BrickLink Discussion Forum

In LANG Nederlands, StarBrick writes:

Oe, dan wil ik graag je link waar jij dat zo goedkoop kunt versturen.
Als ik via PostNL een brievenbuspakje (hoezo zwart?) wil versturen krijg ik dit:

Bij deze de lijst

https://www.postnl.nl/api/assets/blt43aa441bfc1e29f2/blt5b5dd0e5cdaa0cb4/65302c781b3edf57d2c162e0/landentarieven-zakelijk-2024.pdf

Zakelijk account aanmaken. Mijn workflow is sinds de invoering van het nieuwe
systeem (alles naar het buitenland met barcode) eigenlijk juist versimpeld. Ik
importeer de zendingen, print de labels, en breng ze weg (moet officieel in een
postzak maar dat doe ik nooit).

Author:

Teup

Posted:

Feb 4, 2024 06:17

Subject:

Re: Versturen naar bv Amerika.

Viewed:

53 times

Topic:

LANG Nederlands

In LANG Nederlands, StarBrick writes:

Ik heb er enige tijd terug voor gekozen niet meer naar de USA te verzenden.
Sinds COVID zijn de verzendkosten bizar gestegen (ook vanuit de USA naar Europa
overigens).

Inmiddels 12 euro voor een brievenbuspakje met tracking van max 100 gram is mij
echt te gek.

Zélfs als een koper het zou willen betalen begin ik er niet meer aan.

Een buspakje naar Amerika kost €4,25... voor iedereen die niet zwart verdient
tenminste. Maar tot (maarliefst) €20K omzet kun je gebruik maken van de kleine
ondernemersregeling, waardoor je geen BTW betaalt. Waarschijnlijk zowel de eerlijkste
als ook de financieel aantrekkelijkste optie onder de streep.

Author:

Teup

Posted:

Feb 2, 2024 05:20

Subject:

Re: Bricklink API - Update Store Inventory

Viewed:

74 times

Topic:

In Technical Issues, yorbrick writes:

What helps all buyers is if I could be open for business, and right now I can't...

Is it that big a deal if only a minority of your business is here?

Exactly the type of antics why we've already moved most of our business
away from
this platform.

https://www.bricklink.com/message.asp?ID=1450844

Clever, but I can do you one better

Why is it a minority? Because Bricklink does things this way. I'm not disappointed
in Bricklink because I am selling elsewhere - I am selling elsewhere because
I am disappointed in Bricklink.

Author:

Teup

Posted:

Feb 2, 2024 05:17

Subject:

Re: Bricklink API - Update Store Inventory

Viewed:

62 times

Topic:

In Technical Issues, ErwinNL writes:

In Technical Issues, BrickFreedom writes:

Hi

Have you made changes to the (Update Store Inventory -- PUT - /inventories/{inventory_id})
API request?

Previously you could call the API with the following parameters and would have
no issues:

['quantity' = '-2']

Now it's responding with:

["description":"String input must not be null","message":"PARAMETER_MISSING_OR_INVALID"]

Weirdly a couple of requests have completed successfully but most of the requests
are failing with the above error message. Can someone please advise what this
error is and if it's a bug that has been released into the API by accident?

I can confirm relative updates are broken with the API.

Correction, inventory update using the API in general seems broken. Relative
or not.

The fix is to specify the "description" field.

{"quantity":4, "description":""}

Works fine and fixes it as far as I can tell.

Can confirm! Thanks Erwin!

Author:

Teup

Posted:

Feb 2, 2024 04:30

Subject:

Re: Bricklink API - Update Store Inventory

Viewed:

51 times

Topic:

In Technical Issues, 1001bricks writes:

In Technical Issues, brick.warehouse writes:

In Technical Issues, 1001bricks writes:

In Technical Issues, brick.warehouse writes:

It would also help if Bricklink exposed a stable surrogate key (itemId iirc)
via the API, so that syncing tools can still map parts correctly even when the
design/part/item number is changed.

Why? To facilitate people to sell elsewhere? See, I'm not sure...

You're making up motivations that I didn't express.

"syncing tools"?

It's common to use offline inventory management tools (like BrickStore, or
many others, including custom solutions).

These all break to some degree when the design number changes because the Bricklink
API uses a mutable field as the identifier.

BrickStore didn't have a problem with this change - and other changes -,
it checks the catalog change logs.

Of course this could be nice for the 100/500 hyper computerized sellers.

Well, it's really not 'going an extra mile' to change things in a
clean, consistent way. That's just how you do anything in a professional
way. We're not asking for anything extra, we are asking for things to be
done in a non-chaotic way. You fix a road by announcing it, closing it, changing
it, then opening it again. If you start fixing small bits at a time and it causes
dangerous situations, you can't blame it on the drivers if something goes
wrong. We can praise Brickstore for being able to handle it, but it doesn't
excuse how Bricklink is doing this.

Frankly, I'd prefer they spend time on something that'd help more (all)
sellers, and why not buyers.

What helps all buyers is if I could be open for business, and right now I can't...

