| You can keep up with Emporium Plus module updates, tips, tricks, and coupon offers in a timely manner by clicking on one or both of these buttons and connecting with us. | |
|
|
In the past, a major change in the API resulted in stores having to take an active action to obtain the upgraded Miva Merchant files, e.g. from version 4.13 to 4.14 or 4.24 to 5.x and purchase the new module version. Now "updates" to Miva Merchant are made passively by clicking an update button in the lower left corner of admin. A few seconds go by and the update is done. Rarely does the store owner give a second thought on whether the changes will affect 3rd party modules. Some do and some don't. This upgrade will likely affect stores if they do not take positive action to upgrade the 3rd party modules affected by new features and if they use those new features.
For this reason, Miva is going to include a check of 3rd party modules and the version number required to be compatible with the new Miva Merchant version. There will be a warning for two scenarios.
Module developers have spent countless hours updating their modules. It is now up to the store owners and website developers to determine which modules need upgrading and make the upgrade. Read any update or warning instructions/read me files that may be in the zip files before making upgrades. Keep in mind, Miva Merchant and 3rd party developers will be swamped, so please be patient. You should only upgrade to PR7 when you have the "upgrade needed" 3rd party modules available (see below). All of the Emporium Plus modules are coded to allow installation in core 17 Miva Merchant, prior to making the PR7 upgrade. You should take advantage of that option. In the event you updated Merchant and do not yet have the affected modules (see below), simply do not use those modules or the feature which affects them until you get the applicable modules.
A brief summary of the Miva Merchant PR7 features are:
1) Inventory tracking at the attribute level rather than at the product code level. This is a big API change which makes upgrade necessary if you are going to use inventory at the attribute level. Failure to upgrade can result in data corruption as it relates to inventory levels. This could result in lost sales and hours trying to correct inventory. Modules which affect inventory must be updated if you use attribute inventory.
2) Payment data stored differently to handle refunds, etc via new API. Modules which need to report payment data, need to be upgraded. This primarily affects batch reporting modules.
3) Session management was changed in order to achieve PA-DSS compliance. Payment modules which go offsite to collect credit card data and then return to Miva Merchant must be updated.
4) Order management has been vastly enhanced with many new API changes. In the past you could run batch reports and order export to do simple order fulfillment. But now Miva Merchant provides status updates, shipment tracking, backorder, picklists, new phone orders, and a few other nice features. Our order status module will no longer be licensed or updated as the built in feature is superior.
5) Product field SKU added to the primary products database. Some 3rd party modules will need to be updated. Many stores which needed an SKU have already been using a custom product field with that name. If that is the case and you are using the Power Search module, you need to rename the custom product field or insert the data into the native product SKU field and delete the SKU custom product field.
6) Address line 2 was added to several databases and the customer input screens. Miva made this backwards compatible so 3rd party modules that are not upgraded will still be able to use the 2nd address line data which will be appended to the end of the 1st address line. Line 2 related upgrades are optional.
7) New default user interface (UI). This does NOT apply to existing Merchant stores which are being updated. The UI cannot be changed in existing stores so they will always use the old UI. It only applies to new installs of Miva Merchant after PR7 (Wombat) is released. Therefore, I have not listed any modules that need updating due to UI changes since you will be buying them after the PR7 release. They will be compatible with the new UI. You will not be able to use many modules purchased prior to May 5, 2010 in a new Miva Merchant store as they were written for the old UI, which at the time was the only UI available. Modules released after that date have code for both UIs.
8) Shipping module API change to improve the interface with modules like Checkout by Amazon, Google Checkout, and Webgistix. If you use checkout modules which require a list of possible shipping methods before checkout, then you will need to update most shipping modules.
9) Attribute display variables changed and no longer use the attribute_count. Modules which relied on that variable need to be updated.
10) If you autogenerate variants you can choose the option "Variant Price is set by the Inventory Product". If you
do that, the price is set in the inactive variant products. Hence, some modules have to do a complex build and lookup
of the variant record to retrieve the correct price. If you use that feature, those modules need to be updated.
Emporium Plus modules affected and the minimum version number implementing PR7 capabilities in updated stores.
Compare your current version number with these. You may already have the version listed below or newer. To check the
version number, go to admin > global settings > modules and search for the module on the right side. Click the edit
and view the module information.
