usps.com Click-n-ship AutoFill Button Contrib

Love the idea -- having trouble.

Followed directions for install.

All looks good until I press the "USPS Autofill " button.

I get the following error on USPS site.

Internal Error : We've experienced an unexpected condition.
Error Tracking Number : 1209163543455

Any assistance would be appreciated.

thanks!

Kevin

Usually when there is a file in the zip that is named "IMPORTANT_README.TXT" you would want to read that right?:P

mauryg:

Utterly simple fix for the USPS form problem (no software hacks)...
Go to the Configuration menu for USPS Autofill.
Set Delivery: Default Shipping from Same ZipCode (Radio Button) to "other"
Set Delivery: Default Shipping from Other ZipCode (If Radio Button set to Other) to BLANK.

then when the form shows an error condition, just click the "Same as return address from above" radio button (or enter a proper zip code) and you are good to go. :clap:

This will fix the problem

Wondering if this is happening to anyone else...
I have the "Return: Tracking Notify via Email (checkbox)
Set this to true if you want to check the tracking notifications checkbox to receive tracking updates to the email specified." set to false, but yet I am getting tons of emails a day from USPS with tracking updates on my shipments. I see when I go from the autofill to the USPS site that the box does not get check, yet USPS decided they should be emailing me for every shipment I make.

Anyone else experiencing this issue?

Rich Fallon
Foilman.com

Haven't tried it set to false, but its possible they are just assuming that if you enter your email, you must want it.

Well I can tell you that when I put in no email address I get that dreaded Error Tracking Number : 1209163543455. Maybe I will just have to set up a different email account for these to go to and clean it out every now and then cause this is annoying...

If anyone else comes across a fix for that please do share :)

Rich

foilman:

Well I can tell you that when I put in no email address I get that dreaded Error Tracking Number : 1209163543455. Maybe I will just have to set up a different email account for these to go to and clean it out every now and then cause this is annoying...

If anyone else comes across a fix for that please do share :)

Rich

You can use no email but still check yes to cause an error. or use a letter in place of a number for weight. Basically any error will make the form work right, doesn't have to be related to the email stuff, that is just the one I recommend in the readme cuz its easiest

I keep forgeting to bring this up. I have a cart which we sell alot(75%) of the product by download. Those products don't require a shipping address and as such don't have a shipping address on the order page....but with the click and ship autofill installed the cart sees there is a mismatch with the billing address and shows the big red icon on the orders list page. The default behavior of ZC knows the difference and ignores the lack of shipping address. Its a minor issue with the mod but would like to see if its something I can get fixed at some point.

Thanks

barco57:

I keep forgeting to bring this up. I have a cart which we sell alot(75%) of the product by download. Those products don't require a shipping address and as such don't have a shipping address on the order page....but with the click and ship autofill installed the cart sees there is a mismatch with the billing address and shows the big red icon on the orders list page. The default behavior of ZC knows the difference and ignores the lack of shipping address. Its a minor issue with the mod but would like to see if its something I can get fixed at some point.

Thanks

I'm not sure I understand. You want to "fix" a little red dot on the order list page because you don't like it? The red dot is not a feature of USPS. It is a feature of Zen-Cart.

Yes I am aware of the fact that red icon is supposed to be there when there is a mismatch of the billing vs shipping in a default install. In a default install when the product sold is a download and a shipping address is not required, the orders list is smart enough to know that and doesn't display the red icon. when viewing that order there will be an address in the billing section and none in the shipping, just like its supposed to be and it doesn't see it as a mismatch like it was designed to work........

Now enter the click and ship autofill mod.....

Now the same order with the same product that does not need a shipping address. there will be no shipping address on the order just like its supposed to be....but in the area were the shipping info would go, if it were needed, is the icon for the autofill, which is fine......but for some reason the cart now thinks there is a mismatch between the billing and shipping, when according to default behavior there is nothing wrong.

So my only conclusion is that in some way the click n ship autofill mod makes a change that breaks the default behavior and triggers the mismatch.

Now I don't mind a orders list with the red icons lined up down the page, but it does make it more difficult to spot order that do require shipping, that do have a mismatch of shipping vs billing.

Was that a better explaination of what I see vs what I expect to see? Do get me wrong I absolutely love the click n ship autofill mod, couldn't live without it frankly. I just wanted to point out my observation.

