BRICKPICKER MEMBER SITE IDEA AND IMPROVEMENT THREAD...

[Ed Mack]

Jeff and I have been getting a lot of private messages about improving the site. I would like give BrickPicker members a chance to help improve the site and give us some fresh ideas. As you know, we are always tinkering with the site and have some great stuff planned. The problem always is finding the time to implement these changes and improvements. Some things can be changed quickly and easily, others can take months or more. I don't want to give out too much information on future plans, but they will make the site much more social and interactive with other BrickPicker members and more custom and intuitive for the individual.

No idea is too small...Please, this is not for errors or issues, we have another thread for that. This thread is a wish/want list and for any way we can improve the site...

Thanks,

Ed Mack

[tytanium]

I'd like to be able to check out other members' collections and value. And to have a 3rd option when adding new items to your brickfolio.

[Jeff Mack]

I'd like to be able to check out other members' collections and value. And to have a 3rd option when adding new items to your brickfolio.

Ok, so we got your e-mail last night about this. You want to add the ability to label a set as (

[tytanium]

When you select an individual set in the Price Guide. For example: 6090 Royal Knight Castle. It will show the Market value for New and Used as well as the Price per brick. What I'd like to see is a 3rd value that is the medium of the new and used prices. It could give a better overall collection value for people who have used sets but include the box and manual. IMO, used sets are sets w/o a box and/or manual. This 3rd option could be called "Complete Used" or something relating to a complete used set. Same goes for the "Price per brick" value. All this is meant for is to show a better overall value for people that have NIB sets, complete used sets and used sets w/o a box and/or manual. The set submission idea I have is to include this when adding sets to your brickfolio. Called "Used Complete" or something like that. Thanks -Tyler

[Jeff Mack]

I like your idea, but it is a pretty close to impossible task. Every month there are well over a hundred thousand listings that our process goes through. I will finally be getting Octobers data up shortly. The data we receive does not give us these types of details in a way that we can easily classify the set quality. We have had discussions about this in other threads on the forum, but many listings are just downright useless. We have a ton of processes/filters weeding out these bad listings because they would taint the data. eBay really just classifies things as New/Used, then we have keywords we look for to place them, then run them through the pricing to make sure it all looks in line. But unless we hired an army of people to read every single listing and check the boxes appropriately, that is about the only way that can happen and Ed and I can't really afford to hire 10 people to do that every month. Hopefully one day, but we can't right now.

[Ed Mack]

When you select an individual set in the Price Guide. For example: 6090 Royal Knight Castle. It will show the Market value for New and Used as well as the Price per brick.

What I'd like to see is a 3rd value that is the medium of the new and used prices. It could give a better overall collection value for people who have used sets but include the box and manual. IMO, used sets are sets w/o a box and/or manual. This 3rd option could be called "Complete Used" or something relating to a complete used set. Same goes for the "Price per brick" value. All this is meant for is to show a better overall value for people that have NIB sets, complete used sets and used sets w/o a box and/or manual.

The set submission idea I have is to include this when adding sets to your brickfolio. Called "Used Complete" or something like that.

Thanks

-Tyler

As Jeff said, we go off of EBAY auctions and how people list items. There are many different grades of new and used and different values for each, but EBAY lists just new and used. There are over 9000 LEGO sets and to come up with a more specific value would be impossible at this moment with our resources. The number we supply are just a guide. You might be able to assume that certain sets are above or below our values, considering their condition.

It is possible we might be able to add an option to modify a value for a certain set for the member's personal use. For example...If a set is a MISB perfect set, the member might be able to up the value of the set to current sales of similar makeup. On the flip side, if the member has a new set that is opened, box is smashed, yet the plastic LEGO bags are still sealed, the member can lower the value. This is something I have to discuss with Jeff. My ideas are not always easy to implement.

[legoman666]

How about the ability to mark a set as sold and a sell price? I just sold all of my 21102 Minecraft sets for $90 each. If I remove them from my inventory, that gets noted as a decrease in value.

