kosowwwa / penny-auction-server

Penny Auction Server

This server provides infrastructure to simulate a penny auction, like the site http://www.quibids.com/. This server will return information about 10 items always up for auction. The server allows clients to send PUT requests with a username to allow someone to "bid" on an item. The server is also configured to simulate "random betters" to make the auctions appear active. The server provides a "remote control" API where auctions can be reset (in case everything stabilizes to SOLD) and the random betters functionality can be enabled and disabled gracefully.

The penny-auction-server repo has a sister repo for the penny auction client:

https://github.com/WDI-SEA/penny-auction-client-solution

Enjoy!

API

Auction Information

• GET http://pennyauctionserver.herokuapp.com/users
• GET http://pennyauctionserver.herokuapp.com/auctions
• GET http://pennyauctionserver.herokuapp.com/auctions/0
• PUT http://pennyauctionserver.herokuapp.com/auctions/0
  • body: {username: "some username"}

Here's how you can use fetch() to initiate a PUT request to the server:

var json = JSON.stringify({username: 'penguincool42'});
fetch(`http://pennyauctionserver.herokuapp.com/auctions/${this.props.item.id}`,
  {
    method: 'PUT',
    headers: {
      'Accept': 'application/json',
      'Content-Type': 'application/json'
    },
    body: json
})
.then((response) => {
  return response.json();
}).then((response) => {
  console.log("put response", response);
}).catch((response) => {
  console.log('Error!', response);
});

Auction Remote Controls

• GET http://pennyauctionserver.herokuapp.com/reset
• GET http://pennyauctionserver.herokuapp.com/stop-random-betters
• GET http://pennyauctionserver.herokuapp.com/start-random-betters

Random Betters

The server includes a mechanism to simulate activity on all of the auctions.

What are Penny Auctions?

Penny auctions are websites where expensive items, like $1,000 TVs or iPads or even small $10 Wal Mart Gift Cards are put up for auction. Each auction only exists for "a small amount of time." Each auction starts at a small price and has a minute on the clock. When users bid on an item the auction price of the item increases by one cent and ten seconds is added to the clock.

These sites are a total scam. People see expensive items at low auction prices with short clock times and think they can easily snag a cheap item. The sites rely on having enough users on the page making enough active bids that each auction actually lasts for a very long time. Even when the clock hovers around "zero seconds left" it will stay there for quite a long time because each user bid will add ten seconds to the clock, basically forever.

Anyways, these sites present a fun and interesting development challenge.

Licensing

All content is licensed under a CC­BY­NC­SA 4.0 license. All software code is licensed under GNU GPLv3. For commercial use or alternative licensing, please contact [e-mail].