for the auction data. Set an update period [seconds] according to your needs. Amount & On SaleFor power auctions with more than 1 items for sale you may set an amount > 1. Be aware that you may win an item in power auctions (multiple auctions) even if you are not the High Bidder!. My Bidnter your max. bid for this auciton in My Bid. Auto IncrementIf Auto Increment is enabled, every time you are not the High Bidder and the auction data is updated, the My Bid value is prepared to be be set at the minimum increment offset above the Current Bid. Yet the Auto Increment feature doesn't actually post a bid automatically, it just prepares the My Bid field your posting! You have to hit the Bid Now! button in order to actually post the bid. Lost & Found DocumentationXE Electric ViewBy Menu/View/XE Electric View a special display mode can be selected for HarvEX: The application windows is put to the top of the desktop. If you leave the Window with your mouse cursor, then the application windows is automatically hidding in the task bar and a thick red line is visible on the top of the desktop. If you move the mouse cursor to this red line, the application is quickly re-display. Thus you can switch very fast between HarvEX and another application, e.g. the web browser, Excel, Outlook etc. Print to HTML / XMLYou can print the current visible table (search/scan/bid manager/...) of HarvEX to a HTML page or to machine parsable XML files: Menu/View/Print to HTML/XML. Common Logs & NotesMenu/View/Common Logs & Notes displays a application global notes window, where you can write down arbitrary comments (for auctions or what ever). This notes are stored in the cache&log database file (see Main Configuration Page). Tip of the dayIn Menu/Help/Tip of the day you can activate/deactivate the tip-of-the-day dialog, which is display upon start of HarvEX. Menu/File/Set Application DatabaseThe pre-define main application database (bid manager data, macro data, ...) is stored in a file <HarvEX-Program-Folder>/main_db.hxd. If you don't like this, e.g. because you have a multi-user environment with restrictions on the program folder you can change the database location e.g. to personal folders. Where does HarvEX store configuration data?Most settings are stored in the windows registry: HKEY_CURRENT_USER/Software/Xellsoft/HarvEX. E.g. you can recover you registration key in the "regkey" field in that registry folder. The bid manager mass data, macro data etc. are stored in the main application database file (C:/Program Files/HarvEX/main_db.hxd). Macros can store persistent user data (by util.FilePersistent('C:/data/myuserdata.hxd') ) in files like C:/data/myuserdata.hxd. International money string & time formatsHarvEX understand most common numerical money string formats automatically in bid edit dialog, bid now dialog etc.: E.g. 1.234,50 1,234.50 1234.50 1234,50 ... HarvEX also reads correct money, currency and time formats from international pages and post the bid values in right punctuation for the pages. What is the +Tools Menu?Thats the default menu for addition command inserted by macros. See the macro online help: API: util.SetMenuMacro() System Tray OperationWhen the HarvEX is closed, by default the window is minimized to the system
tray and HarvEX operation (sniper!) continues. See Menu/View/Close Window=Min.
to Sys.Tray Exchange of Tabular Data with Spread-Sheet / ExcelTabular data can be copied to / from a spread sheet software like Excel by clipboard using the "Copy", "Paste" buttons and Ctrl-C/Ctrl-V on sub-selections of the tables in HarvEX. A text mode display ( "Text/Table" buttons in search/scan page ) offers even more control on textual stuff. FAQ / Trouble ShootingSee online FAQ:
You found errors in this manual? Feel free to feedback@xellsoft.com.
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