USPS-Money-Order-Bot

A bot to periodically check the status of a USPS money order. Please read this whole document to get a better understanding of how the bot works.

Dependencies

The following need to be installed to work. Follow the links for instructions on installing each dependency.

• Python 3
• selenium
• chromedriver
• Tk¹
• PySimpleGUI¹

¹ Not required if using the CLI version of the bot.

Features

• GUI window and CLI options
• Logger capable of printing to screen and/or log file
• Email alerts²
• Customizability through INI file

²INI needs to be properly set. Separate Gmail account with app password required for bot to send emails.

Running the GUI Bot

You can run the GUI bot by navigating to USPS-Money-Order-Bot/src/ on the command line and running:

python3 MOBotGUI.py

Bot with email alerts configured

Bot without email alerts configured

Running the CLI Bot

You can run the GUI bot by navigating to USPS-Money-Order-Bot/src/ on the command line and running:

python3 MOBotCLI.py

INI File

The INI file allows for more fine-tuned control/customization of the bot. Within the INI, you may:

• Set Money Order details so they populate their respective fields when the bot starts
• Change how frequently the bot checks the status of the Money Order
• Change logging preferences
• Insert email information for the bot to send alerts

Please see notes below about INI requirements/default functionality with respect to running the GUI and CLI versions.

GUI Functionality

The default INI file included does not define much other than logging preferences. The bot's default behavior from the INI is the folowing:

• All Money Order fields are blank and need to be filled in
• Email functionality is disabled
• Log messages only printed to the console
• Status checking every twelve hours

Note: In the absence of the INI file, the bot will still default to the behavior above.

CLI Functionality

The CLI version has the same default behavior as the GUI version, except for the following exceptions:

1. You must fill in all values for the Money Order in the INI, or else the bot will not run.
2. For email functionality, you also must fill in all the email fields, otherwise the function is disabled altogether (unlike the GUI, which just requires the bot's email login/password in the INI).

Modifying the INI File

To modify the INI file, you can open USPS-Money-Order-Bot/src/Config/BotSettings.ini. Simply update any of the values you'd like, but be careful! The bot expects certain data types from the INI and could crash if you enter something that doesn't make sense. Don't fret, you can always change the INI back to its original state.

Some lines are commented out. You can uncomment them by removing the semicolon at the front of the line, then edit the placeholder value stuck there. For instance:

[order_details]
;serial_num = <serial_num_here>
;post_office_num = <post_office_num_here>
;amount = <amount_here>

Can be edited to something like this:

[order_details]
serial_num = 12345678901
post_office_num = 080540
amount = 50.00

Important Notes

• If you check your status too often, USPS might "block" your IP. If that happens, don't fret. Either stop checking for a day or use a VPN for a little while. Eventually your IP will be "unblocked" from checking. I don't know exactly what the threshold is, but setting the bot to check the Money Order status too often can cause this issue.
• The bot emails are configured to be sent through a Gmail account. You'll need one dedicated for the bot if you want it to send you emails to your personal account. Create a new Gmail account and create an app password from the instructions here. Then feed the email address and app password to the INI file to get email notifications.
• The computer running the bot must NOT be sleeping for it to run properly. If desired, you can change your settings such that your display turns off, but the computer does not go to sleep.
• Checking the status of a Money Order may take SEVERAL seconds for the bot. Please be patient, as it's dependent on several factors such as your internet connection.