This documentation is for eBay Auction Watch v1.72. Be sure to download the latest version from the Windows Live Gallery or from eBay Auction Watch download page.

Quick Start

Syncing with your eBay account

Fig. 1 shows the eBay Auction Watch Gadget after first install. Your first step should be to sync the gadget with your eBay account. Click on "Click to login" to login through the official, secure eBay login page.

Logging in allows eBay Auction Watch to monitor auctions in your My eBay Bid and Watching list. You only have to login once--the gadget will remember you upon restart, reinstallation, and reuse. When you complete the eBay login process, eBay Auction Watch will automatically sync with all auctions in your watching and bidding lists. Note: eBay Auction Watch does not have access to your eBay password, email address, or other personal details.

More popular sections

Setting your home eBay
Auto-adding auctions
Changing photo size
Correcting time
Bidding, Buy It Now!, and Best Offer
Tracking and saving sellers
Searching and saving searches (NEW!)

Using eBay Auction Watch

Fig. 3 shows eBay Auction Watch docked in the sidebar and displaying the open auction list (one auction, large photos). The open list contains all your open auctions. When an auction closes, it is moved out of open list and into your closed list after ten seconds.

All auction details are automatically updated at timed intervals, which increase in frequency as the auction gets closer to closing. Here are the details of the display and controls from top to bottom:

• eBay logo: Click this logo to search in the flyout window.
• Next to the eBay logo are links to eBay's homepage and your My eBay page.
• The auction photo is next. In the upper right of the photo is the remaining time for this auction, which counts down in real time. When you are viewing small or no photos, the countdown is directly below the auction title and photo.
• The first two/three lines of text below or next to the photo is the auction title. Due to space limitations, the complete title usually cannot fit here. Only one line is displayed when not viewing photos
• Next is the current price on the left with bid count on the right. If the price is too long, the bid count is hidden. For fixed-priced auctions the number of items available is displayed instead of bid count.
• The final line of text shows the current high bidder, and if space providing, the bidder's feedback. "No bids" shows if there are no bids.

Below the auction details is the Control Bar

• First is the Refresh button. Click this to refresh auctions visible in the gadget and reload auctions from your My eBay (when logged in).
• Next is the Auction Browser. This shows the current auction number (or topmost auction if more than one is displayed) followed by total auctions in your open list. Flanking these numbers are up/down buttons to navigate to the previous or next auction in the list. You can also double-click on these numbers to jump to the first or last auction in your list.
• Finally we have the List Switcher. Click this to move between your open (green) and closed (red) auction list.

You can access full auction details in your browser or the flyout window and remove auctions from eBay Auction Watch directly from the sidebar:

• View auction details in the flyout - Single-click an auction to view complete details in the flyout window.
• View auction details in your default web browser - Double-click an auction to view it in your browser.
• Remove an auction - Click the red "X" button that appears in the upper-left when mousinging-over an auction.

Fig. 4 shows the gadget displaying the closed auction list. The closed list displays the same details and uses the same buttons and navigation as the open list. All auctions in the closed list display "Closed" as time remaining.

Flyout details windows

In the flyout details windows you can view complete auction details, bid on auctions, Buy It Now, search eBay, and track your favorite sellers.

(Fig. 6). Shipping and time zones are based on your home eBay and shipping location. The flyout also displays a dynamic auction countdown. Refresh auction details by clicking the "Refresh" link in the bottom right. You can view the auction in eBay buy clicking the photo or the "View in eBay" tab on top. Close the flyout by clicking anywhere outside the gadget/flyout.

Single-click an auction in the sidebar to open its details in the flyout window. Click the "Item details" tab to return to auction details when in another tab.

Bidding, Buy It Now!, and Best Offer

You can easily place bids on eBay auctions from the flyout. Click the "Place Bid" tab on top to view the bidding page (Fig. 6a).

You will see a dynamic countdown of time remaining, the current high bidder, current price, and current price to bid. Simply enter your bid and click 'Place Bid'. You will be asked to confirm your bid in the next step.

Please note this is REAL BIDDING, placing a bid through eBay Auction Watch is the same as bidding via eBay.com and holds the same terms and conditions.

You can also purchase Buy It Now! and fixed-priced items from the flyout. Click the 'Buy It Now' tab on top to view the BIN page.

Simply enter your purchase and click 'Buy It Now'. You will be asked to confirm your purchase in the next step (Fig. 6b).