As you know, Miva Merchant is charging you a monthly service fee (which began a few months ago) to use
their software and receive updated/upgraded versions. Rather than charge you a monthly service fee
or a membership service club fee, we have opted to charge a small update price only at the time you choose
to update/upgrade a specific module in a specific domain. This will be far less than a monthly service fee
for each module. Do not copy newer modules into other domains you manage without purchasing the update for
those other domains. That would be analogous to buying one copy of Window 7 and then copying it to all the
computers in your office. As you can see from above, only five of our 110+ modules must be upgraded as a
result of the extensive API changes. Four others must be upgraded only if you are going to use the attribute
inventory feature. Even with these extensive changes in the API, less than 10% of our module inventory is
affected by these changes. Less than 5% must be upgraded if you stick with the non-attribute level inventory.
In the past, when the Merchant version changed, e.g. from 4.13 to 4.14 or 4.24 to 5.0, you had to upgrade
every one of your 3rd party modules if you wanted to use them in the newer version. This new system represents
a significant savings over the previous "upgrade all" system.
You get the newer module based on the store you got the original from. Check your order email, then go to
the appropriate store link below.
Generic instructions for updating from one version of a Merchant 5.x module to a newer version:
You make module updates/upgrades by selecting admin > global settings > modules
(or admin > modules if your version is older than 5.5). Then in the
right screen input, search on the module code. I named my modules so the module code
is the first part of the module name (less the .mvc). For example, toolkit.mvc
would have a module code of toolkit Next, click the edit button to the right
of the module listing. Check "Usage Count (Number of Stores)". It must be higher than
0 if it is other than an import or export module. It should be equal to or greater than the number of stores
using it in your Miva Merchant if it is a shipping, payment, order fulfillment,
utility or system extension module. If it is not, you must stop and
do not update/upgrade the module. We will have to figure out why it is 0
and repair that. If ok, run the file upload, making sure to check the box for
overwrite. Then click the Update. DO NOT FORGET TO CLICK THE UPDATE.
If you click the Information tab, the version should be the same or newer than the version listed
above. If it is not, something went wrong. After updating, go to the module's admin
screen and make sure everything looks correct, i.e. no errors, license info, data appears
correct in the admin inputs, etc. The order
number needs to be the order number from the original purchase of the module license for this
major version number. So if you got the license for 5.x two years ago, then that is the
order number to put in the input. If you later buy an update license, keep that new order
number for your records but do not insert it in the module's input. If there is
a license key input and it says "request license key" and the input is blank, you must click
that request license key link and request the key. It will automatically insert the original order number
in the request. If you just updated, the update order number will be looked up and associated with the
original order number in order to generate the key. If a license key is required you will see
a message of 240 hours remaining and it will count down until it expires. So while you don't
need to get the key immediately, don't wait until the last day before it expires.
Also make sure features related to the module are still working.
Some modules will be discontinued or will not be updated for the new features.
1) Customer and Product Administration. The new order management system makes this module obsolete. It has
been discontinued.
2) Product Quantity Import/Export. These modules will not be updated for the attribute inventory. If you do not
use the attribute inventory, but rather stay with inventory at the product code level, then you will still be able
to use these modules.
3) Wait List Manager. This module will not be updated for the attribute inventory. If you do not
use the attribute inventory, but rather stay with inventory at the product code level, then you will still be able
to use this module. If you are going to use attribute inventory I have included the wait list feature in the
Emporium Plus Tool Kit (version 5.163 and newer).
4) Kit Maker. Among the inventory by attribute features is the ability to build kits. This feature is much
more robust than our kit maker module so it will be discontinued.
5) Category Manager. This module will not be updated for CSSUI so cannot be used in new stores created after
May 1, 2010. It can still be used in MMUI stores created before that date. Its functionality (multiple category
page templates, sorting, pagination, products per page selection, subcat display, breadcrumbs) has been incorporated
into the Emporium Plus Tool Kit for both MMUI and CSSUI.
While on the subject of updating, I've noticed that some people forget to update the CIM Activity Log (cim_log.mvc)
when they updated modules. That module is used as a library module by 17 of our modules and should be kept up
to date. The current version is 5.019. You can check to see if you have it and if it needs updating by going
to admin > modules and searching on cim_log. If you do not have it, then you don't need to install it. If you
do have it, click edit. Check the version number. If it is 5.019, you are up to date. If it is older, you can
get the latest update at log519.zip.
