options in shipping module quotes: where and how to output to screen?

[gernot]

Hi all,
ZC1.5.6c, PHP 7.3.10, responsive classic template.
I have some shipping modules which in addition to giving a quote of 'cost' also have an 'option' for time of delivery.
However, this does not actually work, i.e., no such selection appears on the Step1 of the checkout procedure.
In future I expect I would like to offer something like 'refrigerated delivery' also as an option rather than creating a new module.
In any case, I don't find any use of any quote 'option' either in
includes/modules/<OVERRIDE>/shipping_estimator.php
or in
includes/modules/pages/checkout_shipping/header_php.php
or in
includes/templates/<OVERRIDE based on responsive_classic>/templates/tpl_checkout_shipping_default.php
which files are where I suspect use of such an 'option' would be explicitly required to be placed (judging by following the logic of the gift wrap module).

Here is an example, from the Japanese nittsu.php, yamato.php and sagawaex.php shipping module files (from 1.5.1 Japanese Zen Cart).
I chose sagawaex.php for this example.
Declaration in the quote function:

// class methods
    function quote() {
      global $shipping_weight, $shipping_num_boxes;
      global $order;
      global $a_sagawaex_time;
      global $cart;
      global $db; 

and then in the quote function the call to the time specification function to display a drop-down menu:

          if (!isset($tmpQuote['error'])) {
              // 配送時刻指定
              $timespec = $this->get_timespec();
              $tmpQuote['option'] = TEXT_TIME_SPECIFY
                  . zen_draw_pull_down_menu('sagawaex_timespec', $a_sagawaex_time, $timespec);
              $tmpQuote['timespec'] = $timespec;
          } 

which function is defined as:

   function get_timespec() {
        global $a_sagawaex_time;
        global $shipping;

        $selected = $a_sagawaex_time[0]['id'];
        if ( isset($_POST['sagawaex_timespec']) ) {
            $selected = $_POST['sagawaex_timespec'];
        } elseif ( is_array($shipping) ) { // see checkout_shipping.php
            list($module, $method) = explode('_', $shipping['id']);
            if ($module == $this->code) {
                $selected = $shipping['timespec'];
            }
        }
        return $selected;
    } 

In the English language file, the time array is defined as:

$GLOBALS['a_sagawaex_time']=array(
  array('id'=>'None specified',  'text'=>'None'),
  array('id'=>'Before noon',    'text'=>'Morning (8 a.m. - 12 a.m.)'),
  array('id'=>'12 to 15','text'=>'12 a.m. - 3 p.m.'),
  array('id'=>'15 to 18','text'=>'3 p.m. - 6 p.m.'),
  array('id'=>'18 to 21','text'=>'6 p.m. - 9 p.m.'),
); 

Would it be necessary to explicitly add 'option' output in the shipping_estimator.php, checkout_shipping/header_php.php, and tpl_checkout_shipping_default.php files, or is there already machinery in place to use options, which I am missing?

[gernot]

Still plugging away on this, having looked at other shipping modules, I could not find any treatment of 'option' parameters in quotes, so this does not seem to be a built-in functionality, although the logic appears sound.

[mc12345678]

The ups, usps and FedEx Shipping options all offer multiple shipping "methods" that could be used as an example for "internal" design. Typically these each show one bullet per configuration. So to offer multiple time slots, the single shipping name would be combined with the delivery time to give like: "thisMethod Morning (8 a.m. - 12 p.m.)". Further the option designation would be made such that it could be "disassembled" to identify what features had been selected.

This additional effort is needed to help identify the cost and/or other features of consideration.

[gernot]

Hi mc12345678,
Very interesting, thank you for the reply and the insight, I will have a look at one of those modules.
Obviously I would like to try this myself, although I haven't any use for those modules, but since I am not sure right now how difficult it is to integrate one or more of them as a test in my current cart (and a brief online search did not turn up any screenshots), let me ask here for clarification and for others reading this thread:
When you say each method is offered a a separate bullet, does that mean within the area of the shipping module in the selection screen, or similarly separated like different modules?