www.auctionsieve.com

jjforb · Posted: Wed Jan 12, 2005 9:42 pm Post subject: Connection refused

I just had something pecuiliar happen for only one of my sieves. I got the error message "failed to connect to ebay java.net connectException connection refused" I tried it agian and got the same message. This is a sieve that I have been using for weeks without problem. All of my other sieves ran without problems. Any suggestions? Thank you.

mar-tron · Posted: Wed Jan 12, 2005 11:56 pm Post subject:

I've been having the exact same problem -- but it seems to be only doing it on searches using a search term. On searches using categories, it works as normal. Here's exactly what the warning screen says after I click on "Get Auctions!":

Network connection failed

Failed to connect to ebay. Perhaps try again later.
java.net.MalformedURLException: no protocol: (then has the search term with a bunch of gobbledygook after it...)

I thought maybe I'd accidently unknowingly changed some setting or something, because the first search I tried today worked fine, then I kept getting that message over and over, until I was about to give up, because nothing I was trying in changing options, etc was working -- and then finally it worked again. Then I realized that both that one and the first one that worked were searches by category.

Do you think eBay might have changed something related to the searches that's somehow screwing with this program and keeping it from connecting? Or are jjforb and I the only ones having this problem?

nev · Posted: Thu Jan 13, 2005 12:19 am Post subject:

Hmmm, I've just tried a US sieve with a search term and it worked.
Could you post the details of a search that's not working?

mar-tron · Posted: Thu Jan 13, 2005 5:43 am Post subject:

Ummm -- I'm not sure what you mean by details, but it's still doing it, so here's an example of what I'm doing and what's happening:

Say, for example -- I collect Elvira stuff. Elvira, Mistress of the Dark, that is, and there's lots of other women with the first name Elvira, that Oak Ridge Boys song, and just all kinds of other stuff that comes up that's NOT "MOTD" Elvira. So I "trash word" out all that stuff, and "Catch word" the stuff I'm most particularly interested in -- like "Night Brew" (the beer that was produced for only one year that had her likeness) advertising materials and stuff, and "calendar", because I'm missing a couple of the ones that were produced.

So I select my Elvira sieve (just a search for the word "Elvira", with all the trash and catch words I've put in), and click on "Get Auctions!". For just a split second, it says "Search Elvira - getting page : 1..." as usual, and then almost immediately, this warning box pops up, with a big red stop sign:

Network connection failed

Failed to connect to ebay. Perhaps try again later.
java.net.MalformedURLException: no protocol: /Elvira_W0QQfromZR7QQfrtsZ0QQfsopZ1QQsearch_optionZ1

It does that with EVERY sieve I have that's based on a search term (I tried 'em all), but it works fine, just as it always has, if the sieve is based on searching a category.

I hadn't searched for anything since Friday, I think, but it was working fine then. I just noticed this for the first time today. The watchlist and price history are still working as normal. Like I said, I didn't THINK I had done anything to it, because it was working fine Friday, and then all of a sudden it wasn't today -- but I tried changing some of the options to see if it would fix it, and nothing would correct it.

Don't know what else I can tell you...

nev · Posted: Thu Jan 13, 2005 7:20 am Post subject:

Hmmm - can't get it to fail for me doing a search for elvira.
That's a pretty odd error - it's not even constructing a valid url to go and get the ebay web page.
Is this ebay US?

Can you do the following :
- Run AuctionSieve
- switch to your elvira sieve
- Select File->Properties for xxx...
- hit Ok
- go to the directory where you installed AuctionSieve
- find the most recently modified file - something like 1.info.sieve
- send it to me
(it's just a text file)

Nev

nev · Posted: Thu Jan 13, 2005 1:09 pm Post subject:

Thanks for sending the file Marty.
It's still working fine for me. Sad

Is there anything that may have changed over the weekend?
Did you install or make any changes to any firewall/spyware/antivirus/etc software on your pc?

