Craigslist Shuts Down Search Tool; Apparently They Define What Local Means

from the didn't-expect-that dept

Jairus writes "Craigslist has shut down a search tool that allowed users to search all US Craigslist cities for job postings and for sale/wanted ads. I used the tool a lot and I am REALLY sad to see it gone." The search tool in question was built by an independent person, not as part of Craigslist itself. Craigslist certainly has the right not to allow it (and the letter they sent was friendly, rather than the typical corporate cease & desist letter you expect these days). However, it still seems a bit odd, and goes against the basic spirit that most people associate with Craigslist. It might be understandable if they claimed that the search was causing bandwidth problems or an accidental denial of service attack, or something along those lines. Instead, the letter claims they asked the guy to take it down because it: "goes against the basic intent of Craigslist to be a local tool." That's a very odd statement. While Craigslist is a local tool (and a very useful one, at that), local can mean different things to different people -- especially on this great big internet. The tool certainly sounds like it would be useful to those trying to search for jobs in multiple places, without doing much harm, so it's too bad to see Craigslist apparently react this way. There could be more to this story (at least, I hope there really is more to this story), but if not, it seems like a bad move on the part of Craigslist.
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  • identicon
    nonuser, 28 Jun 2005 @ 4:53am

    maybe Craig was worried

    that the tool would be used to do market research using automated programs which would suck up bandwidth and profiteer off Craig's community (which he doesn't like, or maybe he feels he should get a cut).

    I dunno, just a guess.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    jeremiah, 28 Jun 2005 @ 4:56am

    CL's "local" trip

    I've run up against the "Craiglist is *local*, man!" retort before when posting for services that were internet appropriate (ala, sound design, music production, etc). Turns out CL doesn't want that kind of activity - again, they're really focusing on geographic community. Even if you're a web designer, CL wants you to find clients in your city, not across the country or globe.

    Is it a bad move for them to ask an indie developer to cease a service that violated their TOS? Do they have to give a reason?

    link to this | view in chronology ]

    • identicon
      egerio, 28 Jun 2005 @ 7:56am

      Re: CL's

      Add search and add bidding via third-party CL add-ins and you've got eBay. Guess who owns a chunk of CL? Could it be eBay?

      link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    dorpus, 28 Jun 2005 @ 10:18am

    Third Rate Link Farm

    Outside of SF and NY, CL is useless anyway.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

    • identicon
      Anonymous Coward, 28 Jun 2005 @ 11:22am

      Re: Third Rate Link Farm

      whoops sorry dorpus...wrong again. I live in a lesser city and have found projects through cl.

      link to this | view in chronology ]

    • identicon
      Just say no to Dorpus, 28 Jun 2005 @ 12:14pm

      Re: Third Rate Link Farm

      Wrong again, Dopeus, or Dorkus... In various ways I've benefited to the tune of thousands of dollars in a non-major CL cities as the result of CL postings. You might want to consider confining your comments to what you actually know (which is not much).

      link to this | view in chronology ]

      • identicon
        dorpus, 28 Jun 2005 @ 12:58pm

        Re: Third Rate Link Farm

        Aha, you just admitted there is any such thing as "non-major CL cities". So CL is more useful in some cities than others.

        link to this | view in chronology ]

        • identicon
          dorpus, 28 Jun 2005 @ 1:49pm

          Re: Third Rate Link Farm

          Basically, CL comes from an older generation of bloggers, the Mike Masnick generation, who insist on using antiquated mid-1990s software because "it works". They expect the rest of the world to accept this idea.

