The USPS Name change has struck again! The USPSv5 module is based on name matching, so this of course breaks the module for any service that has its name changed.  In this latest edition, the "Parcel Post" is changing to "Standard Post".

To fix your installation of USPSv5, do the following:

In uspsv5.php, find the first line and replace with the second:
"USPS_SHIP20_TEXT" => "Parcel Post<sup>®</sup>^", // CLASSID 4  // Disable after 2013-01-27

Tags: bugfix | Update | Free Software | Shipping Module | VirtueMart | USPSv5

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I'll be marrying my best friend and the love of my life, Stephanie, on Saturday the 12th.  I'll be 100% completely unavailable until Monday January 21.

Tags: availability

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I know I've been promising a lot of people the VirtueMart 2.0 compatible shipping modules in the next few weeks, but I am going to have to put that on hold for a while.  I'm really unsure of how long.  Some life situations have come up that prevent me from having any extra time to work on the modules.  Namely, I'm getting married in January and the plans are taking a lot of time.  Also, my grandfather is terminally ill, and I've been spending more time with him.

So, I'm sorry to dissapoint, and I really do want to complete the modules, but I cannot at this time.  Keep watching this blog for updates, probably after January.

Please pray for me and my family, as we need all the prayer and support we can get!

Tags: Joomla | USPSv5 | FedExv2 | UPSv2 | Shipping Module | VM2.0 | VirtueMart 2.0

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My combined shipping module includes UPSv2, FedExv2, and USPSv5. It is based on VirtueMart 1.1.9 code.

I've had approximately 15 installations with no reports of issues with this module, so I am publicly releasing it.  Visit my "Free Software" page to download today.

Tags: Shipping Module | FedEx | FedExv2 | UPS | UPSv2 | USPSv5 | USPS | Free Software | VirtueMart | Update | gpl

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Lucille Campbell

February 28, 1924 - June 27, 2012

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Tags: Avalara | AvaTax | VirtueMart | integration | tax | address validation

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VirtueMart saves the cart contents of users who have logged in and have items in the cart, along with a timestamp.  This makes it an ideal starting point for retargetting customers, especially "abandoned" carts.  Using this info, I've written a mod that uses a Joomla article as an email template and sends an email containing a special coupon code and message with the cart contents to lure the users back to the website.  The email also contains a link that automatically logs the user in, applies the coupon, and sends them to the checkout page.  The coupon expires in a configurable number of hours and/or days, so once it expires the auto login feature no longer works and they are asked to view the front page for more specials.

In my Dashboard mod, I wrote a section that shows all "abandoned" carts (based on a configurable time in the retargeting config), all "live" carts, and also shows the timestamps, coupon codes, and email status for each abandoned cart.

Screenshot of the email, with client info redacted:

Tags: Custom Mod | VirtueMart | Retargeting

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I recently came across another payment module I wrote way back in 2009 and never got around to publishing for free download.  Check out the Authorize.net CIM payment module on my "Free Software" page, under VirtueMart payment modules.

This module only touches the surface of the CIM capabilities.  It was written for a specific purpose, a low-traffic but high price web store.  As it is, a new payment profile is created for each transaction, so it's not something you'd want to use on a high-volume site...it also does not utilize the payment credentials storing capabilities of CIM, which would be a great feature for repeate customers.

Tags: Free Software | VirtueMart | Payment Module | Authorize.net | CIM

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I just wanted to clear up any confusion and/or questions about my shipping modules and VirtueMart 2.0.  My UPSv2, USPSv5, and FedExv2 (and all other current modules available for download on my website) do NOT work with VirtueMart 2.0.

I do have plans to create a unified module for VM2 at some point in the (hopefully near) future.  I've only just had time to download, install, and begin learning the ins and outs of VM2.0, so the shipping modules are still a good ways out.

Thank you, and check back here for updates.

Reggie

Tags: Shipping Module | USPSv5 | USPS | Free Software | VirtueMart | Update | VirtueMart 2.0

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My brother in law and I enjoy talking about code and coding together.  Not long ago, he undertook a programming excersize in Java, focused on the Android platform.  He decided to make a Greek flashcard app, and hoped to get some real programming experience under his belt.  He made a really good start at it, but ran into a few roadblocks dealing with classes and instances and repetitive code.  I was happy to help him work out a few issues, and streamline the code. It turned out to be a learning experience for us both, as I had never really touched the Android platform.  The result was a useful app that we plan on expanding at some point in the future.As a matter of fact, he's planning a Hebrew version as well!   You can get the Android and/or plain Java version of the flashcard app on his website:

http://www.isaiahtheo.com/

Tags: Android | isaiahtheo | Free Software

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Every now and then I get to work on a project that I thoroughly enjoy.  This is one of them.  I have implemented a "Dashboard" for my client which allows him instant access to information that used to take several clicks to find before.  I have to give a huge "thank you" to jQuery, which allowed me to quickly and easily create nice looking widgets with ajax capabilities.  Without jQuery this project would have easily taken twice as long.

