Inventory/Binder overhaul
Site Updates forum
Posted on Sept. 11, 2014, 1:30 p.m. by yeaGO
Hello all,
Last night a new inventory system was launched on the site and I am eager for feedback. The idea is you can quickly track, in one place, your personal collection as well as your trade binder and wish-list. You can check this feature out by clicking on the collection folder icon in the black header of the site and clicking Inventory.
For the time being, your binder will still work exactly the same.
I got an error message this morning. "Warning, owner must save inventory again for proper display"
As a suggestion - if you could change the error message to "Please press edit inventory and resave in order for Inventory to display properly" that would be less stressful.
January 3, 2015 5:12 a.m.
I like the new rarity buttons, could you add a 4th one for ALL?
January 3, 2015 5:24 a.m.
The buttons are resetting the advanced filter options when you press them. So if I have blue cards only then press the uncommon button it clears the blue card only filter.
January 3, 2015 5:31 a.m.
Can we revert to the old pre-buttons system please or add all of the rarity options to the advanced filters. Not being able to quickly switch rarity on a selection is, for the way I have been using the inventory system, too great a loss for the gain of having rarirty buttons.
January 10, 2015 4:32 a.m.
? Confused
There should be rarity options as partitions now.
January 10, 2015 8:17 a.m.
The problem is the way the partitions on rarity interact with the advanced filters. The partitions force the advanced filter rarity to be the same as them. So I can not (for example) look for all my green warriors. I have to press through each of the partitions and when I press the partition it resets the advanced filters.
It would work if you turned the partitions off when someone goes to advanced filters or made all the rarity levels availible in the advanced filter not just the ones that are a subset of the partition
January 11, 2015 1 p.m.
great - thanks. Sorry my first explination wasn't clear
January 11, 2015 1:09 p.m.
Totaledcow says... #10
I've been tracking my collection for awhile offline in MTG Studio. I'd love to be able to fill my inventory here by importing the collection backup from MTG Studio. Is that something that may be possible at some point in the future?
January 15, 2015 3:12 a.m.
I have a question. When putting together a deck, there's an option for "Sync deck with inventory"... What does that do?
February 21, 2015 12:27 a.m.
Femme_Fatale says... #13
It means that the cards you have in your deck will go into your inventory, if they are in the acquire board then they will be put into your want lists.
February 21, 2015 12:34 a.m.
Gotcha... Is that a mechanism where I can build a deck and have the Deck Builder tell me which cards I don't own for that deck?
February 21, 2015 1:05 a.m.
Yeah seems pretty doable. We already try to do that with inventory there's a check box on decks to sync.
February 21, 2015 2:31 a.m.
Halbrechtt says... #16
Here are some ideas to consider. Some should be very simple to implement, some maybe not. I haven't looked at the code, so I don't know.
TLDR: See "Summary" at the end. :)
** = priority
Page Flow
The primary goal is to view and filter the inventory itself. Given that:
** Move the "Edit" and "Export" functions to two smaller-width, side-by-side buttons, either on the right side of the main title heading, or right below it. They disrupt the flow too much as is, particularly by being between the "Show/Hide Advanced" and the actual Advanced controls.
** Similarly, the large Price DIV, while interesting info, shouldn't be so prominent. A couple ideas: Just move it below the inventory table; and/or, add a small "stats" DIV right below the heading, one of the stats being the TCG value of the whole collection. Other stats could be total cards, total unique cards, breakdowns of rarity counts, etc.
If you go with the latter, I'd suggest a small, white font -- again, interesting info, but shouldn't be super conspicuous. In fact, a good idea would be to display the most important data (TCG worth, total cards, total unique), and over to the right have a "More Details >". When a user taps/clicks anywhere in this Info DIV, it opens up a popup (like for editing) that breaks it down even more -- rarity counts, how many of each color, represented sets, etc.
Speaking of the prices, a minor "bug" is that for mobile users, the "missing from calculation" is useless. Keep the hover function, but add in an onclick handler to move the onhover popup content into a P or SPAN below the link. Tap again to hide.
Filtering
** MOST important, as others have said, the default view should be all cards together, rather than filtered by rarity. It's very frustrating to have to change rarities when I want to look through all my green cards, or all my FRF cards.
** Also very important, use Ajax/Javascript for the Basic filters, just as you do with the Advanced filters. I think having to switch rarity would be much less of a hassle if it didn't also entail a page reload.
More basic filters would be nice. I think rarity, color, card type, and the most common formats should all be there.
** The filters should be "checkbox" like rather than "radio" like. That is, in Basic mode, I should be able to tap "Rare/Mythic" and have it turn orange, and also tap "Uncommon" and have it turn orange.... and then tap it again so it turns white, while the other stays orange.
** And in Advanced mode, Format, Rarity, Set, Type, and even Subtype should all work like Color does. As to that, a couple UI improvments:
- For mobile users, make it so tapping anywhere in the, e.g. [x Blue] SPAN removes it, rather than having to tap the X specifically.
- For keyboard users, have an onkeypress handler that prevents default on spaces, converting the previous word into the SPAN. Right now, if you type "blue" then a space, it says "No matches found". I know you can just press enter when the color is highlighted, but being able to use spaces this way would be nice. :)
For (the many) players who aren't initimate with the three letter codes of sets, having the Set dropdown show the full set name after the code would be helpful. When this is converted into a SPAN, it could then just show the letter code -- at least now they'll know for sure what it stands for.
A last UI idea: Rather than a Show/Hide toggle for Advanced, why not have two buttons at the top -- "Basic" on the left, "Advanced" on the right. These would be "radio" like, toggling the below interface. So if you have four rows in Basic mode -- Color, Format, Rarity, and Type -- then when you click Advanced, those four rows will be replaced by their Advanced counterparts, then below them will appear more rows for Subtype and the rest. If you do this setup, toggling between modes should probably reset the inventory to being unfiltered -- or at least when going from Advanced to Basic.
Inventory Table
** Take the controls ("Show # entries", search, and paging) out of the scrollable DIV the table is in. The table needs this setup on a mobile site, yes, but the controls shouldn't get hidden like they do.
Regarding paging, I always like paging buttons to be on the bottom AND the top. Also consider using Javascript to scroll the page to the top of the table when a new page is loaded. This would be especially nice when the final page only has a couple entries -- all of a sudden, I'm at the very bottom of the webpage, no table in sight!
** A "Totals" row at the bottom of the table (out of the scrolling DIV) would be super nice. Give the total cards, total unique, and total price for the current filtering. While it's nice to know how many cards are in my entire collection, or how much the whole thing is worth, it'd be nice to know, e.g., how many green creatures I have, or the total value of just my rares/mythics that are over $2.
Sorting by color and multi-sorting would also be nice. I personally sort my physical cards by set then color, alphabetizing within each color. (So basically, in collector number order.) Maybe this is an uncommon sorting method, but at least for me, it would be nice to have the option of sorting by set > color. I think other people would benefit from being able to sort the table by color (not just filter it), so at the very least this sorting method should be added (and rather than alphabetical, it should be in the W/U/B/R/G/Multi/Colorless/Land order). But ideally, multiple sorts could be implemented -- e.g. set > color > card type, or card type > CMC, etc.
Summary
Priority:
- Move "Price", "Edit", and "Export" out of the way
- Default view should be all cards, not rare/mythic
- Don't reload page when changing rarity filters
- Allow filters to be multi-select (e.g. show common and uncommon, but not rare)
- Move the inventory table controls out of the scrolling area
- Add a Totals row to the inventory table
Other:
- Add a Collection Stats popup pane
- Make "missing from collection" link mobile-accessible
- More Basic filters (color, format, and type)
- UI improvements to Advanced filters
- In the Set filter, provide full set name, not just three letter code
- Full Basic/Advanced mode switch
- Improve table paging UI
- Add color as a sorting option
- Implement multi-sorting, e.g. sort by color then type
I also have suggestions for the Inventory Editing function, but I figured this was plenty for now. ;)
February 26, 2015 11:09 p.m.
TheDriveBy says... #17
I JUST started using the Inventory feature after having just discovered it. I have been evaluating Deckbox.org and mymtgcards.com and have my inventory saved in a list and cvs formats. When I copied the appropriately formated list into the Inventory Importer I get this error list:
Errors Printings not found for cards: Azorius Guildgate (C13), Bogardan Firefiend (WL), Brute Force (PC), Diabolic Tutor (8E), Dimir Guildgate (C13), Disenchant (IA), Essence Warden (PC), Fists of the Anvil (MI), Fog Bank (C13), Golgari Guildgate (C13), Izzet Guildgate (C13), Lightning Bolt (4E), Mortivore (DPA), Mudbutton Torchrunner (LW), Pyroclasm (DDL), Rakdos Guildgate (C13), Simic Guildgate (C13), Spring Cleaning (LW), Viashino Sandstalker (9E)
Surely these are not obscure cards or edition sets. Are the edition set abbreviations wrong and where can I find a list of the propper edition set abbreviations for Tappedout.net?
March 3, 2015 5:38 p.m.
some of those TLAs seem wrong to me. Go to the cards section and make sure you are using the right ones.
Weatherlight isn't WL, its WTH for example.
March 3, 2015 5:42 p.m.
TheDriveBy says... #20
TYVM for the fast reply. I was one step ahead of you once I found the 3 letter list on the site. My issues have been reduced to:Errors Printings not found for cards: Azorius Guildgate (C13), Dimir Guildgate (C13), Fog Bank (C13), Golgari Guildgate (C13), Izzet Guildgate (C13), Mortivore (DPA), Pyroclasm (DDL), Rakdos Guildgate (C13), Simic Guildgate (C13)
March 3, 2015 6:42 p.m.
Femme_Fatale says... #21
Oh, old duel decks haven't been entirely added to the database and C13 kinda had a disappearing incident. I thought yeago fixed this up with his automatic importing system.
March 3, 2015 6:44 p.m.
TheDriveBy says... #22
Not a huge issue as I'm just doing service/website evaluations right now. I removed the cards in question so I can start reviewing the site features, layout, functionality, etc. to build a pros/cons list.
March 3, 2015 7 p.m.
TheDriveBy careful, we change things a lot here. usually for the better :P
Halbrecht if only all my user feedback was like yours... thanks! keep it coming. we've got some changes that are going to hit real soon and i think you will be impressed.
March 5, 2015 3:08 p.m.
Halbrechtt says... #24
yeaGO: I'm glad I could help! I've done a lot of coding myself (all client-side, never really finished teaching myself server-side), and while I don't really have the time to do it these days, I always like to offer a perspective that takes the actual coding into consideration.
I'm excited to see what you guys have coming up! I've been on TappedOut for a while for decks, but I started using DeckBox for inventory, as it seemed the best at the time. Honestly, they still have a lot up on you guys in terms of inventory features and UI. But I prefer TappedOut overall and would love to see your inventory system be a match for theirs.
One big issue I have with them is that some of the features I really care about (such as decks syncing with your inventory) are only available with a monthly subscription. I'm rather poor at this point in life and can't justify a monthly cost. One time? Sure. But not monthly. I would be glad to donate to TappedOut to see a comparable list of features without having to pay every month!
Another big issue I have is that they are NOT mobile friendly in the slightest. Too many hover menus, drag'n'drop functionality, etc. That's one thing TappedOut really has up on them already.
And of course, their deck building is nothing as good, with no playtest ability to speak of. I'd really like to permanently move my inventory here, since I'll be keeping my decks here.
Info you might also be interested in, TheDriveBy, in case you're taking other user reactions into account.
March 11, 2015 7 p.m.
Halbrechtt says... #25
yeaGO: A couple other things I'd thought of.
First, I realized you were NOT using Ajax for the advanced filters. Instead, you're loading the entire database at page load, then dividing it into chunks for the table display and doing all the filtering client-side. For really large collections, the time it takes to load the entire collection will begin to be rather noticeable (I'm only a fraction through adding mine and I was already noticing). I'd highly recommend switching over to lazy loading, and using the paging buttons to fetch the next bit of the collection.
Another option would be to load only the first X entries of the database, allow the page to finish loading, then in an "onload" handler continue to fetch the rest of the database. I only suggest this alternative because I DO like the speed that having the entire collection already on the page adds. With Ajax, the calls to the server when filtering or paging would be noticeable -- minute, but certainly not as fast as a fully client-side implementation.
I'm not really sure which is better. They both have their pros and cons. For instance, with the latter method, filtering still wouldn't be fully functional until the entire database was loaded. I wonder if you could do both -- have Ajax as your initial method, which would allow the filtering and paging to be used immediately without returning incomplete results; then once the collection is fully loaded client-side, switch over to just filtering and paging client-side. Requires more coding.... but might be an overall better option?
Or maybe allow the user to choose? Have a "Load Entire Collection" button. Maybe you could use localStorage or sessionStorage for this.
Anyways, a couple other small things:
- Improvement: Allow card name matches to be case insensitive. When editing, it's great that typing the card name gives you a drop down. But, at least on my internet connection, I can often type the card name and tab to the next field faster than the list drops down. When I've accidentally messed up the capitalization (and many people just simply don't bother capitalizing in the first place), I try to click on the Printing dropdown, but it's not populated unless the card name matches exactly. It would be great if this were case insensitive.
- Bug: Split cards only have a single forward slash. This is fine for display in the inventory table. I honestly don't care. The bug shows up when trying to plug it into TCGPlayer. They expect a double slash, so I have 6 split cards missing from the price calculation.
- Feature: Apply a given printing/set en masse. One feature I really like about Deckbox is the ability to type in all my cards for a given set and then apply a set to all those cards when adding to inventory. With TappedOut I currently have to add a set code after every card. A quick-fix version of this would be to take the textbox
valueand usesplit/joinorreplaceto append the code to the end of each line. - Improvement: Deal with cards that don't have their printings manually specified. Deckbox deals with this by showing a faded set symbol from the latest printing for that card, and adding in a "No printing set" filter for finding such cards. There are other ways to deal with this, but the main goal is future-proofing an inventory. A user might enter in a card that's currently from the latest printing. Great, it displays the one he has! But what happens when it gets reprinted? The user will want the inventory entry to still reflect his physical copy.
Again, looking forward to what you guys have done. Perhaps some of these suggestions will be moot! :)
March 11, 2015 8:21 p.m.
(yet another) huge overhaul coming again. probably this week.
March 16, 2015 6:40 p.m.
TheDriveBy says... #28
Something changed. This is the first time I've pasted my complete collection from TCGPlayer and didnt have to modify which set I had Mortivore from because it accepted my DPA version. YES!!!! *There were a small handful of others but that one comes to mind.
April 14, 2015 5:10 p.m.
TheDriveBy says... #30
Can the feature of searching by Power and/or toughness be added to the advanced search interface? Trying to make a Tiny Leader deck using Alesha (small card pool to choose from :( ) and this would be an instance where this option would come in very handy. Also, does checking off "Sync with library" make it so searches are limited to the user's inventory or is that checkbox for something else? Searching limited to inventory would be a cool feature too.
April 19, 2015 11:37 a.m.
TheDriveBy says... #31
sigh Is there a limit to the size a collection can be when adding it to our inventory? I JUST finished cataloging a huge collection I purchased about three weeks ago and got it converted into the correct format to enter it on here the same way I have been doing and... "error 502: bad gateway" I think it is about 3740 lines of text, one line per each unique card, up from about 990 lines of text. If this is the problem, is there a workaround? I was so looking forward to using the deck builder feature on here to search and make my decks with this new addition to my collection.
June 11, 2015 6:37 p.m.
the site was having some problems. can you try again. also, wait a while and visit your inventory, its possible that the stuff was added.
June 11, 2015 6:50 p.m.
TheDriveBy says... #33
TY for the quick response. It really sets this site apart. I'm still encountering the error. I'm going to double check my formatting and whatnot tonight and give the website some time before trying again. Probably not until Saturday. I'll also check back and see if it does happen to update my collection in the interim.
June 11, 2015 7:39 p.m.
try and cut down your inventory size and see what actually takes. that would be helpful.
June 11, 2015 7:40 p.m.
TheDriveBy says... #35
I cut it down to 1000 lines, it took. I tried 1500 lines, it took. 2000, check. 2500, check. All 3746 lines, check. Looks like it is working fine now. Im so excited that your database is so much more complete. It only had an error for not knowing the card (promo) "Lash of the Tyrant" or the Chronicles printing of "Wall of Heat". It recognized EVERYTHING else from your database. This is awesome!
June 11, 2015 8:10 p.m.
TheDriveBy says... #36
This is of no real importance to me, just to give you a heads up, but the API pulling in prices from TCG isn't accurate on a few cards. This had me really excited for a second because I was pulling out the higher valued cards from that commons collection I purchased. ANYWAY, the examples I have are: Aven Fleetwing, Bloodrage Vampire, Fiery Hellhound and Disentomb. Mousing over the price values shows they are linked to incorrect cards.
June 11, 2015 8:30 p.m.
I'm experiencing the same issue as "TheDriveBy". I've been trying to catalog my collection but the system appears to crash continually.
I've entered about 1700 cards, but I now continuously get the message "Seems the collection is empty" when I attempt loading my inventory to view stats. I also get that "Default Gateway" error mentioned above when I try to add additional cards and "save".
I was hoping to enter my entire collection (approx. 9000 cards). :(
July 9, 2015 8:38 a.m.
Grouping of cards with the same name (but various printings) would be great.
August 2, 2015 7:11 a.m.
I have a request for the filters. when filtering by color it currently gives any card that has that color mana in it. IE if I search for white card it gives me white/blue white/black/green etc. is there any way to include an exclude unselected colors? that way if Im looking for a monoblue deck (yeah right) I don't have to search multi-colored cards also? that would be very helpful for deck building
August 2, 2015 1:14 p.m.
LiberateKarn says... #40
Hey!
I was adding my cards to my Inventory and I noticed that "Abbot of Keral Keep", the " Pre-Release Promo found here Isn't in the options to add!
Rettocs says... #1
Alright, after using the new inventory, I've got some feedback:
First of all, it works great! Being able to see how many cards I have and how many are already in my decks -- and even which deck -- is amazing.
I do, however, have a couple suggestions:
1) There currently is a "partition" that only lets you view a list of rares, or you can swap to uncommons, or even swap to commons. Could you add a setting to view the all together? I'm finding that when I'm extensively looking through my inventory I keep getting slowed down by having to change partitions to uncommon and back again.
2) This one is more important to me: The ability for a filter to look through cards you have in your inventory and are not used in a deck already. For example: If I have 4 grave titans, and 3 are in 3 different decks, I'd love when that filter is on to see a row with 1 grave titan in it. If I also have 2 sun titans, and both are used in decks, then none would show up when using this "unused" filter.
Thanks a ton in advance, and once again, the system is a great help to me!
January 3, 2015 2:30 a.m.