          CL today has a grand total of 20 job openings in Rome, 38 job openings in Seoul, and 7 job openings in Rio de Janeiro. But hey, I guess they are "lesser cities" in the Mike Masnick generation scheme of things.

          link to this | view in chronology ]

          • identicon
            mhh5, 28 Jun 2005 @ 9:47pm

            Re: Third Rate Link Farm

            WOW. you've just named a whole freaking generation after Mike. Damn. 15 minutes and counting.... :P

            link to this | view in chronology ]

    • identicon
      Slade, 9 Feb 2007 @ 6:48pm

      Re: Third Rate Link Farm

      I live in a college town running a call center, I have found it is the best way to find young eager salespeople to fill my call center, and it doesn't cost anything! Also I moved recently, found my new fridge, washer and dryer, sold some old collectibles, and brokered a trade for a car stereo. CL ROCKS!

      link to this | view in chronology ]

    • identicon
      Peter Meilahn, 1 Sep 2007 @ 7:45am

      Re: Third Rate Link Farm

      This is bogus, Minnespolis has a great Craigslist, more theater seats per capita than any other city than NY, is the center of many industries and the birth place of the first intranet...

      My point, the fact that big cities lists are best is ignorant and a reverse provincialism...

      My city is better than your city should have been left on the playground in the bully's mouth

      link to this | view in chronology ]

    • identicon
      ACL, 14 Dec 2007 @ 10:09pm

      Re: Third Rate Link Farm

      You are a insular egotist

      link to this | view in chronology ]

    • identicon
      Spurgeon, 17 Feb 2008 @ 5:37pm

      Re: Third Rate Link Farm

      Sorry if your small world only includes NY & SF, but outside those geographic regions craigslist is thriving and well. Unfortunate your view of the world is so small. you must have been schooled and indoctrinated by american tv

      link to this | view in chronology ]

    • identicon
      Michael, 24 Nov 2012 @ 2:13am

      Re: Third Rate Link Farm

      That's not true...I make thousands of dollars a month off stuff I buy from Clist...everywhere!!

      link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Jairus, 28 Jun 2005 @ 6:24pm

    Let's not forget eBay

    First of all, I am VERY happy that tech dirt published this story. Thanks tech dirt!
    I shared my hypothesis with other people on the CL forum (just check the link that takes you to the forum from the defunct page) and they laughed at me.
    I am afraid that the problem with this tool was that it started to look a lot like…eBay. eBay owns 25% of CL now and I think this was a conflict of interest more than anything else.
    I contacted quite a few people from different cities and most of them while they preferred local pick ups they were willing to ship stuff.
    I like CL, I find the prices being very reasonable, less people know about it than eBay and there are no fees, feedback and other things to worry about like eBay.
    I do hope that somebody else would make a similar tool and post it at least under it falls under the CL “radar” again.
    Look for the movie ‘24 hours on craigslist’ to be released soon.
    Looks interesting.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    SEO Service, 18 Mar 2006 @ 10:36am

    craigslist and ebay

    I can't wait to see ebay's influence on craigslist in the future... will Craig ever sell out?

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    craig, 18 May 2006 @ 3:52pm

    Automatic Craigslist Searching

    I put together a craigslist search that emails you when an item you are looking for gets posted.

    Check out:
    http://www.Craig2Mail.com/craigs.html

    I got tired of searching craigslist several times a day and was still too late for the good stuff so I put together this program that notifies me when something I want is posted.

    Craig (no not that craig)

    link to this | view in chronology ]

    • identicon
      rrue, 17 Nov 2008 @ 1:44pm

      Re: Automatic Craigslist Searching

      Wrote a tool (freeware) that runs on your local machine and searches CL every five minutes. Not a lot of bells and whistles but does what it was meant for (fast notification of specific searches) very well, and doesn't rely on an RSS feed or single proxy (point of failure). I welcome feedback (and donations).

      link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Kirk, 27 Jul 2006 @ 2:27pm

    Craigslist RSS Search

    Thought you appreciate this. We added Craigslist (and eBay) RSS searches to our RSS reader Snarfer. Works fantastic allowing users to search Craigslist with all the popular search options.

    http://www.snarfware.com

    Cheers,
    Kirk

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    glen b, 11 Aug 2006 @ 4:32pm

    search help

    would like to be able to search at least the whole state at one time for stuff fo rsale ??

