Support for multiple keywords

Oct 13, 2025 by talynt.org 22 views

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Introduction

Ebay API is a powerful tool that allows developers to access and manipulate Ebay's vast database of listings, buyers, and sellers. With the Ebay API, you can create custom applications that integrate Ebay's functionality into your own website or application. In this article, we will explore how to use the Ebay API to search for listings by keyword in the title.

Prerequisites

Before we dive into the code, make sure you have the following prerequisites:

An Ebay developer account
A valid Ebay API key
A programming language of your choice (in this case, we will use PHP)
The curl library installed on your server

Ebay API Basics

The Ebay API uses a RESTful architecture, which means that you can access and manipulate data using HTTP requests. The Ebay API has several endpoints, each with its own set of operations. In this article, we will focus on the FindingService endpoint, which allows you to search for listings based on various criteria.

FindingService Endpoint

The FindingService endpoint is used to search for listings based on various criteria, such as keywords, categories, and locations. The endpoint URL is as follows:

https://svcs.ebay.com/services/search/FindingService/v1

Operation-Name Parameter

The OPERATION-NAME parameter is used to specify the operation you want to perform on the FindingService endpoint. In this case, we want to search for listings by keyword in the title, so we will use the FindItemsByKeywords operation.

OPERATION-NAME=FindItemsByKeywords

Api-Key Parameter

The API-KEY parameter is used to authenticate your API requests. You can obtain an API key by creating an Ebay developer account and following the instructions on the Ebay developer portal.

API-KEY=YOUR_API_KEY_HERE

Keywords Parameter

The keywords parameter is used to specify the keyword(s) you want to search for in the title. You can specify multiple keywords by separating them with commas.

keywords=YOUR_KEYWORD_HERE

Example Request

Here is an example request that searches for listings by keyword in the title:

https://svcs.ebay.com/services/search/FindingService/v1?
OPERATION-NAME=FindItemsByKeywords&
API-KEY=YOUR_API_KEY_HERE&
keywords=YOUR_KEYWORD_HERE

Response Format

The Ebay API returns data in XML format by default. However, you can specify the response format using the RESPONSE-DATA-FORMAT parameter.

RESPONSE-DATA-FORMAT=XML

PHP Code

Here is an example PHP code that uses the curl library to make a request to the Ebay API and parse the response:

<?php
// Ebay API endpoint URL
$endpoint = 'https://svcs.ebay.com/services/search/FindingService/v1&#39;;
// Operation name
$operation = 'FindItemsByKeywords';
// API key
$apiKey = 'YOUR_API_KEY_HERE';
// Keyword(s)
$keywords = 'YOUR_KEYWORD_HERE';
// Response data format
$responseFormat = 'XML';
// Create a curl object
$ch = curl_init();
// Set the request URL
curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_URL, $endpoint);
// Set the request method
curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_POST, true);
// Set the request data
curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_POSTFIELDS, http_build_query(array(
'OPERATION-NAME' => $operation,
'API-KEY' => $apiKey,
'keywords' => $keywords,
'RESPONSE-DATA-FORMAT' => $responseFormat
)));
// Set the response format
curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_RETURNTRANSFER, true);
// Execute the request
 $response = curl_exec($ ch);
// Close the curl object
curl_close($ch);
// Parse the response
 $xml = simplexml_load_string($ response);
// Print the response
print_r($xml);
?>

Parsing the Response

The Ebay API returns data in XML format, which can be parsed using the simplexml_load_string function in PHP. Here is an example of how to parse the response:

$xml = simplexml_load_string($response);
// Print the response
print_r($xml);

Conclusion

In this article, we explored how to use the Ebay API to search for listings by keyword in the title. We covered the basics of the Ebay API, including the FindingService endpoint, the OPERATION-NAME parameter, and the API-KEY parameter. We also provided an example PHP code that uses the curl library to make a request to the Ebay API and parse the response. With this knowledge, you can create custom applications that integrate Ebay's functionality into your own website or application.

Future Improvements

In the future, we can improve this code by adding error handling, caching, and pagination. We can also use more advanced techniques, such as using a library like Guzzle to make HTTP requests and parsing the response using a library like SimpleXMLElement.

Example Use Cases

Here are some example use cases for this code:

Creating a custom Ebay search engine that allows users to search for listings by keyword in the title.
Building a web scraper that extracts data from Ebay listings and stores it in a database.
Creating a mobile app that allows users to search for listings by keyword in the title and view the results on their mobile device.

Troubleshooting

Here are some common issues that you may encounter when using this code:

Invalid API key: Make sure that your API key is valid and not expired.
Invalid operation name: Make sure that the operation name is correct and matches the operation you want to perform.
Invalid keywords: Make sure that the keywords are correct and match the listings you want to search for.
XML parsing error: Make sure that the XML response is valid and can be parsed correctly.