[Jeff Mack]

How about the ability to mark a set as sold and a sell price? I just sold all of my 21102 Minecraft sets for $90 each. If I remove them from my inventory, that gets noted as a decrease in value.

i do like the idea of having a profit tracking system. Your brickfolio will still actually go down since you don't have that inventory anymore, but I do like the idea of adding a separate area that will show the sets you did have an any gains/losses from any transactions.

[Huskers1236]

How about the ability to mark a set as sold and a sell price? I just sold all of my 21102 Minecraft sets for $90 each. If I remove them from my inventory, that gets noted as a decrease in value.

Assuming you re-invest in Lego, it does even out. As long as your profits are put back into your Lego inventory as new "shares", you will show a net positive gain. But I do see your point, you have a temporary negative until you buy something and return sets to your inventory. I have thought about this as well, just not sure how it would work in the Brickfolio.

[Ed Mack]

Assuming you re-invest in Lego, it does even out. As long as your profits are put back into your Lego inventory as new "shares", you will show a net positive gain. But I do see your point, you have a temporary negative until you buy something and return sets to your inventory. I have thought about this as well, just not sure how it would work in the Brickfolio.

Their is a lot of room to improve the Brickfolio and ideas like this help us out. Keep them coming.

[Talon]

The easy answer is to do it the same way as a stock account report. There would be a cash entry where they cash from a sale, gets manually entered or automatically 'swept' into the cash entry.

[justgod]

My suggestion would be to have a "New Member" area. This could be a grouping of LOCKED threads that pertain to different common questions that are posed. I am all for hunting through previous posts, but I would have happily read a thread with the different terms I encountered when I first came to the site (EOL, MOC, etc). - Another thread could explain a bit more in detail how the price guide works. I learned today (thanks Ed!) how the charts are compiled. I would not have gotten that information from looking at it. - Maybe another thread (because I was actually going to ask this question) on suggestions for storing sets long term.

[justgod]

Another small (ha ha) suggestion. After I type in a set number, it brings me a screen with a smaller picture of the set that I can click on to get the data. (I apologize for not knowing what these screens are called). Once I get to the final screen that has the data and graphs, how hard would it be to upload a small section on the uniqueness of that particular set? For example: Target Exclusive, LEGO Shop at Home Exclusive, LEGO Shop at Home Giveaway, etc. I am not sure if this data would helpful to anyone else, but I would really like to know the origins of sets that were not just a general everyday thing. Thank you for listening and keep up the fantastic work!

[Ed Mack]

Another small (ha ha) suggestion. After I type in a set number, it brings me a screen with a smaller picture of the set that I can click on to get the data. (I apologize for not knowing what these screens are called). Once I get to the final screen that has the data and graphs, how hard would it be to upload a small section on the uniqueness of that particular set? For example: Target Exclusive, S@H Exclusive, S@H Giveaway, etc.

I am not sure if this data would helpful to anyone else, but I would really like to know the origins of sets that were not just a general everyday thing.

Thank you for listening and keep up the fantastic work!

It wouldn't be hard to show on the site, but there are 500 new LEGO sets annually and that data would have to be manually inputted and researched and I don't need anymore work. LOL.

[Mos_Eisley]

I finally got around to starting to add my sets to my Brickfolio. It's going to take some time, but I like it. I'm sure I'll have more thoughts as I go along, but the first thing I noticed was after I add a set, the screen displays "Congratulations! You have just added 450 to your Brickfolio" with $450.00 being the amount I paid for the set. It seems that it would be more accurate to say that I've added $1,400 or whatever the current value is for those sets since that is the value added to my Brickfolio. Along the same line, I think it would be nice if it displayed the current value for the set you just added also. Not sure if this is difficult or if it can just be added in the existing "Last Set Entered" box. After I enter a set, I'm curious to see its current value. This was easy during the first few entries, but after you fill a page it get's a little more time consuming to quickly check. That's all for now, thanks!