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Steve, 13 Sep 2006 @ 3:21am

    Craigslist search

    I really wish that craigslist would at least allow for regional searches. Northwest, Midwest, Southwest. I'm looking for something special and having a larger search area would be very nice. I'm surprised that they will not allow this sort of functionality. I hope that they reconsider at some point or at least expand the search options.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Nathan, 15 Sep 2006 @ 8:54pm

    A Better Craigslist Search

    OK.. I'm throwing my Craigslist search tool on the pile. I've put a fair bit of effort in making the interface (in my opinion) the best and easiest to use. Since I don't actually parse the craigslist results, I can't be shut down by craigslist (and in fact, don't believe I'm even violating their TOU, but that's up for interpretation).

    Go check it out:

    Search Craigslist

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    KJV, 25 Oct 2006 @ 1:19pm

    Craigslist Search

    Maybe this is a simpler approach.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    KJV, 25 Oct 2006 @ 1:19pm

    Craigslist Search

    Maybe this is a simpler approach. http://craigoogle.com

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    KJV, 25 Oct 2006 @ 1:19pm

    Craigslist Search

    Maybe this is a simpler approach. http://craigoogle.com

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Mr. Me, 26 Dec 2006 @ 10:21pm

    I don't need local

    I don't need local when the item I want isn't available here. I searched the web for a discontinued item & then I searched craigslist, only to find 3...NONE of them were in my area! Most were on the other coast, one was a few states away. What good is local in this case? It's not.

    Oh yeah, I did find a retailer who's site claims to have the item in stock...in FRANCE (I'm in the US)! LOL (and yes, I'm waiting for a reply to the email I sent them).

    I think they should set up a secure payment system, but don't go all ebay on us with bidding, just keep pricing as is.

    I think the parcel services (or a 3rd party monitoring service) should get in on the act, take payments & purchase list on one end & verify shipping content on the other, when the items are shipped, then payment is transferred, if there's no shippment within an alotted time frame, payment is refunded & the seller gets red flagged that way both parties are safe from scams.
    Hell, paypal doesn't give you that security, maybe it should be an ebay optionas well.

    Is it just me or does this actually make sense?

    Ok, I've rambled on long enough.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    nonyabusiness, 9 Feb 2007 @ 6:45pm

    IT's For LOCAL only

    It is not sad that they banned that tool. The idea is to keep it from becoming the next Ebay where it is basically run by merchant wheeler and dealers and is not really helpful to the common person anymore! I vote to keep craigslist local, because IT ROCKS! We do not need people from all over the USA spam filling our local FREE classified service PERIOD!

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    webmaster, 20 Mar 2007 @ 8:39pm

    http://crazedlist.org

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    lost in a paper bag, 23 Mar 2007 @ 8:07am

    Global search shut down

    Could the reasoning for the regional, national, or global search engine shut down be related to the billing process? Most of craigslist is free, but there are some places and catagories that charge a fee. Maybe the non-local search engines somehow cause a conflict with this process. Just a thought.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Brian, 3 Apr 2007 @ 10:07pm

    I love this

    I am using www.CraigsPal.com

    Looks like they was the only one to get rid of the email spam, and make nice research tool.

    I recommend it to everyone.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

    • identicon
      George, 16 Apr 2007 @ 9:59am

      Re: I love this

      Brian has mentioned this in several places. I assume Brian owns CraigsPal.

      At this point in time my experience with CraigsPal is horrible. The program's Nw search set up box won't open thus it is totaly useless since you can't even set it up.

      Also on their website where users can Log in, that does not work either so you can not directly contact them to discuss program errors.

      WARNING- Readers never purchase a program where the only way to contact the business is thru computer messaging. Make a rule with yourself. NO PHONE=NO PURCHASE.

      link to this | view in chronology ]

      • identicon
        Merima, 16 Apr 2007 @ 1:33pm

        Re: Re: I love this

        George, you need a computer classes,

        It works just fine. This is great time saver.

        link to this | view in chronology ]

      • identicon
        George, 7 May 2007 @ 1:34pm

        Re: Re: I love this

        Good job, they fixed it.

