Folks, it may seem like I've merely been sitting on my butt, watching tv, and munching on Sea Salt and Pepper potato chips, and that may be true, but--wait, hang on (*munch munch*)--but I've also been horrifically busy with the site. We're in one of those periods now where it doesn't seem like much is happening, but I've spent the last few weeks on a feature that is itself only a small part of a much larger feature, but even all by itself it's damned nifty.
In short, I've completely replaced the old auction-matching system with a new algorithm that may just be the hottest thing since razor burn. You should now be noticing far fewer "false positives" in the auction listings; by that I mean that if you look up, say, G1 Powermaster Optimus Prime, you should see a good selection of auctions for just that item, and no pollution by vaguely similar items, such as Actionmaster Optimus Prime, or Commemorative edition Powermaster Optimus Prime. Furthermore, you won't see listings for little scrappy accessories, like fists, spare tires, stickers, and so on.
"How is this possible?!", you wail. Well, all I can say is that it's algorithmic, it's freakin' awesome, and it's automatic, meaning that no attendant is needed to be constantly policing the auctions as they come in.
Next you'll probably want to know where this is all leading. Fair enough. Well, remember all those joyous hours you spent clicking your collection into the database? Well, the BIG feature this is building up to is automatic collection appraisal. Because I now know what each toy eventually winds up selling for, and I know what toys you have in your collection, I'll soon be able to show you more or less exactly what your collection is worth on a day to day basis.
Yes, yes, I know--take a moment to let that sink in. Why don't you sit down over there, next to your pizza-box fort.
I'll make a more officially announcement when that's ready. Talk to ya then!
- shmax
