One of Groups

This unique feature of AuctionPrime gives you the flexibility you need to win your auction items for the price you want to pay. It lets you set AutoBids for multiple items, and after it buys one of them, it simply doesn't bid on the rest of them! Here's how it works:

To start using 'One of' groups:

1. Select an item for which you have saved several possible auctions, but you only want to win one of them.

2. In either the 'One of" group column in the Item List, or the "One of' Field on the Item Detail tab, type a name for your group. Example : I'm currently trying to get a good buy on a "Mission Impossible" DVD, so I typed "MI DVD" as the name of my 'One of' group.

3. The name you typed in is now available in the drop down selection list for the 'One of' field. Just find other auctions in the group and select your newly named group as their 'One of' setting.

Applying your 'One of' group to many items at once:

If you use the "Item Name Contains" entry on the Select tab to make a list of items with the same text in the Item Name (and description if needed), then a new button will appear on the Item List tab : "Apply 'One Of' to All". This button only appears if you have used the "Item name Contains" Select option, and it has found more than one item.

You can then select a line in the Item List for which you have already entered a 'One of' group name, and click the "Apply 'One Of' to All" button. The 'One of' group will be instantly applied to all the items in the list.

Using 'One of' groups with Missions and Searches:

This is really the easiest way to use 'One of' groups.

1. Use AuctionPrime's Search button to go to the auction's web site and do a search for your item.

2. When the search results are displayed, click the 'Save Search' button, and assign a name to your saved search in the dialog box that appears.

3. Close the browser window containing your search results.

4. Open the 'Missions' window.

5. On the blank line at the bottom of the Mission List, type a name for a mission. In my example here, I typed "Mission Impossible DVD" as the name of my 'mission'.

6. Enter any other information you want to on the new mission line.

7. In the 'One of" column, enter a name for a 'One of' group to go with this mission.

8. In the 'Search' column, use the drop down list to select the Search you just saved.

9. Click the 'Show Current Search' button. A browser window will come up using your saved search. Any items you now 'Remember' using this browser window will automatically save the Mission's 'One of' group as the remembered item's 'One of' group!

10. Don't change to a different search in this browser window, as it will continue to think that you are looking at search results for the Mission you launched it from, and will continue to save the Mission's 'One of' group to the item. To do a different search, close this window and launch a new search window.

Ten steps look like a lot to remember, but once you do this one time, you'll see that's its really a very simple and sensible procedure that takes only moments to accomplish.

'One of' groups and AutoBids

There are two situations possible here:

1. You only want one of the items included in the 'One of' group.
Whether or not you have a Mission set up for the item you want, once AuctionPrime buys an item, it sets the Status for all other items with the same 'One of' group name to "Not needed". If AutoBid windows are already open for other items in the group, AuctionPrime closes them.
Warning : AuctionPrime waits a few seconds after an auction closes to record its results, making sure that the auction is really closed so that it can get the correct final High Bidder. For this reason, don't use "One of' groups to AutoBid on auctions that  close within 20 seconds of each other.

2. You want to buy several items in the group.

Well, this really isn't a 'One of' group anymore ;-), but AuctionPrime will still handle this for you.
First, set up a Mission, assign a 'One of' group name to it, and enter the number of items "Wanted".
When AuctionPrime buys an item with a 'One of' group set, it looks for Missions that are set to that 'One of' group. If it finds one, it looks at the number of items Wanted for that Mission, and at the number of items Bought for that Mission. AuctionPrime then adds the number of items bought in the auction just ended. (So if you buy 3 items in a Dutch Auction, AuctionPrime will recognize this and add 3 items to the Bought total for the Mission.)
If it hasn't yet bought all the items wanted, it leaves the AutoBid status active for the rest of the items with that 'One of' group assigned.
If the number of items Bought equals the number of items Wanted, then AuctionPrime 'turns off' AutoBidding for the rest of the group.

Note that in the case of a Dutch Auction, AuctionPrime will adjust the quantity "bid for" by using Missions. When it starts to place the bid, AuctionPrime will look for a Mission that matches the auction's 'One of' group, if set. If AuctionPrime finds a matching mission, it checks to see how many items are still needed to complete that mission, and won't bid for more than that.

Example: You have a Mission set up to buy stuffed animals, and you want to buy 5 of them. You set a 'One of' group for the Mission, named "Stuffed animals".

You have also set AutoBids for five auctions, with their 'One of' group' set to "Stuffed animals".

The last auction in the group is a Dutch Auction, and you've set the quantity to bid for at 5, in case you don't win any of the earlier auctions.

AuctionPrime starts AutoBidding for you, and wins the first and thrid auction, so you've now bought two stuffed animals of the five.

When AuctionPrime starts to AutoBid on the Dutch Auction, it will find the Mission, and see that you already have two of the five items you wanted. It will then only bid for three items in the Dutch Auction, even though you'd entered a quantity of five! :-D Pretty neat, huh?!?

How do I get rid of 'One of" groups once they're through?

You don't have to, AuctionPrime does it for you. Normally AuctionPrime's selection list of 'One of' groups will only include 'One of' entries for Items or Missions still pending.

So if you have a 'One of' group set for five items, and all the auctions close, you won't see that selection anymore in the drop down list. This is true even if you don't buy any of the items.

However, if you set up a Mission for those items, you'll still see the 'One of' selection for that group as long as the Mission is not complete. Once the Mission is also complete, the 'One of' group name won't be in the drop down list anymore.

However, you can still see all past 'One of' groups listed if you want to. Just go to the "Select Tab", and click the "Display All" checkbox ... its just above the "One Of Group" heading.