        Thanks CraigsPal

        link to this | view in chronology ]

      • identicon
        Johnny Rebel, 26 Jun 2007 @ 3:29pm

        Re: Re: I love this

        AMEN to THAT! I am sorry you got ripped off. He should have made it a FREE software!!

        link to this | view in chronology ]

      • identicon
        Eddie, 6 Mar 2008 @ 11:23am

        Re: Re: I love this

        George, it is really not polite to attack CraigsPal with bogus complaints. I use CraigsPal two years now, it is the best tool I've ever seen for Craigslist. Niftly organized, precise, actually Craigslist should have done this years ago. I recommend it to all of my friends who love Craigslist, as I believe CraigsPal will help CraigsList to be used much more efficiently and overall to keep it the most popular pro-social website.

        George, I can conclude you are competitor of CraigsPal trying to attack real values of people who love and use properly Craigslist. If I am in your shoes I would be ashamed.

        Mike, please do not pass bogus complaints, I contacted CraigsPal on several occasions to add some features to their search browser and they did it without the word said. I can not support someone without the real facts. Please be aware that some people use your boards to make trade wars on it, and that is not ethical, makes you not ethical person.

        I strongly recommend http://www.craigspal.com to everyone. I appreciate time saving idea and good work of CraigsPal.

        link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    George, 16 Apr 2007 @ 8:12pm

    computer class

    Never assume. Have large amount of computer experience. At the moment I co-administer a PhPbb bulletin board and Moderate others and have done some, be they minor, but have done them- Application Designs for the industry I work in.

    At this point in time CraigsPal has contacted me. Possibly via my email address from this site and we are working out the problems. Im sure we can find and solve the problems.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Robert, 21 Apr 2007 @ 8:40am

    CL Buddy

    I found another tool that can send emails as well as SMS text messages to your cellphone when new Craigslist items are posted

    http://admin.clbuddy.googlepages.com/

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    ben, 25 Apr 2007 @ 12:25am

    automated craigslist search

    Here's another great craigslist searcher:

    http://www.craigslistwatch.com

    Features:
    - Runs your search on craigslist once an hour and notifies you about new listings.
    - Sends you emails or text messages.
    - Lets you narrow your search by adding keywords to include or exclude. This is in addition to any craigslist filters you used (such as price, keywords, has pic, etc.).
    - Works for any city or category.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 25 Apr 2007 @ 5:23pm

    King Kong

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    me, 1 May 2007 @ 1:36pm

    Well....

    Isn't the intent of the internet to allow information exchange and implies there are no boundaires, therefore... Craiglist's intent is against the internet's intent and the internet, being bigger, should override.

    Thats what small town newspapers are for. Why is Craigslist duplicating the service that a local paper provides already?

    link to this | view in chronology ]

    • identicon
      cc, 15 Jul 2007 @ 3:06am

      Re: Well....

      CL has become the electronic equivalent of this thing you call a small town "newspaper's" classifieds. That's why the papers are crying so loudly.

      Seriously, who actually gets the paper anymore? Plus, newspaper websites' classifieds are typically a joke - if they have one at all.

      90% of the CL people I've purchased goods from would not even consider shipping/dealing with a non-local entity. Again, that's what ebay is for.

      link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Eric, 24 May 2007 @ 9:28pm

    I agree, as soon as another search list like Greg's list comes along and allows national searches craigs list will cease to exist. People just don't want to spend that much time searching.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    wyocoyote, 17 Jun 2007 @ 11:02am

    Yeah I'm with you guys. Craig et al.'s desire to define community is misguided. I now have the choice of searching a very large area: the Bay Area. or all the smaller communities of my county individually, and they keep getting smaller.
    conties/cities westsides and downtowns are somewhat arbitrary and dont define me.
    A simple fix for listers is the option of local search only.
    An ebay eqivalent of x miles from y zipcode would be a boon. Otherwise you could be.....
    looking for love, in all the wrong places

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Rudy Powersurfer, 24 Jul 2007 @ 2:33pm

    Cool Craigslist Search

    There's another Craigslist search engine that is actually much better: go to http://cl.radiux.com

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Rudy Powersurfer, 24 Jul 2007 @ 2:36pm

    Cool Craigslist Search

    There's another Craigslist search engine that is actually much better: go to http://cl.radiux.com

