AuctionMapper

Happy Wednesday! We are installing the service pack that ESRI put out for SDE, IMS and ArcGIS desktop this evening. I haven't heard of anyone having difficulties with this, but just in case wish us luck. If you have any feedback about it let me know.

AuctionMapper is a cool site that I found that combines mapping with eBay items. Although according to AuctionMapper it is somewhat different from using a typical search engine and it does much more than place eBay items on a map. AuctionMapper is designed to help you find exactly what you want in the shortest amount of time; therefore it gives you search results without having to go from web page to web page. Think of AuctionMapper as a deluxe search tool that allows you to quickly filter your searches down precisely to what you are looking for. The filtered searches are then presented either in a list view or on a map depending on how you choose to view the results. Unlike a typical advanced search where you have to keep going back and forth between the advanced search page and the results page to tweek various constraints, AuctionMapper stays on one page while only the results change, making adjustments to the constraints painless. If you are looking for something big that would be difficult to ship or that you would not want to bid on without seeing first then the map is a great way to locate items for serious consideration. You can easily map the 25 nearest items by dragging a category to the map. You can also map the most or least expensive items as well as by when the item was listed. There are sliders above the map that dynamically display items on the map based on various criteria such a price, number of bids, ending time, and distance. On the other hand AuctionMapper is also a great way to narrow down your searches for items for which location is irrelevant. There are Item Finders that help you locate specific items quickly. The Category Tree lets you see which categories contain your search term. The Item List lets you sort and resort your search results quickly based on price, number of bids, and ending time. You can also select items from the list to display on the map once you find items of real interest and want to see where they are. A pretty handy tool if you are a big eBay shopper. Check it out at www.auctionmapper.com .