1) Unzip the log519.zip file, saving the cim_log.mvc on your hard drive
2) If update is needed, click the Global Settings > Modules link
3) Scroll down to CIM Activity Log (cim_log) and click the edit button
4) Click the tab for Files
5) Click the file upload button and check the overwrite checkbox
6) Browse to find the cim_log.mvc file on your hard drive where you saved it and upload
7) Click Update to update the module. Verify the version is 5.019 or newer.
8) This module was updated for specific features added to the Coupon Redemption module version 5.0520. If
your version of the coupon module is older than 5.0520, you'll need to update it too. If you are not using
our coupon module, then naturally you don't have to update it.
This document talks about the few modules that are affected by Wombat. I have had a few people who updated all their modules, not just the ones in this document. I would recommend against that for two reasons. 1) There may be a compatibility issue with some of those other modules and Wombat which has not been identified yet. The module will get updated and you will end up having to update it again. So wait til the dust clears. 2) Wombat opens many new horizons which existing modules may be able to tap into. Hence, some will likely get new features. Suggestions are welcome. Again, wait til the dust clears. That said, if you see a module which has a lot of new features that are not in the version you have, e.g. the Coupon Redemption module, then by all means go ahead and update it if you want those new features. Another example would be the Tool Kit. It is on the list of update only if you are going to use a certain feature. However, a lot of new things; e.g. multiple category and product page templates, page numbering and products per page selections, sorting on category and product list pages, wait listing, advanced search feature, basket save and restore, and override customer password (login as customer) have recently been added.
Questions:
1) I updated Merchant to PR7 (Wombat). What will happen if I don't update the modules and use the old version?
a) Attribute Import/Export - Inventory flag in the attributes database will be erased if you import with the old module.
b) EZ Batch Report - No payment info will be shown in the batch report.
c) Tool Kit - Clear all of basket contents will corrupt the inventory count if attribute inventory is used.
d) Show Baskets - Deleting a basket in the display will corrupt the inventory count if attribute inventory is used.
e) Restock Shelves - Allowing this module to run automatically will corrupt inventory count if attribute inventory is used.
f) Template Data Feed - There is no token for exporting the SKU field.
g) Power Search - You will get errors when updating product records in admin if you don't update.
h) Addendum - The email and batch report will use the built in workaround and put address 2 on the end of address 1 line.
i) Order Custom Fields - The delete old records will not work in batch edit mode as API 5.51 is required for that. Easy
workaround is to use the checkbox in the module's admin screen to delete old records. The email and batch report will
use the built in workaround and put address 2 on the end of address 1 line.
j) Mail Manager - The email will use the built in workaround and put address 2 on the end of address 1 line rather than use
the new tokens %order_ship_address1%, %order_ship_address2%, %order_bill_address1%, %order_bill_address2%. However,
the optional %payment_module% and %payment_data% tokens will not display their data in the email if you do not update this module.
k) PayPal - Payments from paypal.com will not update the order in Miva Merchant admin. The interface will fail.
l) Swap Link - Because the attribute inventory involves a large number of fake (inactive) products you would have
pages in which the products per page total would not be correct as they would not be displayed.
m) Create Batch by Date - Batch delete link removed due to bug in Miva Merchant PR7 which corrupts inventory when deleting
batches.
n) Shipping Modules - Prior to PR7 the "zone" shipping modules did not work with Google and Amazon checkout or only partially
worked with them. For that reason, their product page stated that they were not compatible. Miva believes that the changes
they made in the API will allows those shipping modules to work better than it has in the past. If you do not update the
shipping modules you will not be able to take advantage of the API changes that Miva has implemented and may implement in
the future.
o) Save Basket to Gift/Wish List - The attributes selected will not get saved, thus will not diplay on the GIFT page.
p) Price Group Manager - You won't be able to use the option "Variant Price is set by the Inventory Product"
q) Basket Price Group Recalc - You won't be able to use the option "Variant Price is set by the Inventory Product"
| You can keep up with Emporium Plus module updates, tips, tricks, and coupon offers in a timely manner by clicking on one or both of these buttons and connecting with us. | |
|
|
|
| Share this page with your social network |
|
|