Can you give me a screen shot of what you are describing? I really still don't understand... but I've never tested it without a shipping address

ok the first is the order list page showing the red icon denoting a mismatch of billing and shipping when it shouldn't as the order is a download and the shipping address is not required.

the second image is the order page for that product showing that there is no shipping address in the shipping address space just the autofill button.

Hi, I am trying to accomplish the same thing in another application. I have gotten as far as you guys. Is there anyway to generate the TOKEN needed to get to the next page? ultimatly I want to me able to scan an invoice into my application, read the weight from the scale fill in all the click-n-ship info, and select the correct shipping method. anyone got any tips or people inside usps?

cbusillo:

Hi, I am trying to accomplish the same thing in another application. I have gotten as far as you guys. Is there anyway to generate the TOKEN needed to get to the next page? ultimatly I want to me able to scan an invoice into my application, read the weight from the scale fill in all the click-n-ship info, and select the correct shipping method. anyone got any tips or people inside usps?

Forget about getting any REAL help from inside USPS. They are only concerned with keeping novices off their server. Their documentation states that they have sample code available, but when you ask for it they tell you that you have to write your own code. And get separate permission for every function you want to use.

Qhome said that his approach was a "hack" using a form POST to fill the fields. What you need to do is use an XML API to generate the URL request to the website. There is documentation available on the USPS which shows the form of the call you need to use.

I have been trying to find a good resource to teach myself how to generate the API from the XML info. As far as I can tell it should be very similar to the API used for some of the payment modules. If I can get USPS working I think I can also get Fedex and UPS the same way. We'll see. :frusty:

Also, is there anyway to get the tracking number back from the site?

I would be very interested in the UPS code if you figure it out. I am writing an integrated pick verify, shipping, and order finalization system that updates our order system. If you find any resources on USPS system let me know, I can hack something together if I can find specs somewhere.

cbusillo:

Also, is there anyway to get the tracking number back from the site?

According to the USPS manual, the response to the XML API request will return the "tracking" number and the label image (as a Base64 encoded TIF or PDF). There is an option to receive only the postnet barcode image , not the full label image if you are printing your own labels.
There are a lot more options when you look at the documentation. Go to http://www.usps.com/webtools/technical.htm and download the PDF manual.

But remember, a USPS "tracking" number is ONLY a DELIVERY CONFIRMATION number. That is, unlike Fedex or UPS, there is NO status information available from the time they receive the package to the time it is delivered to the customer.

mauryg:

According to the USPS manual, the response to the XML API request will return the "tracking" number and the label image (as a Base64 encoded TIF or PDF). There is an option to receive only the postnet barcode image , not the full label image if you are printing your own labels.
There are a lot more options when you look at the documentation. Go to http://www.usps.com/webtools/technical.htm and download the PDF manual.

But remember, a USPS "tracking" number is ONLY a DELIVERY CONFIRMATION number. That is, unlike Fedex or UPS, there is NO status information available from the time they receive the package to the time it is delivered to the customer.

Believe me I know about the delivery confirmation. At our peak we were shipping out about 100 usps packages a day. we moved most of that volume to dhl's at home service.

Thanks for the links thats what i was looking for and couldnt find. does anyone at usps have a clue??

cbusillo:

Thanks for the links thats what i was looking for and couldnt find. does anyone at usps have a clue??

They act like they want to help, but so far nothing useful. The following is a response I received when I requested the sample code for unpacking the XML response which they offered in their manual:

Thank you for contacting us. The API examples in the User Guides are a foundation for building the APIs. There can be many factors involved in developing and implementing them. The USPS provides the services, but not development. In that respect, we do include XML examples in the User Guides, but these examples are only a starting point.

You may wish to "google" search for examples on how to build an XML request using your selected programming language, or refer to other resources related to your programming language. The core requirements for utilizing the webtools are to be able to build an XML request, transmit data over the web, and then to unpack the XML response we provide back to you.

No sample code was received.

Yes, I too contacted USPS for assistance, but I got a reply stating something about "we do not condone the use of third-party interfaces with click-n-ship. Doing so may be illegal and we will forward this email to our technical services manager"

We are on our own I'm afraid.

As far as doing multiple pages. I got partially started using iMacros FF extension.. they also have an IE extension. That would probably be the only way for now. You could also get the tracking number back that way too.. its all pretty much screen scraping using iMacros