Some screenshots, with comments (to view a full sized image, right click and "view image". these are scaled down to fit):

The dashboard started out with just a couple of features in mind, but has grown more as my client realized the potential it had to save time.

The first section acts as a URL bookmarking repository.  This gives quick access to the VirtueMart back end, various 3rd party websites, and some other local custom scripts I wrote.

Clicking on the "Edit" icon allows you to move bookmarks up or down.  You can also create any number of sections to categorize the bookmarks (all are blacked out to protect my client's identity..each new colored section denotes a new category).

The next section is a custom built tasking solution.  We tried several open source options, but they ended up being too complicated, not working, or not doing quite what was required.  My solution does exactly what my client needs, nothing more, nothing less.  Emails are sent to task assignees when a new tasks is assigned, completed, deleted, updated, etc.  The progressbar gives the assignor a quick reference of how the task is progressing.  There are various task filters to search by user, date, priority, etc.  The green arrows allow for prioritizing.

The "Add a new task" popup..prioritzing is as simple as clicking "Move to top".

I'm not 100% happy with the way the view-task popup turned out.  We'll probably break the comments section out into its own popup, for ease of use.

The "Products" section is probably the most time saving part of Dashboard.  Based on a set of filters at the top, it retrieves VirtueMart product data for quick viewing.  When clicked, the images pop up a full sized version for easy viewing.  For inventory purposes, the total cost and total price are calculated and displayed on the bottom right.  The blacked out areas are to protect my client's identity and product data.

Click the "Edit" button, and you now have direct access to change various product data.   Click "Save", and all product data is saved.  By the way, this client's product cost, price, and stock, and some custom options are all synchronized across 3 websites via a custom mechanism I wrote.

The feeds section.  I have a number of customized feeds that upload product availability/stock/pricing to various websites.  There are also feeds to download sales data as a customized order, with inventory automatically being reduced in the process.  The feeds run via CRON jobs, and various stats are logged and viewable via the dashboard.  The feeds can also be manually kicked off via this section.

Details of the google feed.  The custom built feed skips, modifies, or otherwise manipulates product data according to my client's set of rules.

The users section.  Users authenticate via basic HTTP authentication, and various other rights are kept in a database table.  This determines if the user can see/use the feeds, product data, or can adjust user rights.  This screenshot shows the user section in "edit" mode.

Overall, I'm pretty happy with Dashboard.  I would like to spend more time on aesthetics, but it is still a powerful tool. It's been a fun project!

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Tags: Update | VirtueMart | Free Software | USPS | USPSv5 | Shipping Module

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Tags: Shipping Module | USPSv5 | USPS | Free Software | VirtueMart | bugfix

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Woops!

I contacted YRC Freight shipping over a year ago about publishing this shipping module for VirtueMart, but never heard back from them.  I sent several emails, and even phoned them.

So, I'm going to go ahead and publish this module, in hopes that YRC will have no objections.  You may find a version for VirtueMart 1.1.5 in my "Free Downloads" software section

Tags: Free Software | VirtueMart | Shipping Module | yrc | gpl

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George Lewis Taylor

Sept 12 1922 - Sept 23 2011

You will be missed.

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At a client's request, I have taken the first small step towards a unified UPSv2 + USPSv5 + FedExv2 module. I've merged them altogether and updated the core files to vm119!  However, I've only tested the bundling option.  I have no idea if the other features even work.

I still plan on merging the feature set so that all modules benefit from all of the neat functions that previously only worked for one of them....but it's going to be a while.

I've also been reading up on cutting and packing algorithms, with the end goal of a box-stuffing algorithm in mind.

Tags: Shipping Module | UPSv2 | USPSv5 | FedExv2 | Free Software | VirtueMart

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So, what has lowmips been up to these past months? Feeds, feeds, and more feeds! Exporting product data to Google, Amazon, Buy.com, and plenty more.  Customizing these feeds to fit client needs.  Importing sales from these sites back into VirtueMart.  Updating stock levels. Exporting stock levels.  Synchronizing stock levels among multiple sites.  Importing product data from 3rd party vendors into VirtueMart as new products in new categories. Creating custom scripts to do all the above, log it, analyze it, and report on it.

Whew! What a workout!

... My shipping modules are getting dusty!

Tags: feeds | lowmips

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Caching is a beautiful thing.  It can make your load times go from molasses to lightning.  However, the default caching system in Joomla does not work very well with VirtueMart.   Carts are not updated properly, checkout pages can get messed up, and a host of other issues crop up.  I've found a nice open source solution:

JotCache

This component + plugin system allows you to bypass caching for module positions, whole components, and even components called with specific arguments.

Sweet!

Tags: VirtueMart | Joomla | cache | Open Source

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Tags: USPSv5 | USPS | VirtueMart | Shipping Module

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Tags: USPSv5 | USPS | VirtueMart | Shipping Module

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