[Ed Mack]

I finally got around to starting to add my sets to my Brickfolio. It's going to take some time, but I like it. I'm sure I'll have more thoughts as I go along, but the first thing I noticed was after I add a set, the screen displays "Congratulations! You have just added 450 to your Brickfolio" with $450.00 being the amount I paid for the set. It seems that it would be more accurate to say that I've added $1,400 or whatever the current value is for those sets since that is the value added to my Brickfolio.

Along the same line, I think it would be nice if it displayed the current value for the set you just added also. Not sure if this is difficult or if it can just be added in the existing "Last Set Entered" box. After I enter a set, I'm curious to see its current value. This was easy during the first few entries, but after you fill a page it get's a little more time consuming to quickly check.

That's all for now, thanks!

Jeff just completed a major overhaul of the Brickfolio, which we will be launching very, very soon. It is much, much, much easier to navigate. There are custom features, photo features, and currency features. We want to get this update out very soon so people can find issues and we can correct them. There is a ton of stuff going on with the site behind the scenes and people will find out soon what I am talking about.

There are a ton of small changes we made and will have to make, but Jeff really remade the Brickfoilio into a more intuitive tool. As always, we can change and improve features later on, but the foundation for the new Brickfolio has been laid and you will see the improved version shortly.

[TheOrcKing]

Jeff just completed a major overhaul of the Brickfolio, which we will be launching very, very soon. It is much, much, much easier to navigate. There are custom features, photo features, and currency features. We want to get this update out very soon so people can find issues and we can correct them. There is a ton of stuff going on with the site behind the scenes and people will find out soon what I am talking about.

There are a ton of small changes we made and will have to make, but Jeff really remade the Brickfoilio into a more intuitive tool. As always, we can change and improve features later on, but the foundation for the new Brickfolio has been laid and you will see the improved version shortly.

As Eric Cartman would say,

"Sweeet."

[Ed Mack]

As Eric Cartman would say,

"Sweeet."

Sweet it is. Jeff has been working on this for months. The Brickfolio improvements are major and there is set review feature that members will be able to participate in, among other changes. There will be some minor issues with the changes, but that will be expected with any major upgrade. More to follow very soon...

[Guest ph4tb0i]

Have you guys thought up opening the development of the site to volunteering members? I work in business intelligence/data warehousing as my day job and I'd love to volunteer some time to help out with the Brickfolio section. :)

[Ed Mack]

Have you guys thought up opening the development of the site to volunteering members?

I work in business intelligence/data warehousing as my day job and I'd love to volunteer some time to help out with the Brickfolio section.

We would consider any sort of help. What kind of help are you offering?

[StarPod]

YOU Should make an app for the site. so i can scan my receipt or barcode on the lego and itll come up automatically and add it to your brickfollio

[Ed Mack]

YOU Should make an app for the site. so i can scan my receipt or barcode on the lego and itll come up automatically and add it to your brickfollio

It's on the list. After we launch our new site feature in the next week or two, you will understand why I have been saying we are very busy and put many other issues on the back burner.

[comicblast]

It's on the list. After we launch our new site feature in the next week or two, you will understand why I have been saying we are very busy and put many other issues on the back burner. Sounds like we will be seeing a Brick Picker 2.0 soon! I can't wait!!! Sounds good, Ed and Jeff! Keep up the good work!

[glucapg]

It's on the list. After we launch our new site feature in the next week or two, you will understand why I have been saying we are very busy and put many other issues on the back burner. Sounds like we will be seeing a Brick Picker 2.0 soon! I can't wait!!! Sounds good, Ed and Jeff! Keep up the good work!

or Brickpicker 3.0...

[Guest ph4tb0i]

We would consider any sort of help. What kind of help are you offering?

My strengths are basically back end database modelling, design, ETL (Extract Transform Load) data, sql performance turning, anything that has to do with analyzing sets of data for analytics/reporting.

I don't know if you guys have any plans for putting in place more reports (e.***. maybe drill up/down on time scales for investments so members can see data beyond the rolling 12 month snapshot or bringing in my data sources/building cleaning algorithms to get a more precise market price.) but that's the type of thing I design on a normal day to day basis. Anyways, let me know if I can be of any help to that degree. :)