BrickLink Discussion Forum

In Administrative, 1001bricks writes:

In Administrative, CE_Anastasia writes:

This means that sellers will have this feature enabled
automatically

When???

We highly encourage sellers to keep OTP enabled for added account protection.

I highly encourage BrickLink to find another way to give PA or important information
than posting in a Forum read by 1% users and at 22:43 EDT or 3:43 Paris time

IT: Hey guys? Should we send out an email to let users know we're going to
enable OTP for everyone?
Manager: Nah, just post it in the forum.
IT: What forum?

Author:

brickerking

Posted:

Mar 14, 2024 02:33

Subject:

Re: BEWARE! HACK TRIALS!!

Viewed:

38 times

Topic:

In General, UTLF writes:

They should just hire a bunch of Italians to deal with the spaghetti code

Or at least some Boston Pizza servers!

After all, pizza is the solution to everything, right? Maybe add a little mustard
if that will help - dijon ketchups too.

Author:

brickerking

Posted:

Mar 14, 2024 02:27

Subject:

Re: Is this a legit email?

Viewed:

39 times

Topic:

Help

In Help, Admin_Russell writes:

In Help, adam.r writes:

I have received an email asking me to sign up to be a BrickLink Research Member.

Whilst I have no problem with being BrickLink's guinea pig however given
the recent warnings about phishing emails targeting BrickLink users, I figured
that it would be best to check if this is a legitimate email before signing up.

The Sign up! link goes to an Office 365 form that asks questions including Name,
Email address and BrickLink username.

Could someone from BrickLink please advise if BrickLink has indeed been sending
out such emails, or is someone else up to no good?

This is a legitimate email from our BrickLink team. Please sign up if you are
interested.

Thanks!

Author:

brickerking

Posted:

Mar 13, 2024 23:24

Subject:

Re: BEWARE! HACK TRIALS!!

Viewed:

69 times

Topic:

In General, Saitobricks.ca writes:

In General, UTLF writes:

Those supporting the efforts of the Bricklink Team are not shills nor are we accepting of bot spam.

There are a few people that have blown the bot spam off as nothing and tell us
to ignore it, as if it's acceptable that a marketplace owned by a billion-dollar
company can have advertisements for CBD gummies & tons of other crap spammed
daily

Heres a simple answer, you can't post a link if you have no feedback.

No feedback, no links. People asking for help don't need to post links to
get help.

Can't, can't, can't. Two words that means no hard work will ever
be done: spaghetti code

(and all the IT guys now nod their heads and say, yup, yup yup)

Author:

brickerking

Posted:

Mar 13, 2024 12:37

Subject:

Re: BEWARE! HACK TRIALS!!

Viewed:

43 times

Topic:

In General, DanialR writes:

If not done properly can make the site
less secure than it is today.

I vote they do it properly. In my experience, corporate IT guys create their
own limitations because they speak tech and their bosses don't. Just get
'er done!

Author:

brickerking

Posted:

Mar 13, 2024 12:30

Subject:

Re: Is this a legit email?

Viewed:

55 times

Topic:

Help

In Help, SylvainLS writes:

I think this e-mail is legit but…

In Help, wildchicken13 writes:

[…]
Mine's from blservice@bricklink.com, so I'm pretty sure it can
be trusted unless BrickLink's email servers have been hacked.

Sorry to say but that can be forged. Scammers generally don’t bother to (especially
as they don’t want you to answer the e-mail and make the official site aware
of their shenanigans).

The DKIM-Signature is more secure but it needs to be verified: you can’t do it
‘manually.’ That depends on your mail provider.
Mails that don’t pass the verification don’t make it to your mailbox.

[…]
You can also hover your cursor (don't click) over the link/button to see
the exact URL where it leads.

Well, that doesn’t tell much more as BL is using mailchimp and trackers and whatnot.

If you hover over the link/button, you see something like
(https://)bricklink.us11.list-manage.com/track/click?u=(digits and letters)&id=(ditto)&e=(ditto)
Rather cryptic.

Now, if you look at the text-only version of the e-mail, the link is (https://)forms.office.com/e/(ID)
So you at least know you’re being redirected to an MSOffice form… but that doesn’t
tell you anything more on who created it and that doesn’t prevent you from entering
the name of your luggage or the code for your first pet.

Can anyone actually confirm for the OP if this email is legit?