Please note this is a REAL PURCHASE, making a purchase through eBay Auction Watch is the same as buying via eBay.com and holds the same terms and conditions.

When an auction allows best offers, click the "Make offer" tab to make an offer.

Configure eBay Auction Watch

Main gadget configuration is handled on the Setting window, which can be displayed by clicking on the "wrench" icon that appears when mousing-over the gadget (Fig. 2).Choose between different settings by using the drop-down box in the upper-left.

Main Settings

Home eBay: Set this to the eBay site you normally use. All eBay windows that open will open into the eBay site you choose here.

Ship to: Set this to your home location, the country in which you receive shipments. Your home country determines what shipping rates are displayed.

Logged in as ...: This shows you the username of the eBay account currently logged in with eBay Auction Watch.

Layout/Photo Settings

Windows Vista Sidebar gadgets have two states. When a gadget is contained within the sidebar, it is "docked". Conversely, you can drag the gadget out of the sidebar and onto the desktop--this is "undocked" or floating. To drag the gadget, use the "grab area" below the wrench icon (see Fig. 2).

Show ... auctions when docked: Choose how many auctions are visible in the gadget when the auction is docked.

Show ... auctions when floating: Choose how many auctions are visible in the gadget when the auction is floating on the desktop, outside of the sidebar.

Scroll auction list by number showing: This option controls how the up and down button work when displaying more than one auction. Select this option to scroll by the number of auctions displayed (e.g., each click moves to the next three auctions if you are displaying three auctions in the gadget). Otherwise, clicking up or down moves by one auction.

Prices in local currency: Select this option to display all prices, besides shipping, in the currency of your home eBay.

Change photo size: Select photo size or to not display photos in the gadget.

Alerts/Sounds Settings

eBay Auction Watch can notify you with a popup and sound of certain events pertaining to your auctions. Choose Popup & sound, Popup (only), Sound (only), or Off to configure each alert.

Alert ... min before close: Enter a number to receive a notification this many minutes before an auction closes.

Alert when auctions close: Set this alert to receive a notification when an auction closes. The popup alert will contain the winning bidder and final price.

Alert when outbid: Set this alert to receive a notification when you are outbid.

Configure sounds: Choose a wav file from your computer to play for each notification. Click "Play" to test each sound.

Other options Settings

Adjust time by ... seconds: If the remaining auction time in eBay Auction Watch does not agree with the time on eBay pages, enter a number (positive or negative) of seconds here to adjust the gadget's internal timer. (Note: It may also be worthwhile to adjust your system clock to agree with eBay official time.) You may click the "Auto" checkbox and eBay Auction Watch will attempt to sync itself with eBay Official Time.

Auto add from eBay: Choose how you want eBay Auction Watch to handle auctions on pages you browse. "Yes, confirm" will prompt you with a popup notification before adding, "Yes, auto" will automatically add all auctions, and "No" will turn off this feature. Auctions will only be added from auction detail pages on eBay. (Note: Currently this feature only works with Internet Explorer.)

Slideshow: Slideshow mode cycles through your auctions when you are not using the gadget. Click the checkbox to enable this feature.

Start slideshow when idle for ... min: Enter a number and the slideshow will begin after this many minutes when you are not using the gadget.

View another auction every ... min: Set this to how often a new auction will be displayed.

Stop slideshow ... min before closing: When set, slideshow mode exits automatically when any auction has less than this number of minutes remaining. Set to 0 to not stop the slideshow when auction approach closing. Note: If you use the gadget or a popup alert appears when in slideshow mode, slideshow mode is stopped.

Open Auctions Settings

This window (Fig. 12) contains a complete list of open auctions in eBay Auction Watch.

To manually add auctions to eBay Auction Watch. Just enter the auction number and click "Add" to add an auction. Use the "View" button to preview the auction in eBay and use "Remove" to remove an auction from the gadget.

Closed Auctions Settings

This section shows all auction contained in your closed list in eBay Auction Watch. Use the "View" button to preview the auction in eBay and use "Remove" to remove an auction from the gadget.

I sincerely hope you enjoy my gadget. I've done my best to cram tons of features into the small space the Windows Vista Sidebar allows. I'd love to hear from you! Please email any questions or comments to vista@auctionwatchgd.com.

Sign up to receive news, updates, and info on new gadgets. Your email is always kept private and will not be spammed or sold.

Thank you,
Ty Kroll
eBay Auction Watch Windows Vista Sidebar gadget