Bot For Our Blends!

[Mr.Pink]

There are clearly already purchasing bots in use for hard to get tobacco, but usage of automated software is usually against the general terms and conditions of most sites (not that the people behind the bots care). Bot mitigation is available, but time and cost is always involved. The solution for some stores is to not sell online rather than deal with these types of issues. I can't fault them for that; please don't add to the already going list of issues that the tobacco stores are already facing.

Name one bot that is able to purchase tobacco, Please? You cant- to your argument about bot mitigation that's an hour-long discussion and not used on Tabacco sites. we are not "sneaker" botting here. I mean no disrespect. I understand my tone may come across as Crass

 

[Casual]

I would not concern yourself […]

I’ll keep my own counsel, thanks.

The bot completes the same actions as a human would. It just clicks for you while you are away.

I’ve been a network programmer for twenty five years. I’ve got a handle on “bots”.

I love our moral compass here. A Bot is a bad idea, yet charging our fellow piper 6x times retail for a blend is perfectly fine.....

Please feel free to keep your moralizing to yourself. I don’t do either of those things, and failing to support your bot does not equate to holding some accusatory strawman position you’d like to demonize.

 

[Chasing Embers]

It still amazes me how many still rely on online sales to find hard to find blends when B&Ms, with little to no online presence, keep them on shelves for weeks and longer and will ship.

 

[Mr.Pink]

I’ll keep my own counsel, thanks.
That's exemplary! His concern was to get "banned" from his tobacconist. Won't happen. I am still waiting for the name of the program to buy for tobacco, so I don't have to go through the trouble.


I’ve been a network programmer for twenty-five years. I’ve got a handle on “bots”.
Please Enlighten me and explain your position. Not in generalities, I have trouble assimilating them. 25yrs in correlation to my proposal. Please explain the "Handel?"


Please feel free to keep your moralizing to yourself. I don’t do either of those things and failing to support your bot does not equate to holding some accusatory strawman position you’d like to demonize.

I don't find any need to moralize myself. I don't sell Tabacco for Profit. I have read these forums for years and never Joined, Due to the fact, I don't need to place myself in these fallacies of the reasoning arguments. I am pretty sure a strawman argument diverts attention to a different proposition/argument which I have not participated in. I simply am attempting to place hard to find blends into the hands of our fellow pipe smokers. "support my bot" I haven't asked for any monetary value.

 

[spicy_boiii]

I'd like to put in my two cents, I hope @Mr. Pink that it is not received as disrespectful, as that is not my intention. I admire your ability to create such a program and the skill needed to do it.

I think that things now are at a fair playing field in the world of purchasing tobacco as is reasonably possible. Like embers has said, many quality B&M stores are great sources of hard to find blends.

For many, including myself, the majority of the tobacco they purchase is bought online.

As it stands now, the open nature of the internet, message boards, newsletters, instagram, and other elements makes purchasing tobacco fairly simple: If you have a blend you are interested in, the information to obtain said blend is out there for everyone. Those that refrain from reading, researching, calling, or signing up for emails are not on equal footing. I believe that is fair.

Many have learned how to obtain their favorite blends despite the difficulty in competing against others.

I think that the limited fairness that exists of in-stock notifications, wait lists, etc. is eliminated if a sniping program is used/proliferated. Because that's exactly what it is, sniping.

Take Rouxgaroux, for example. Ernie couldn't have been more transparent about when it would be available and how to purchase it. Now imagine that a software or computer program sniped those that signed up for notifications, called Ernie, and waited for the time for the drop to go live. I personally had never been able to purchase any, and waited until Halloween with my "Game plan" to finally purchase some.

I don't see how using a sniping program would be fair, and even if offered use of such a system, I would decline as it would go against my principles.

Again, just my personal opinion and thoughts. No disrespect or passive slight intended.

 

[badbriar]

A Bot is a bad idea, yet charging our fellow piper 6x times retail for a blend is perfectly fine..... I am just attempting to give some a chance to buy a few tins they normally would not be able to procure due to scarcity.

The man has a valid point here. I also find it amazing where someone has multiples of new tins / bags for sale at many times the retail price when most others cannot manage to even get one for their own enjoyment. This is why a lot of members here have said they've given up on hunting the hard to finds. Personally, I think bots may level the playing field if it gives the one and two item buyers a shot at getting a unicorn. Just sayin'.

 

[greeneyes]

Bot mitigation is already very commonplace. If you hit 'refresh' too many times on your favorite tobacco retailer's website waiting for Penzance to show 'in-stock' you run the risk of having your IP blacklisted and being served up 'alternative content' (i.e. a perpetual 'out of stock').

 

[jaytex1969]

If you hit 'refresh' too many times on your favorite tobacco retailer's website waiting for Penzance to show 'in-stock' you run the risk of having your IP blacklisted and being served up 'alternative content' (i.e. a perpetual 'out of stock').

So, no change, really?

 

[frozenchurchwarden]

I am considering creating a Software bot for our beloved hard to get blends. I am wondering if this is a worthwhile pursuit and of interest to others here? I am more or less creating it for me, but once it's developed It needs to be tested. The software will, once it restocks, it will purchase, and auto-checkout.

I feel like this is the Pandora's Box of Nuclear Warfare.
As soon as it's out in the wild everyone is going to need to use it, and then they're just going to put a CAPTCHA on tobacco sites.
If it does work, don't share it, these things can only end up making life more annoying for everyone.

 

[burleyboy]

I doubt this would be the first bot plowing through tobacco sites, considering certain blends and how quickly they sell out.

Edit: I’m not a friend of those tools.

 

[beezer]

It still amazes me how many still rely on online sales to find hard to find blends when B&Ms, with little to no online presence, keep them on shelves for weeks and longer and will ship.

This.

Everytime a unicorn drops and the online retailers sell out in minutes I waltz into my B&M a week later and find a stable full. My B&M only takes phone orders from customers they know and they refuse to ship out of state. I've been a customer of theirs for years so if I want an extra bag or tin they allow it, but generally I leave some for others unless it is of stock that just isn't moving for some reason.

I know not everyone has a good B&M nearby, but for those who do they should do periodic walk-ins and build rapport with their local cigar/pipe guys.

WRT the bot idea in the OP, I say go for it! I sign up for the automatic email alerts, which give a slight advantage. If building a bot turns you into a world class bounty hunter it'll be due to your ingenuity and innovativeness.