Author:

brickerking

Posted:

Mar 12, 2024 23:29

Subject:

Re: BEWARE! HACK TRIALS!!

Viewed:

40 times

Topic:

In General, Nubs_Select writes:

Yes, BrickLink could implement more advanced technical solutions to prevent spam

Then why aren't they doing it?

Why would the spend potentially thousands of dollars (or more) so that the 20-50
of us who use the forums don’t see a couple spam posts a day? The real question
is why would they. If you hide canceled posts or just ignore them it in no way
affects the usage

I really don't care about forum spam. But I do care that the OP is concerned
about security and the reply to that was making the point that if BL can't
keep out spam from the form, how can they keep our accounts secure? These are
valid concerns, and shouldn't just be dismissed by BL apologists who assume
the cost is too high for security. It's a really simple point that should
be supported by everyone, not belittled.

Author:

brickerking

Posted:

Mar 12, 2024 23:17

Subject:

Re: BEWARE! HACK TRIALS!!

Viewed:

37 times

Topic:

In General, wildchicken13 writes:

In General, brickerking writes:

This is apologizing for BL. Why not hold their feet to the fire, when it's
our community they are responsible for.

How do I hold BrickLink's feet to the fire? I am just a chicken, thousands
of miles away.

Then why aren't they doing it?

As I said, it's not necessarily worth it to prevent a relatively small amount
of relatively harmless spam, especially when the developers have other priorities.

That being said, if the spam does get out of control, then it might justify some
sort of technical solution, but everyone's tolerance for spam is different.
I don't mind a bit of salt.

Are they? How sure are you? Is it on their roadmap? https://www.bricklink.com/help.asp?helpID=2547&q=roadmap

Oh, wait, there is nothing on their roadmap???

How am I to know? I'm not a programmer and I don't work for BrickLink.
I don't know what happens in Irvine. All I can do is guess.

Communication is nice, but I'd rather the developers focus on getting stuff
done than on sharing their work with a public that doesn't really understand
software development. At least they bother to update it with past updates.

We should in fact demand more accountability and communication from BL and we
shouldn't stop until they do. That's how things start to get better.
If we just pretend everything will work out in the end, it never will, and we'll
just have to put up with more and more problems. This forum is the best public
way to hold BL's feet to the fire. So instead of going "chicken",
demand better from the company that runs the community we are all responsible
for.

Author:

brickerking

Posted:

Mar 12, 2024 22:56

Subject:

Re: BEWARE! HACK TRIALS!!

Viewed:

51 times

Topic:

In General, wildchicken13 writes:

Yes, BrickLink could implement more advanced technical solutions to prevent spam
accounts from being created in the first place, but it's not necessarily
worth the investment just to prevent a few relatively harmless spam posts every
night. I'm sure the BrickLink developers are busy dealing with more important
bugs and vulnerabilities.

This is apologizing for BL. Why not hold their feet to the fire, when it's
our community they are responsible for.

Yes, BrickLink could implement more advanced technical solutions to prevent spam

Then why aren't they doing it?

I'm sure the BrickLink developers are busy dealing with more important
bugs and vulnerabilities.

Are they? How sure are you? Is it on their roadmap? https://www.bricklink.com/help.asp?helpID=2547&q=roadmap

Oh, wait, there is nothing on their roadmap???

Author:

brickerking

Posted:

Mar 12, 2024 21:49

Subject:

Re: BEWARE! HACK TRIALS!!

Viewed:

51 times

Topic:

In General, DanialR writes:

In General, UTLF writes:

There are so many apologizers for BL on the forum it seems like no one is listening, but it's the only forum we have.

Some people shill so hard you'd think they're being paid to do it, it's
insane

It's okay to criticize something you love, and I'm sure there are others
that feel similar but stay quiet as to avoid conflict - and to be honest, I still
walk on eggshells and bite my tongue to avoid risking a ban on here

I've never seen people so complacent and accepting of bot spam in my life

(Thumper Mode: OFF)

Those supporting the efforts of the Bricklink Team are not shills nor are we
accepting of bot spam.

Many of us have extensive experience in the tech industry and understand the
challenges going on behind the scenes.

We know how frustrating it can be when a few noisy people try to denigrate the
efforts when they have no clue about the scope of the problem or the efforts
to find a permanent resolution.

(Thumper Mode: ON)

Please, talk down to us more, it’s really convincing.

You just keep pretending that BL operates solely the way you think it does and
for your best interest. The rest of us will stay curious and not pretend.