Conclusion

In conclusion, this article provided a comprehensive guide to using the Ebay API to search for listings by keyword in the title. We covered the basics of the Ebay API, including the FindingService endpoint, the OPERATION-NAME parameter, and the API-KEY parameter. We also provided an example PHP code that uses the curl library to make a request to the Ebay API and parse the response. With this knowledge, you can create custom applications that integrate Ebay's functionality into your own website or application.

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Introduction

In our previous article, we explored how to use the Ebay API to search for listings by keyword in the title. We covered the basics of the Ebay API, including the FindingService endpoint, the OPERATION-NAME parameter, and the API-KEY parameter. We also provided an example PHP code that uses the curl library to make a request to the Ebay API and parse the response. In this article, we will answer some frequently asked questions about using the Ebay API to search for listings by keyword in the title.

Q&A

Q: What is the Ebay API?

A: The Ebay API is a set of web services that allow developers to access and manipulate Ebay's vast database of listings, buyers, and sellers. With the Ebay API, you can create custom applications that integrate Ebay's functionality into your own website or application.

Q: What is the `FindingService` endpoint?

A: The FindingService endpoint is used to search for listings based on various criteria, such as keywords, categories, and locations. The endpoint URL is as follows:

https://svcs.ebay.com/services/search/FindingService/v1

Q: What is the `OPERATION-NAME` parameter?

A: The OPERATION-NAME parameter is used to specify the operation you want to perform on the FindingService endpoint. In this case, we want to search for listings by keyword in the title, so we will use the FindItemsByKeywords operation.

OPERATION-NAME=FindItemsByKeywords

Q: What is the `API-KEY` parameter?

A: The API-KEY parameter is used to authenticate your API requests. You can obtain an API key by creating an Ebay developer account and following the instructions on the Ebay developer portal.

API-KEY=YOUR_API_KEY_HERE

Q: What is the `keywords` parameter?

A: The keywords parameter is used to specify the keyword(s) you want to search for in the title. You can specify multiple keywords by separating them with commas.

keywords=YOUR_KEYWORD_HERE

Q: How do I parse the response from the Ebay API?

A: The Ebay API returns data in XML format by default. You can parse the response using the simplexml_load_string function in PHP.

$xml = simplexml_load_string($response);
// Print the response
print_r($xml);

Q: What are some common issues that I may encounter when using the Ebay API?

A: Some common issues that you may encounter when using the Ebay API include:

Invalid API key: Make sure that your API key is valid and not expired.
Invalid operation name: Make sure that the operation name is correct and matches the operation you want to perform.
Invalid keywords: Make sure that the keywords are correct and match the listings you want to search for.
XML parsing error: Make sure that the XML response is valid and can be parsed correctly.

Q: How do I handle pagination when using the Ebay API?

A: The Ebay API returns a maximum of 100 items per response. If you need to retrieve more items, you can use the pagination parameter to specify the number of items to return.

pagination=10

Q: How do I handle caching when using the Ebay API?

A: You can use a caching library such as Redis or Memcached to cache the responses from the Ebay API. This can help improve the performance of your application.

Q: How do I handle errors when using the Ebay API?

A: You can use a try-catch block to catch any errors that may occur when making a request to the Ebay API.

try {
    // Make a request to the Ebay API
    $response = curl_exec($ch);
} catch (Exception $e) {
    // Handle the error
    echo 'Error: ' . $e->getMessage();
}

Conclusion

In this article, we answered some frequently asked questions about using the Ebay API to search for listings by keyword in the title. We covered topics such as the Ebay API, the FindingService endpoint, the OPERATION-NAME parameter, and the API-KEY parameter. We also provided examples of how to parse the response from the Ebay API and handle common issues that may occur when using the Ebay API. With this knowledge, you can create custom applications that integrate Ebay's functionality into your own website or application.

Future Improvements

In the future, we can improve this code by adding more features, such as:

Support for multiple keywords: Currently, the code only supports searching for a single keyword. We can add support for multiple keywords by modifying the keywords parameter.
Support for pagination: Currently, the code only returns a maximum of 100 items per response. We can add support for pagination by modifying the pagination parameter.
Support for caching: Currently, the code does not cache the responses from the Ebay API. We can add support for caching by using a caching library such as Redis or Memcached.

Example Use Cases

Here are some example use cases for this code:

Creating a custom Ebay search engine: You can use this code to create a custom Ebay search engine that allows users to search for listings by keyword in the title.
Building a web scraper: You can use this code to build a web scraper that extracts data from Ebay listings and stores it in a database.
Creating a mobile app: You can use this code to create a mobile app that allows users to search for listings by keyword in the title and view the results on their mobile device.

Conclusion

In conclusion, this article provided a comprehensive guide to using the Ebay API to search for listings by keyword in the title. We covered topics such as the Ebay API, the FindingService endpoint, the OPERATION-NAME parameter, and the API-KEY parameter. We also provided examples of how to parse the response from the Ebay API and handle common issues that may occur when using the Ebay API. With this knowledge, you can create custom applications that integrate Ebay's functionality into your own website or application.