The Shoe Finder

Inspiration

I am a teen in high school who wants to make some side cash, but is not old enough to get a job. As a result, me and many other kids my age turn to shoe trading to fulfill our desire for money. They way this works is by buying a popular shoe when it is first released for it's retail price, then selling it for an over-retail price. The process is similar to stock trading. Many challenges arise during this process. One main challenge is how shoes can sell out so fast. Another challenge is looking for shoes. Challenges like these inspired me to create this program.

What it does

The Shoe Finder can find a pair of shoes tailored to you on goat.com. You can check the availability of a shoe, and whether or not you size is available, and it's condition. It is a quick, efficient and easier way of searching for a pair of shoes on goat.com.

How I built it

I used Xcode to write a URL generator. This URL generator took inputs values of the name, SKU, box condition, and size of the desired shoe, and implemented those values into the standard URL arrangement of goat.com. The generated URL was then tested to see if it was valid or not. If it was valid, the URL would open, if not, the user would be notified that the shoe is unavailable.

Challenges I ran into

Understanding the standard url arrangement pattern for goat was the first challenge I came across. I had to compare links to shoes of different sizes, make, and model. Along with that, finding a way to determine if a URL was valid or not was also a challenge. I needed to make the program look out for a CSS element that was only available if the shoe was able to be purchased. Working with this element was a challenge because I was unfamiliar with how to implement css elements into python.

Accomplishments that I'm proud of

I am proud that I was able to find a way to utilize the css element to my advantage. I needed a way to differentiate an invalid link and a "page not found" link, and this was the best way to do so. I am proud that I thought of it.

What I learned

I learned a lot from making this program. I am a beginner at python, before this I did not have the best understanding of the language. This project has made me comfortable with utilizing libraries, and inputs.

What's next for Shoe Finder

I am willing to continue my work on The Shoe Finder. I would be interested in including a wait-and-see function to this, so it can automatically purchase a shoe once it is available. Also, something that could fix typos in inputs would be great help in preventing invalid links. Finally, I would make The Shoe Finder accessible to any shoe website.

Built With

• python