Author:

brickerking

Posted:

Mar 12, 2024 17:52

Subject:

Re: BEWARE! HACK TRIALS!!

Viewed:

67 times

Topic:

In General, 1001bricks writes:

In General, brickerking writes:

In General, UTLF writes:

People are more likely to listen if you are more diplomatic. (Which is very hard sometimes)

I've tried that and get the same type of reply or treated like I'm
braindead

I'm beyond frustrated with leadership at this point

Keep banging the drums, it's the only way to be heard!

Heard? Heard about what? What do you wish?
Maybe BrickLink should forbid ANY domain name to be created by anyone in the
world?
Or they'd buy all of them?
Like "krickbink.com" or "blinkbrick.com" or...?
What could they do about what OP said?

Or is just a "I'm not happy" thought?

Yup

Author:

brickerking

Posted:

Mar 12, 2024 17:26

Subject:

Re: BEWARE! HACK TRIALS!!

Viewed:

75 times

Topic:

In General, UTLF writes:

People are more likely to listen if you are more diplomatic. (Which is very hard sometimes)

I've tried that and get the same type of reply or treated like I'm
braindead

I'm beyond frustrated with leadership at this point

Keep banging the drums, it's the only way to be heard! There are so many
apologizers for BL on the forum it seems like no one is listening, but it's
the only forum we have.

Author:

brickerking

Posted:

Mar 12, 2024 17:16

Subject:

Re: BEWARE! HACK TRIALS!!

Viewed:

71 times

Topic:

In General, DanialR writes:

In General, Saitobricks.ca writes:

In General, UTLF writes:

For me it may be 8 months!

I’d better be quiet now.

The Bricklink team has to play a very difficult balancing act. Unless you've
walked in their shoes you can't understand the challenges they face.

I've supported some of the largest web sites on the internet, but I'd
be a fool to think I know the Bricklink teams' challenges or how to solve
them.

Sometimes it's best to practice "The Thumper Rule".

That is so untrue. Your profile says you're american, the land of the free,
right? Well here's a pep-talk. America didn't become free without people
who were willing to stand up and do something. Same goes for Bricklink, which
we all pay a fee to use, which gives us a say. If no one says anything, no one
is ever held accountable. If you want to see a community succeed, you have to
be part of it, not just sit on the sidelines and watch while it falls apart.
If you see something, say something, better yet, do something, or the freedoms
you take for granted will disappear. Bricklink's challenges are your challenges.
The thumper rule is for the uninvolved - get involved - care about the LEGO community
- be an american hero! (GI-JOE?)

Author:

brickerking

Posted:

Mar 12, 2024 14:32

Subject:

Re: Selling Removed Stickers

Viewed:

52 times

Topic:

In Selling, edk writes:

In Selling, brickerking writes:

In Selling, crazylegoman writes:

In Selling, brickerking writes:

So this came up after i ordered a sticker sheet from a seller, not realizing
it was incomplete and receiving just one sticker that was obviously pulled off
a piece, shipped on a felt backer, and was dirty on the sticky side (which was
no longer sticky). I’m just having a hard time understanding if this is an intended
use case for stickers on BL (regardless of the condition i received my sticker
in).

Ah, I see. If the seller didn't add an extended description letting buyers
know that the sticker was used and then pulled off of a part and was unable
to be restuck, then that seller had a bad listing.

Sellers can list anything as used, but if it's unable to function how it's
intended to, then they have to describe that in the item's extended description.
Of course, used stickers are far more unlikely to be reused than parts,
gear, etc, so it's even more important for sellers to describe those accurately.

David

OK, I see that sticker sheets can be sold if incomplete as used: https://www.bricklink.com/help.asp?helpID=102

I don't think selling stickers peeled off lego parts and sold as incomplete
sticker sheets should be a thing. To me, it seems misleading. They should be
listed on the parts they were found on as stickered parts. If that part isn't
in the catalog, add it. This is a lazy loophole that should be fixed.

Since LEGO stickers are not intended to be removed (they are not marketed as
reusable as far as I know), why can they be listed after removal from a part?
Doesn't make sense to me. I suppose you can list broken lego parts if they
are clearly marked that way, and maybe that's the justification, but why?

A sticker sheet is a physical thing. If the original sticker sheet from lego
is absent, then can a few peeled off stickers from that sticker sheet still be
called a sticker sheet? I don't believe expectations are being met by listing
peeled off stickers as used sticker sheets.

