Mining eBay Web Services: Building Applications with the eBay API

430 Pages·2004·6.75 MB·English

by  John Paul Mueller

4339c00.qxd 5/25/04 5:10 PM Page i
(cid:1) Mining eBay Web Services:
Building Applications with the eBay API
4339c00.qxd 5/25/04 5:10 PM Page ii
4339c00.qxd 5/25/04 5:10 PM Page iii
John Paul Mueller
(cid:1) Mining eBay®Web Services:
Building Applications with the eBay API
Sybex
San Francisco • London
4339c00.qxd 5/25/04 5:10 PM Page iv
Associate Publisher: Joel Fugazzotto
Acquisitions and Developmental Editor: Tom Cirtin
Production Editor: Leslie E.H. Light
Technical Editor: Russ Mullen
Copyeditor: Cheryl Hauser
Compositor: Happenstance Type-O-Rama
Graphic Illustrator: Happenstance Type-O-Rama
Proofreaders: Laurie O’Connell, Nancy Riddiough
Indexer: Lynnzee Elze
Cover Design and Illustration: Richard Miller, Calyx Design
Copyright © 2004 SYBEX Inc., 1151 Marina Village Parkway, Alameda, CA 94501. World rights reserved. No part of this publication may
be stored in a retrieval system, transmitted, or reproduced in any way, including but not limited to photocopy, photograph, magnetic, or
other record, without the prior agreement and written permission of the publisher.
Library of Congress Card Number: 2004104104
ISBN: 0-7821-4339-3
SYBEX and the SYBEX logo are either registered trademarks or trademarks of SYBEX Inc. in the United States and/or other countries.
Screen reproductions produced with PaintShop Pro. PaintShop Pro is a trademark of Jasc Software, Inc.
Internet screen shot(s) using Microsoft Internet Explorer reprinted by permission from Microsoft Corporation.
Openwave and the Openwave logo are trademarks of Openwave Systems Inc. All rights reserved.
TRADEMARKS: SYBEX has attempted throughout this book to distinguish proprietary trademarks from descriptive terms by following
the capitalization style used by the manufacturer.
eBay and the eBay logo are trademarks of eBay Inc. All rights reserved.
The author and publisher have made their best efforts to prepare this book, and the content is based upon final release software whenever
possible. Portions of the manuscript may be based upon pre-release versions supplied by software manufacturer(s). The author and the pub-
lisher make no representation or warranties of any kind with regard to the completeness or accuracy of the contents herein and accept no
liability of any kind including but not limited to performance, merchantability, fitness for any particular purpose, or any losses or damages
of any kind caused or alleged to be caused directly or indirectly from this book.
Manufactured in the United States of America
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
4339c00.qxd 5/25/04 5:10 PM Page v
SOFTWARE LICENSE AGREEMENT: Warranty
TERMSAND CONDITIONS SYBEX warrants the enclosed media to be free of physical defects
for a period of ninety (90) days after purchase. The Software is not
The media and/or any online materials accompanying this book
available from SYBEX in any other form or media than that enclosed
that are available now or in the future contain programs and/or
herein or posted to www.sybex.com. If you discover a defect in the
text files (the “Software”) to be used in connection with the book.
media during this warranty period, you may obtain a replacement
SYBEX hereby grants to you a license to use the Software, subject
of identical format at no charge by sending the defective media,
to the terms that follow. Your purchase, acceptance, or use of the
postage prepaid, with proof of purchase to:
Software will constitute your acceptance of such terms.
The Software compilation is the property of SYBEX unless other- SYBEX Inc.
wise indicated and is protected by copyright to SYBEX or other Product Support Department
copyright owner(s) as indicated in the media files (the “Owner(s)”). 1151 Marina Village Parkway
You are hereby granted a single-user license to use the Software Alameda, CA 94501
for your personal, noncommercial use only. You may not repro- Web: http://www.sybex.com
duce, sell, distribute, publish, circulate, or commercially exploit
the Software, or any portion thereof, without the written consent After the 90-day period, you can obtain replacement media of
of SYBEX and the specific copyright owner(s) of any component identical format by sending us the defective disk, proof of purchase,
software included on this media. and a check or money order for $10, payable to SYBEX.
In the event that the Software or components include specific
Disclaimer
license requirements or end-user agreements, statements of condi-
SYBEX makes no warranty or representation, either expressed or
tion, disclaimers, limitations or warranties (“End-User License”),
implied, with respect to the Software or its contents, quality, per-
those End-User Licenses supersede the terms and conditions herein
formance, merchantability, or fitness for a particular purpose. In
as to that particular Software component. Your purchase, acceptance,
no event will SYBEX, its distributors, or dealers be liable to you or
or use of the Software will constitute your acceptance of such End-
any other party for direct, indirect, special, incidental, consequen-
User Licenses.
tial, or other damages arising out of the use of or inability to use
By purchase, use or acceptance of the Software you further agree the Software or its contents even if advised of the possibility of
to comply with all export laws and regulations of the United States such damage. In the event that the Software includes an online
as such laws and regulations may exist from time to time. update feature, SYBEX further disclaims any obligation to provide
this feature for any specific duration other than the initial posting.
Reusable Code in This Book The exclusion of implied warranties is not permitted by some states.
The author(s) created reusable code in this publication expressly for Therefore, the above exclusion may not apply to you. This war-
reuse by readers. Sybex grants readers limited permission to reuse ranty provides you with specific legal rights; there may be other
the code found in this publication, its accompanying CD-ROM or rights that you may have that vary from state to state. The pricing
available for download from our website so long as the author(s) of the book with the Software by SYBEX reflects the allocation
are attributed in any application containing the reusable code and of risk and limitations on liability contained in this agreement of
the code itself is never distributed, posted online by electronic Terms and Conditions.
transmission, sold, or commercially exploited as a stand-alone
product. Shareware Distribution
This Software may contain various programs that are distributed
Software Support as shareware. Copyright laws apply to both shareware and ordinary
Components of the supplemental Software and any offers associ- commercial software, and the copyright Owner(s) retains all rights.
ated with them may be supported by the specific Owner(s) of that If you try a shareware program and continue using it, you are
material, but they are not supported by SYBEX. Information expected to register it. Individual programs differ on details of trial
regarding any available support may be obtained from the periods, registration, and payment. Please observe the requirements
Owner(s) using the information provided in the appropriate stated in appropriate files.
read.me files or listed elsewhere on the media.
Copy Protection
Should the manufacturer(s) or other Owner(s) cease to offer sup-
The Software in whole or in part may or may not be copy-pro-
port or decline to honor any offer, SYBEX bears no responsibility.
tected or encrypted. However, in all cases, reselling or redistribut-
This notice concerning support for the Software is provided for
ing these files without authorization is expressly forbidden except
your information only. SYBEX is not the agent or principal of the
as specifically provided for by the Owner(s) therein.
Owner(s), and SYBEX is in no way responsible for providing any
support for the Software, nor is it liable or responsible for any sup-
port provided, or not provided, by the Owner(s).
4339c00.qxd 5/25/04 5:10 PM Page vi
4339c00.qxd 5/25/04 5:10 PM Page vii
This book is dedicated to Matt Wagner—a source
of encouragement in troubled times and a voice of
reason when things go wrong, a friend in
weather foul and fair.
4339c00.qxd 5/25/04 5:10 PM Page viii
4339c00.qxd 5/25/04 5:10 PM Page ix
Acknowledgments
T
hanks to my wife, Rebecca, for working with me to get this book completed. I really don’t
know what I would have done without her help in researching and compiling some of the
information that appears in this book. She also did a fine job of proofreading my rough draft
and page proofing the result.
Russ Mullen deserves thanks for his technical edit of this book. He greatly added to the
accuracy and depth of the material you see here. Russ is always providing me with great URLs
for new products and ideas. I also appreciated his hard work in testing endless versions of
applications and providing input in my ideas. This book is technically challenging in that it
relies on a number of programming languages, new and evolving technology, and several new
products. Russ met the challenge with an efficiency that few other people could match.
eBay was very helpful in putting this book together. I don’t know everyone from eBay who
worked on this book, but I can thank those that I do know by name. Gary Downing made
many introductions and acted as eBay’s ambassador for the book. Michael Knopp provided a
great many helpful comments and personal insights into eBay. I know that the book is much
better for all of the help I received from these and other individuals from eBay.
A number of people read all or part of this book to help me refine the approach and to test
the examples on a number of systems. These unpaid volunteers helped in ways too numerous
to mention here. I especially appreciate the efforts of Eva Beattie who read the entire book
and selflessly devoted herself to this project. Mike and Jody Cummings of The Treasure Mill
provided me with training on using eBay in a real world business environment, helped me
understand some of the nuances of the bidding process, and generally provided their expertise
on a decidedly complex environment. Alessandro Vernet provided a variety of helpful tips
and hints. Osvaldo Téllez Almirall provided extensive input on international issues, making
the book much better suited to international needs as a result. David Clark helped with
accessibility, user interface, and PHP development issues.
Matt Wagner, my agent, deserves credit for helping me get the contract in the first place
and taking care of all the details that most authors don’t really consider. I always appreciate
his help. It’s good to know that someone wants to help.
Finally, I would like to thank Tom Cirtin, Leslie Light, Cheryl Hauser, and the rest of the
editorial and production staff at Sybex for their assistance in bringing this book to print. It’s
always nice to work with such a great group of professionals and I very much appreciate the
friendship we have built over the last three books.
4339c00.qxd 5/25/04 5:10 PM Page x
Contents at a Glance
Introduction xx
Part I Discovering eBay Web Services 1
Chapter 1: Learning about eBay Web Services 3
Chapter 2: Using eBay Web Services to Your Advantage 25
Chapter 3: Defining a Search 47
Chapter 4: Working with Web Service Data 63
Part II Writing eBay Web Services Programs 95
Chapter 5: Starting the Development Process 97
Chapter 6: Writing Browser-Based Applications 121
Chapter 7: Writing Applications Using VBA 143
Chapter 8: Writing Applications Using Visual Studio 171
Chapter 9: Writing Applications Using PHP 215
Chapter 10: Writing Applications Using Java 239
Chapter 11: Writing Applications for Mobile Devices 261
Part III Refining Your eBay Web Services Program 281
Chapter 12: Crafting Your Application 283
Chapter 13: Considering User Needs 297
Chapter 14: Other Refinements You Should Consider 313