# Finding 'similar' objects

**URL:** <https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/finding-similar-objects/192147>\
**Category:** Rails\
**Created:** [July 24, 2010, 11:45pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/finding-similar-objects/192147 "2010-07-24T23:45:02Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 1\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![PsiPro](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/p/ba8739/32.png) [@PsiPro](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/PsiPro)\
**Post date:** [July 24, 2010, 11:45pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/finding-similar-objects/192147/1 "2010-07-24T23:45:02Z")

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Hello all,

This is more of a theory question then a RoR question, but perhaps  
there is some gem to help that I am unaware of.

I am trying to aggregate store listings provided by 15 or so online  
shops, some of them provide the manufacturer’s SKU/MID information but  
some do not. When the SKU/MID is provided it is a simple matter to  
find the same items across multiple stores. However I have found  
myself with 5,000+ items just floating because they do not have a SKU/  
MID. I am currently chugging through them to associate them with the  
same items from multiple stores.

I am looking for a way to simplify this, right now I use the shpinx  
index to try to find similar items, but its hit or miss. Are there any  
algorithms I should look into that will help me identify items that  
are likely to be similar?

Brian