Please tell me why i'm wrong.

Look at my listing for the stickers I mentioned. Nothing misleading. Also if
you had an understanding of the complex assembly they were applied to would help.
Not just across 2 bricks. Take in account there were 6 sheets for sale priced
$12-$25 I figured someone would be happy to get these for the $6. If there were
individual sticker listings I would have used that but the way I did it is the
best option available.

Arg... my ipad ran out of juice and I lost my reply. Here it is in a nutshell:

You are not trying to be misleading, you are doing everything you can within
the confines of listing stickers to present the truth.

However, when one is buying a used sticker sheet, I don't think the assumption
is that the buyer will receive stickers that have already been stuck on parts
and then peeled off with no sticker sheet included. That's why peeled off
stickers are not mentioned at all on the condition listing help page. LEGO stickers
are not marketed as reusable and in most cases, they are not. Sticker backing
glue cannot be measured to guarantee stickiness.

Also, when taking a picture of the stickers, you can't post two photos showing
the front and back, so it's not actually full disclosure.

The limitation here is that there is no category for stickers outside the sticker
sheet (nor am I advocating for that). So that means being misleading is inherent
to listing stickers without a sticker sheet.

Author:

brickerking

Posted:

Mar 12, 2024 14:08

Subject:

Re: Selling Removed Stickers

Viewed:

41 times

Topic:

In Selling, zorbanj writes:

In Selling, brickerking writes:

The requirement states:

"Sticker sheets missing stickers must be listed as used."

To me that's vague enough to include re-applied peeled off stickers.

That’s talking about sticker sheets - so one would think the original sticker
sheet is included and some stickers are missing. It’s not talking about previously
applied stickers at all. It’s not vague, per say, just not addressing this issue.

edk makes a good point:

"Carefully removed, adhesive stayed with the stickers, placed them on a waxy
backer
sheet, scanned an image and listed as used. I do not see a problem with this
method."

If there was a listing for just that sticker then, yes that makes sense, but
there isn’t. This would be listed as a used sticker sheet. Where’s the sticker
sheet in this equation. Was this the intention of sticker sheet listings?

Also, what about high quality stickers that were applied to the wrong part?

What about high quality parts that are broken… i throw them out personally -
because i wouldn't be happy to receive it.

Author:

brickerking

Posted:

Mar 12, 2024 12:48

Subject:

Re: Selling Removed Stickers

Viewed:

53 times

Topic:

In Selling, crazylegoman writes:

In Selling, brickerking writes:

Author:

brickerking

Posted:

Mar 12, 2024 09:44

Subject:

Re: Selling Removed Stickers

Viewed:

71 times

Topic:

In Selling, crazylegoman writes:

In Selling, brickerking writes:

Ran across a seller that sells stickers they have removed from parts and lists
as used, incomplete sticker sheets. Is that allowed?

As long as the seller says that they've been removed from parts and lists
the stickers as used, then I think it's within the rules. However, I can't
imagine anyone wanting to by such stickers, unless they're really old or
rare ones.

David

Right, I guess it’s a two part question:
1. is selling incomplete sticker sheets allowed?
2. Is selling stickers pulled off pieces allowed?

So this came up after i ordered a sticker sheet from a seller, not realizing
it was incomplete and receiving just one sticker that was obviously pulled off
a piece, shipped on a felt backer, and was dirty on the sticky side (which was
no longer sticky). I’m just having a hard time understanding if this is an intended
use case for stickers on BL (regardless of the condition i received my sticker
in).

I think i’ve had sticker sheets removed from my store that were just incomplete,
but I cant remember for sure.

Author:

brickerking

Posted:

Mar 11, 2024 23:46

Subject:

Re: Issue, I didn't bring up at the RoundTable

Viewed:

64 times

Topic:

Suggestions

Also, this sounds suspiciously like a borderline seller tool… DENIED!

In Suggestions, brickerking writes:

In Suggestions, popsicle writes:

I earnestly feel the new banner across the top of BL stores displaying the feedback
breakdown, should be altered.

As it stands now, a neutral will bring the percentile down. This, I believe is
misleading to potential buyers and somewhat unfair in nature. Many neutral marks
are received for perfectly satisfied transactions, as witnessed in the feedback
itself. This I think, is due to a general misunderstanding of the BL feedback
system. It is unlike many other site's feedback process.