Author:

Teup

Posted:

Feb 1, 2024 19:44

Subject:

Re: Bricklink API - Update Store Inventory

Viewed:

106 times

Topic:

In Technical Issues, BrickFreedom writes:

Well, I am not surprised. This was my point... Making changes should have been
done the professional way by Bricklink:

1. Set a date, communicate clear heads-up, to get everyone on the same page with
it: the sellers, the guys from all these apps
2. Give enough time for everyone to prepare an update and stand by
3. Apply the changes all at once exactly on that announced date

Unfortunately what we got was more of a "let's push a button and see
what happens" way... I suppose such problems are going to persist no matter
the updates, as long as Bricklink gradually keeps changing things unannounced,
constantly rendering the updates outdated.

Author:

Teup

Posted:

Feb 1, 2024 13:56

Subject:

Re: Variants Thread - January 31

Viewed:

74 times

Topic:

Catalog

In Catalog, Teup writes:

In Catalog, Admin_Russell writes:

Hello again everyone.

This is the latest update on the variants project.

*****************************************

Here is the original thread:

https://www.bricklink.com/message.asp?ID=1447090

Here is the second thread:

https://www.bricklink.com/message.asp?ID=1450622

Here is the overview Help article:

https://www.bricklink.com/help.asp?helpID=2625

Here is the exhaustive Help article:

https://www.bricklink.com/help.asp?helpID=2626

Important update to the sellers' correction list:

We have added an XML download to help sellers more easily see which lots in their
store may be affected by these changes. Also see the image attached below:

https://www.bricklink.com/help.asp?helpID=2629

List of replies from myself:

https://www.bricklink.com/messageList.asp?overTP=Y&q=variants&qS=Y&msgID=&uName=admin_russell&ID=&status=&v=c&max=50

Upcoming schedule:

Tomorrow (Feb 1) we will begin handling issue number 11 in the overview, which
includes tiles and 1 x 1 round bricks. This will not involve any merging, only
changing Item Numbers and Item Names.

A list of changes for this first step will be sent out tomorrow to our affiliates.
If you run a database and would like this list (Excel format), please contact
me through BrickLink and I will send you the list.

This first step is scheduled to be finished by Feb 14.

We have a meeting on Monday (Feb 5) with our catalog admins to go through the
rest of the list and make final decisions. After that meeting, a schedule will
be made for the merges. Due to the large number of minifigure heads in the catalog,
the merge process is likely to not be complete until the end of May.

.....

What a mess. Why does Bricklink never keep its own promises? Russell please....
don't do it like this, this is chaos. I have been a seller here for a very
long time, I have paid thousands of dollars to you guys and I really don't
want to close shop but you're really forcing my hand here. I simply cannot
manage my inventory if changes are randomly happening on random days over a course
of MONTHS.

The change was scheduled for 1 Feb. We sent out a newsletter to our customers
about the date. Then it was 15 Feb. That's ok, at least more time to prepare.
I've spent a full day writing software to handle the transition form old
to new item IDs. But now it turns out that the changes are going to be all over
the place between basically today and MAY. And even THAT is not
sure...?

Why wasn't it possible to simply set a date, announce it, and stick to that
plan? Why can't Bricklink go offline for maintenance on the set date of 15
Feb and come back up with the changes in place? It's a real shame that Bricklink
really doesn't seem to take these changes seriously and try to understand
the implications.... Does it really take that long to come up with new numbers?
And if it does, can you at least update them all at once by then, and announce
it properly?

So I see the first changes are made and are already causing inconsistencies.

VERY disappointed that my calls are ignored and that bricklink goes about this
in this very amateuristic way.

Sad that Bricklink never keeps its own promises. I will now close my store.

Author:

Teup

Posted:

Feb 1, 2024 07:28

Subject:

Re: Variants Thread - January 31

Viewed:

69 times

Topic:

Catalog

In Catalog, Stellar writes:

In Catalog, Teup writes:

In Catalog, helge writes:

The change was scheduled for 1 Feb. We sent out a newsletter to our customers
about the date. Then it was 15 Feb. That's ok, at least more time to prepare.
I've spent a full day writing software to handle the transition form old
to new item IDs. But now it turns out that the changes are going to be all over
the place between basically today and MAY. And even THAT is not
sure...?

Just curious and asking because I am afraid that I have missed something:

Why do you need to write software to handle the transition?

Sorry, since the message was directed to Russell and I mentioned it before I
omitted it here - our sync system works based on item IDs. If they change randomly,
it will break our sync a little bit many times, at random moments, and it will
be hard to repair without understanding clearly what changed into what.

It would be easier to just monitor this page daily with your software to automate
making the changes accordingly:

https://www.bricklink.com/btchglog.asp
https://www.bricklink.com/btchglog.asp?viewHelp=Y

Thanks for the suggestion! Didn't know about this list. I already made somewhere
that compares our old and new inventory to identify changes, I will keep this
list in mind and it might come in handy at some point. But as for making changes
gradually: Technical details aside, manual changes are slow and annoying in our
system (not as high tech as Helge thinks

), and doing it on separate moments
for our 600+ head lots wouldn't be workable I'm afraid. At this point
closing shop and coming back in May seems the best solution unless Bricklink
can make the changes in a clean way.

Author:

Teup

Posted:

Feb 1, 2024 07:11

Subject:

Re: Variants Thread - January 31

Viewed:

59 times

Topic:

Catalog