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    I don't know, 24 Jul 2007 @ 6:36pm

    I don't know

    Here's the thing with Craigslist that makes it work. My Grandmother, my mother and myself all know about it, get it and use it. None of these search engines that you all have linked will work for my grandmother, she likes what she knows and it took her long enough to start with Craigslist (she still won’t use e-bay). My mother won't use these things because her friends don't talk about it. I'll start to use something else and slowly my mothers friends might hear about it because all their kids will talk about it as well (not sure there is enough time left for my grandmother to learn something new). Soon enough I'll have kids of my own they'll have their own things, I'll be hesitant to follow them along but slowly we'll move forward.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Ed Morgan, 24 Jul 2007 @ 8:03pm

    Criagslist National Search was GREAT

    We own employment companies in many markets in the United Stated and advertis with Criagslist many cities all over the country.

    The ability to search the entire help wanted area was a great tool and I hope it comes back. Craig is a smart guy and as soon as he knows he has the best tool for HIS clients I'm sure he'll make it happen.

    Our site http://www.filcro.com has grown at the same pace as Craigslist and right now Craig is busy with so many things. Growth is not always easy and I think he's doing a GREAT job.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    tutonkoman, 1 Aug 2007 @ 1:48pm

    Craigs search - WAS a good tool to find stolen it

    We are sad to see this go.

    It was a great tool to seach for stolen items. Obviously theives can list in any number of areas on the list making it almost impossible to catch them.

    Craigslist is the ideal place to fence stolen items because of this.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    David, 2 Aug 2007 @ 8:47pm

    I really like this Craigslist Search Engine

    I have been using this craigslist search engine, it is just like searching Google but it only returns results for craigslist.
    It allows you to search the entire US or Entire States or Cities
    It just sort of works well and it is quite useful.

    I really like it! http://www.craigslist.thingweb.com

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Craigslist Search Engine, 2 Aug 2007 @ 8:48pm

    I really like this Craigslist Search Engine

    I have been using this craigslist search engine, it is just like searching Google but it only returns results for craigslist.
    It allows you to search the entire US or Entire States or Cities
    It just sort of works well and it is quite useful.

    I really like it! http://craigslist.thingweb.com

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Craig List, 25 Oct 2007 @ 6:13pm

    This on is the best ...

    I found this site to be the best to search Craigslist: cl.radiux.com I use it pretty much every day. It had problems in the beginning but now it seems ok. Try it.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Jake, 3 Nov 2007 @ 12:39pm

    Excellent tool

    CraigsPal is phenomenal!

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    mike, 8 Nov 2007 @ 6:14pm

    Working Web-based craigslist search tool

    This one works, is real, and isn't in danger of being shut down, IMHO.
    craigfind.com

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Randy, 1 Mar 2008 @ 12:53pm

    Radiux is a virus/spyware

    Radiux stole all my email addresses then sent "Invitations" to them to join Radiux! Stay away!

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    duke, 29 Mar 2008 @ 1:03am

    craigslist Checker

    See http://www.craigslistchecker.com/ they are really basic, but seem to work well. It emails you once an hour if it find anything new.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    motiont, 28 Apr 2008 @ 5:51pm

    search multiple cities and categories

    use craigslist reader from www.motiont.com if you like to search multiple categories and multiple cities.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Fire Knox, 29 May 2008 @ 10:18am

    Better than Craigs List

    There are plenty of sites that are better than Craigs List. Their main traffic is coming from local hookers and their clients. Sad!

    I use cl.radiux.com for local classifieds. You might want to check it out.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Paul, 13 Jul 2008 @ 7:02pm

    New craigslist site wide search website

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    David Simpson, 27 Jul 2008 @ 10:16pm

    Craigslist Searches

    If they don't want us to search the entire United States in a single search to locate jobs, then their own comparisons to CareerBuilder.com and Monster.com are not truthful. On any of those sites, I can seek jobs in the entire US at once.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    www.houseofnothing.com, 12 Aug 2008 @ 6:23am

    my speculation, two reasons

    Bandwidth is a problem.. remember at one time they also shut down search engine crawling, because the bandwith demand on their site? But later they appeared to have worked out with the major search engines, and it become crawlable again.

    Also craigslist want their listing to be unique, and lock in their users on their site, and they do not want third party to build something on top of their offering.. at least not now as I see it.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Mike, 27 Aug 2008 @ 6:53am

    Local

    Local my @$$ ... I bought a stationwagon from Reno. I live in Ohio. It's all about the Ebay effect... $!

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Bob, 21 Sep 2008 @ 9:46am

    Craigslist elimination of site.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Bob, 21 Sep 2008 @ 9:50am

    Craigslist elimination of site.

    I'm not technical enough to understand "bandwidth problems" and all that. All I know is that the page was extreamly usefull for what I used it for which was to search the country for particular old cars and parts. In 20 minutes or so I could search every state and province for what I wanted. It was great!!! Anybody know of something similar, please let me know. Thanks....

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Bob, 12 Oct 2008 @ 8:38am

    Search all of Craigslist

    I use the CL search tool at http://www.craigseek.org

    Is it owned by craigslist? Maybe they decided to do their own tool?

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Shawn, 22 Oct 2008 @ 1:26pm

    AdRavage

    Another one... http://AdRavage.com

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Joe Mitchell, 3 Nov 2008 @ 5:39pm

    Craigslist National Search Tool

    Here again some one at the top of a company is out of touch. Common sense tells you this is a good thing and would give more credibility to Craigslist. To bad they can't understand that there are certain items you can't sell locally and certain items you need more exposure. Unless they own stock in ebay, It doesn't make sense from a business stand point to stop using such a tool. Ok I have blown off enough steam and yes I just won't be using craigslist as much as I hoped to.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    ron abbott, 16 Dec 2008 @ 7:41am

    forbidden search on craigslist

    we live in a "global village". The items that I search for are not available in my small town or the near cities and counties. But sometimes with the boundries of thes 48 states. I am missing the search abilities. So, maybe if there was a small yearly fee say $10.00 would be a "paid for service" that would be available to help defer the expense of new hardware and software for craigslist. Now, that would be nice too.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Tom, 2 Feb 2009 @ 6:55pm

    National craigslist search

    If Craigslist is local only then why does Craigslist post all the states with all the cities? We all know you can take the time to search each city. The problem is with E-Bay. They own part of Craigslist. I can see a change coming. How do you also like EBay's new fees?

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Darrell, 3 Mar 2009 @ 11:03pm

    Craigslist sucks

    I agree with the previous posters. Craigslist's interface is a nightmare. Having people to spent hours trying to find stuff or apartments on craigslist is a shame.
    That's why there's always a demand for sites like searchallofcraiglist.com, craiglook.com and craighelper.com which bring usability to the 90's craigslist interface Cheers, -Darrell

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Rain-Clouds, 6 Apr 2009 @ 4:01pm

    Craigslist posting software

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Victor, 9 Jul 2009 @ 5:02am

    Search Engine

    I find it odd that this article originated in 2005. I've used this tool many times in the past year and it is 2009. Is this an on-gain, off-again tool? Is it really that different than any other search engine? It is really unfortunate, especially considering eBay is no longer a viable second-hand market tool. Maybe Craigslist plans to become another marketing tool for retail businesses too. Too bad because I have grown to appreciate and recommend Craigslist a lot (much like I USED to promote eBay).

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    ThereItIs, 27 Nov 2009 @ 5:25am

    Craigslist Ultimate Reader

    Why don’t you try Craigslist Ultimate Reader ( http://www.cubixsolutions.com ). It searches all categories and cities. I use it all the time..

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    scott, 18 Feb 2010 @ 5:08pm

    Craigslist Thingweb was removed! What a bummer!!!!

    I used thingweb all of the time. It's too hard to search every state when looking for something that is hard to find.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Jushin, 7 Mar 2010 @ 6:41pm

    Try Oddbark.com It has been relaunched. You can add on your ads Youtube & MySpace videos, audio, HTML and many more things to enhance your ads and make them eye catching! . Oddbark also has a special feature, where you can use your webcam to take a picture and it automatically appears on your ad..No more uploading required! Take a look at it, I bet you’ll love it!