I feel any neutral mark given, should be just that, carry no effect. Just
as it does with the numbers.

My motivations in bringing this up are unbiased, as reflected in our own banner.
I sincerely hope the Admins take this suggestion into consideration.

-Cory

Just merge all the variant feedbacks into one: Positive, Negative and Neutral
feedbacks should be merged into a new category, “Meh”. Meh is a term from the
90s meaning nothing. Let’s get this thing done! Meh.,

Author:

brickerking

Posted:

Mar 11, 2024 23:30

Subject:

Re: Issue, I didn't bring up at the RoundTable

Viewed:

78 times

Topic:

Suggestions

In Suggestions, popsicle writes:

Author:

brickerking

Posted:

Mar 11, 2024 22:58

Subject:

Selling Removed Stickers

Viewed:

200 times

Topic:

Ran across a seller that sells stickers they have removed from parts and lists
as used, incomplete sticker sheets. Is that allowed?

Author:

brickerking

Posted:

Feb 16, 2024 00:57

Subject:

Re: Items that make you wonder was Lego thinking?

Viewed:

94 times

Topic:

In Off Topic, Saitobricks.ca writes:

What was LEGO thinking when they branded this??

How about this piece...

3069pb0451 Tile 1 x 2 with Black Stencil 'DICK' Pattern (Sticker) - Set 76052
Parts: Tile, Decorated {White}

Author:

brickerking

Posted:

Feb 15, 2024 20:05

Subject:

Re: Variants Thread - February 12

Viewed:

82 times

Topic:

Catalog

In Catalog, Admin_Russell writes:

Hello again everyone,

Below I have listed the general groups of variants we are tackling and the results
of the deliberation over the last month. I was originally planning to provide
a schedule for when these changes will happen, but based on the progress with
the tiles since February 1, I am hesitant to commit to any timeline except that
we will not change anything on this list prior to February 15.

Today the catalog team got a message (in all caps) protesting the variant merges.
Some of the points have not been addressed yet, so I thought I would take this
opportunity to answer these before we get started with merging.

Not sure why you would respond to a message in all-caps and post it here making
this person out to be crazy. This person is actually quite passionate for BrickLink
and you are crushing them. Your tone in the response is very tone-deaf in my
opinion. You literally have people shouting at you to stop merging variants,
yet your response is: we are right and you are obviously wrong - gaslighting
the folks who are trying to make their point - which is a valid point. Not a
good look.

Look, you're (BrickLink) obviously making this change and not going back.
At the same time you are obviously burning bridges with many people. Take time
to consider the humans behind this site and that their passion is your bottom
line. What's more important, catalog changes or relationships with people
and communities that support your bottom line? Is this all really worth the relationships
that are being strained and even broken? This public humiliation (even though
the writer may have given you permission or we will never know who they are)
is not putting out any fires, it's just fanning the flames.

I understand that the most vocal forum members on here are supporters of this
variant merger. And a post like this may make everyone feel better about themselves
and this decision. But don't forget about those people you don't hear
from very often or ever that don't support this merger. You may think this
is a great idea and so may many of your colleagues, but there are also many users
of this site that don't agree.

Author:

brickerking

Posted:

Feb 15, 2024 15:34

Subject:

Re: Merge Request

Viewed:

31 times

Topic:

In Off Topic, 1001bricks writes:

In Off Topic, wildchicken13 writes:

In Off Topic, 1001bricks writes:

In Off Topic, wildchicken13 writes:

Please mark the entire BrickLink catalog for deletion

Or delete all the users? It'll be more efficient IMO.

No, just merge them all into one.

Nice! Always dreamt to be Russell!

Didn't someone hack into BrickLink and do that?

Years ago, a hacker came and set all the parts in my shop (and others) in Red,
that was "fun"

Still have a screen copy if you wish I'll find it

So after that hack, you must have been seeing red.

Author:

brickerking

Posted:

Feb 15, 2024 11:48

Subject:

Re: Merge Request

Viewed:

67 times

Topic:

That's a good start... now we just need to add all parts with two studs,
three, studs, four studs, etc.

Those should all be merged variants as well. Maybe we could consolidate the part
name to: legos with stud(s)

(good band name?)

In Off Topic, Nubs_Select writes:

Sarcasm is the best offense!

that and archiving

Author:

brickerking

Posted:

Feb 14, 2024 23:32

Subject:

Merge Request

Viewed:

139 times

Topic: