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The new ASA2 version 1.14.0 is here and has a lot of improvements and new features on board.
Improved efficiency in Amazon PA API usage
The switch to the Amazon PA API 5 was used as an opportunity to put the usage of the API to the test. In the process, some procedures were identified which could be optimized. The result is less API requests for the same result.
Within this scope the API Statistics was created. Only through the transparency it creates with regard to API usage can the improvements actually be recognized and, above all, observed. I can only recommend these to every pro-user to recognize any errors that may occur during API usage earlier. It can be activated with the option “Logging / Record API stats”.
As this feature is new and we see further possibilities for optimization in the future, we are always happy to receive your feedback. We are happy to analyze your API statistics together with you to understand regularly occurring errors and to improve them for future ASA2 versions.
Client-side Request Limit Handling
We already know from the server-side cronjob that ASA2 takes care of the pauses between API requests to not strain the request limit. On client- / browser-side this was not implemented consistently enough. Version 1.14 now brings working client-side PA API request limit handling. By default it is disabled and can be enabled with the option “Advanced / Client-side request limit handling”.
When enabled, ASA2 checks each request to the Amazon API to see if there is enough time lag from the previous request. If not, this pause is inserted artificially. Since this behavior can have a negative effect on the page load time, it should be used with caution.
Reasons for activation are:
- If the cronjob cannot be used to update the product data (which is highly recommended for many products!)
- If the API error “Status Code: 429 Error Type: TooManyRequests” occurs frequently (see Knowledge Base)
Optimized handling of i18n products
For many users who use ASA2’s feature for internationalization (i18n), it was a hassle that the products that you have deposited for other countries appear as a separate product in the repo list. The clarity suffered from this. Starting with version 1.14 ASA2 treats these i18n products as parent and child products. By default these child products are not shown in the repo list. If you want to see them, e.g. to open them for editing, you can use the “Show i18n child items” button in the Screen Options.
When activated, the i18n child products are displayed in the list with an appropriate label and a link to the parent product.
Custom Price and Rating
In a repo product, you can now store your own values for the price and rating of a product. If these values are available, they will be given preferential treatment. That means, even if API values are available, the own values are displayed.
New repo filters make it easy to find products with custom values, e.g. if you want to change or delete the values afterwards.
In this context, all managed templates were also adapted to support the custom values.
Integrated ASIN / country input field
On the repo product pages the input field for ASIN and country was revised. It is no longer located in a metabox in the sidebar, but above the product data.
Preparations for support of non-mazon products
The two features mentioned above have already been developed to support non-mazon products. The work on it continues unchanged. With the next update, ASA2 will support the integration of non-mazon products.
Also new or fixed
- New: The repo function “ASIN usage” now also recognizes the usage of ASINs in collections
- New: In the subsection “Service” there is now an own metabox about cronjobs with many helpful information
- New: The standard lifetime of repo products has been increased from one to six hours to reduce unnecessary API requests for the average use case. This can be adjusted to your own requirements with the option “Repo / Repo lifetime”.
- New: New option “Templates / Price disclaimer default timestamp format” with which the date format for the timestamp of the last product update can be set for all templates instead of having to define this value individually in all templates.
- Fixed: Placeholder {$CustomerReviewsURL} is working again
- Fixed: The repo search did not work in some cases, e.g. the search for an existing ASIN did not show any results
Outlook
Version 1.14 brings many valuable new aspects for ASA2 and represents the preparation for a new period in which ASA2 will no longer work exclusively with the Amazon PA API, but will also support other interfaces and individually deposited affiliate links.
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