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Keith Williams, 19 Mar 2010 @ 8:49am

    Craiglist searching tools

    Ebay owns a large amount of stock in Craigslist. They are a national and worldwide sales forum. They don't want Craigslist stepping on their toes. Tooooo much MONEY to be lost when everyone can just sell for free everywhere.

    Nuff Said!!!!!!!!

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Justin, 25 Mar 2010 @ 8:23am

    Try this instead

    Try www.YouHaveIWant.com; it's an alternative to Craiglist, Instead of searching through countless postings, it lets you submit one post, then constantly searches for you until it finds a match. It's the next step in the evolution of classifieds, real-time matching.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Jack, 16 Oct 2010 @ 5:40pm

    Craigslist National Search

    WoW what hapened to the cool old craigslist. Once I found the national search I used it a whole lot more. Hmmmmm thought craigslist was for the good of all people ??? Typical Corporate BS if you ask me, the search was awesome and the idiots at craigslist should have done it themselves long ago if they needed to be a bunch of control freaks. BRING BACK THE NATIONAL SEARCH ABILITY'S PLEASE !~!

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    glitch, 3 Jan 2011 @ 5:47am

    search tool

    truthfully i don't see how this prog could effect bandwidth very much considering the program would just be replacing the connection your web browser makes it's not increasing bandwidth usage its just replacing it and if anything would use less bandwidth as the prog wouldn't be requesting css and layout scripts aswell as images and such that your browser needs to download each visit. i think this is more related to the sites actual userbase

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 3 Jan 2011 @ 12:19pm

    I Aree please bring it back!

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • icon
    gridder (profile), 18 Feb 2011 @ 11:19am

    another good national craigslist search engine is www.dailylister.com you can search by region or do a craigslist search all

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    David Barricklow, 21 Aug 2011 @ 8:13am

    National search tool

    Yes it is a bad move. I've purchased many things nationally off Craigslist. Will now have to find a different method for searching. Do Not understand their reasoning.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • icon
    John (profile), 9 Feb 2012 @ 2:48pm

    A better Craigslist Search Engine

    I may be biased (since I worked on the development) but the best Craigslist search is at bbfsearch.com. It was designed with Craig's wants and YOUR needs in mind.

    Search multiple cities in up to four states at once ... keeping it local.
    Manage your results so that you don't end up looking at the same listings over and over. Keep notes on interesting items.

    Check it out ... there is a FREE 15 day trial at bbfsearch.com.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    IHATETECH!, 15 Feb 2012 @ 6:52pm

    A Great Search Engine

    I Restore Classic cars and I use Craigslist to find cars and parts on a daily basis. Here is the national search I use its free. It works very well crazedlist.org

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    IHATETECH!, 15 Feb 2012 @ 6:55pm

    A Great Search Engine

    Sorry here is the correct link





    http://crazedlist.org/

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Rachel, 9 Jul 2012 @ 10:38am

    Craigslist

    Will someone share a website thats as good as craigspal was for God sake ! Most of the websites shared here are worthless. Craigspal was the best until they shut them down. Then there was Craigslist reader and they shut that down too. Is there anything quite simular that hasnt been attacked yet by craig????????????????????? I used those tools for my business and now im stuck. Someone help please.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Jim, 2 Jan 2013 @ 1:37pm

    automatically search craigslist, and more

    https://automaticquery.com is a site that allows for automated searching of many online classifieds, not just CL. I think they're up to 9 at the moment, no software, email and text, etc...

    - Jim

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    hi, 5 Jun 2013 @ 2:03am

    hi

    many sites are there but i use http://searchenginecl.com for my all buying and selling comparison, its helps to find relevant ads throughout USA

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • icon
    Idiots (profile), 1 Aug 2019 @ 1:59pm

    Kinkyads?

    Many people I seen here in Denver that were on CL are now on kinkyads.org.

    link to this | view in chronology ]


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