Joe, I also tried out some of your searches and had no problems. Sad

mar-tron · Posted: Thu Jan 13, 2005 7:26 pm Post subject:

Nope, I haven't installed or changed anything, that I can remember -- definitely not installed, anyway (I have a Mac, by the way...).

I forgot to mention that at one point I had thought that maybe it was running low on memory or something, so I closed the program and reopened it, but that didn't help (I usually leave it open all the time, for the watchlist alerts). And then this morning my browser started acting all wonky, with links not working, font sizes changing, and other weird stuff going on (I generally have at least 4 or 5 windows open, with a bunch of tabbed windows within each one, and leave the browser open all the time and the computer on, and just turn off the monitor at night -- unless I go out of town for more than a day, then I shut down and turn off everything), so I figured -- low on memory -- what else could it be? So I close all the windows, and quit. Then I thought "A-HA! Maybe that's somehow what's causing AuctionSieve to not connect!". I also shut down AuctionSieve. Opened everything back up -- browser's now working fine again, AuctionSieve searches STILL not working properly (I didn't really think that theory through -- the category searches are working, so it obviously had been connecting -- it's just the search term sieves that are not working).

This is really weird. It MUST be something on my end, I assume, because I'm the only one that's reporting this problem -- at least on the boards. The other guy's post read like it was only one sieve that it was doing this on for him (and it's ALL of mine, except category sieves), and he hasn't posted again, so is his working now? If it IS something on my end (and not eBay or the program itself), I have NO IDEA what the hell it could be...

sigh...

nev · Posted: Fri Jan 14, 2005 3:37 am Post subject:

Have you tried a complete shutdown? That would definitely be worth a try.

The other thing may be that something has changed at your isp, but that's clutching at straws...
If it was a change at eBay that affected all users of AuctionSieve, I'd have a very full inbox. :)

One last suggestion. Uninstall and reinstall AuctionSieve.
Some mac users, for some completely unknown reasons, have sometimes had the program become corrupted (sometimes when they download an update).
Your sieves should stick around but if you want to back them up just go to the folder where you installed AuctionSieve and copy all the *.sieve files.

mar-tron · Posted: Fri Jan 14, 2005 4:43 am Post subject:

Welp, shut her down -- didn't help. Uninstalled, downloaded, installed -- didn't help. Updated -- nope, still acting exactly the same...

I just thought of something -- I seem to remember reading somewhere once something about a solution to what to do to fix some program if it starts acting weird (but I couldn't possibly remember what program it was, or exactly where I read it -- but it was more than likely in MacAddict), and it was to trash the program's preferences file. Do you think I might could try that? Or could that maybe screw up something else?

(I'M just clutching at straws now...)

nev · Posted: Fri Jan 14, 2005 4:51 am Post subject:

It can't hurt - the worst thing would be that you'd have to reinstall AuctionSieve.
Here's what a quick google search turned up about trashing preferences :
http://aroundcny.com/technofile/texts/mac031704.html

mar-tron · Posted: Fri Jan 14, 2005 5:13 am Post subject:

Tried it -- didn't change ANYTHING, as far as I can tell. It's still havng the same problem, anyway...

??????????????????????????? Crying or Very sad

abysmillard · Officially active! Joined: 14 Jan 2005 Posts: 2

I have the exact same problem that mar-tron does; same error message and everything. Started Monday or Tuesday. The only difference with me is I just updated my system to Mac OS 10.3.7, but Auction Sieve worked normally for a day or two after the install. I haven't written sooner because I assumed it was an eBay change and that you'd catch up with a new version in a couple of days. Thanks.

mar-tron · Posted: Fri Jan 14, 2005 8:19 am Post subject:

I don't think it could have anything to do with the system software, though. I haven't updated mine. I'm still using the same 10.2.8 system I have been for forever...

nev · Posted: Sun Jan 16, 2005 12:36 pm Post subject:

I hate this kind of bug... Sad

bob_dvc · Posted once Joined: 16 Jan 2005 Posts: 1

I am having exactly the same problem. It will not connect to Ebay when I do a search on a specific word. It will search Ebay categories.

It has been doing this the last several days.