Hi All Users:
 
I would like to see more flexibility within the shipping modules.
 
For instance I have a product(s) that has many options with varying qty. As my qty increases, the weight increases and the number of boxes increases.
 
eg:
If you purchase a product and order 50pcs it fits in 1 small (12"x9"x9")) box with a total weight of 10lbs
 
100 pcs requires 1 medium (12"x12"x9") box and weighs 20lbs.
 
250 pcs requires 1 large box (18"x12"x9") AND 1 small box (12"x9"x9")
 
500 pcs requires ....etc etc
 
So this is all in one product. And to get really accurate shipping prices, the courier companies prefer to get this info. This will give you the most accurate pricing for shipping (it will make a difference in your selling price).
 
Currently ViArt does not have this sort of flexibility, although they have improved slightly with v3.5.35 in that you can indicate the box size, weight and dimension for each product individually.
 
But what happens in cases where a customer were to order say 5 units of a particular product and it forces you to make 2 boxes, how do you account for your shipping costs? Most online shops just over charge their clients for shipping to cover themselves or undercharge and cost themselves money.
 
What I am looking for is more accuracy in shipping costs and a better deal for my customers, so they get a cheaper price and keep coming back for more.
 
I want to propose ViArt to do this as a custom project, and I am wondering who would be willing to share in this cost with me?
 
Along with this enhancement, I will also propose that the software print out shipping labels based on the number of boxes for the product.
 
If you are serious then let me know so I can chat with them. I have already mentioned this to support, but I would like to move forward with few others to reduce cost. I don't have any pricing yet.
 
Any takers?

yes, this is a good idea.
 
 
I have the exact same problem.
 
Our courier company charges us based on 2 sets of weight calculation.
 
1). Total Weight of the parcel
2). Total Volumetric weight of the parcel.
 
 
Whichever, comes greater, the courier charges based on that.
 
Volumetric weight is calculated as follows:
 
Volumetric Weight = (Height X Width X Breadth) / 6000

SA Ibn Saeed:
 
 
In my case what I have done is placed the qty to be selected by the customer in the Options Values fields, since my qtys vary by product and they don't always increment in the same interval.
 
For instance 1 product qty starts at 50pcs, 100pcs,250,500,1000,1500,2000,2500.
 
So what would work for me is the weight for each qty, number of boxes and the dimension for each box to be present somewhere in the option values fields. Currently UPS will not process anything over 150lbs, since it assumes it is in 1 box.
 
The new ver3.5.35 only allows you to place detail info for the whole product, I am not sure how this helps. What for instance one was selling products that individually needed to be in their own box, so if someone ordered 2 units, then they would be 2 boxes, and if each weighed say 80lbs each, how would that be indicated in the new setup.
 
As I mentioned earlier, the system should also generate the appropriate shipping labels when we are ready to ship the goods.
 
Of course if there is a way to incorporate this into the system for all who participate to benefit then that is ideal.
 
What do you think Ibn Saeed?

fox, ill discuss the details later.
 
How much has Viart quoted the price for this customization

Ibn Saeed, they have not officially quoted any numbers yet, since we have not provided all the details, although I have mentioned what I would like to see happen.
 
Vera at Viart did mention about 4 hours of coding ($100 or so), but then no details were provided.
 
There is another lady 'Dani' who may be interested as she has similar shipping concerns.
 
If we could get a couple more people we could upgrade the shipping module so that we would also have a label being generated thru ViArt.
 
Lastly, if we were to go ahead then we would need a solid delivery date from ViArt, and it has to be compatible with the current vers 3.5.35.
 
Regards,

Greetings,
All my concerns and needs mirror that of foxtrotdomains.com exactly... so, I'm in!
I already am buying a custom block for LTL freight
foxtrot... I'm still using 3.5.0 when ViArt responds with something tangible... contact me 3starinc.com

Excellent Logan, I have not heard back from ViArt yet.
 
I would like a few more of us to get into this and cover our angles so it suits the rest that are participating. I know in the end all ViArt users will use this feature as they will see a dramatic drop and increased accuracy in their shipping costs.
 
I wait for Ibn Saeed, Dani and perhaps Dan to join our venture.

Logan, could you kindly e-mail me at (support at ooglebiz dot com) we can discuss the shipping in detail.
 
Thanks

Logan, Ibn Saeed:
 
I have a quote from ViArt to modify the shipping module for $300. I am hoping a few of us that require this change would chip in and reduce per user fee.
 
Please advise if you are interested.

You can include our company in this venture, although, we feel we (as customers) have been screwed into paying more for what should be working in the first place. What good is e-commerce without variable shipping that works for the paying customer??? (to include software purchasers)
 
After informing customers of the shipping issue... I've had approximately 100% of the people say "WHAT? ARE YOU KIDDING? THATS TOTALLY ABSURD for any small part business'!"
 
I was informed that this VALID idea will possibly be implemented into the next version... but we cant wait, We need this now.

Hi Dravekx:
 
Lets see if we can get others to chip in and modify the shipping to suit our requirements.
 
Kindly advise what you would like to see happen in this module?

Has this customizations been made and specifications determined yet?
 
Nick

No Technkl, not yet. It seems like some users want it, but our forum chats are brief and non constructive so far.
I have tried to ask various users to join in, but after a couple of comments nothing transpires.
If we can get 5 users to be a part of this, then we can hash it out via a phone call or e-mail and get it to work for all of us.
Anyway there it lies, undisturbed. I have had a quote of $300 from ViArt.

foxtrotdomains, Saeed, Logan ... and all others ... any development on that shipping enhancement feature?
 
If not too late, I am definitely chipping in as I'd need that, too.
 
Cheers

Well, if the interest is there, i think we should all chip in and proceed.

Well, I am bumping this up again, as I still see this as a big issue.
 
If ViArt would ever enhance their shipping, then they would be even better.

Viart is so advanced in some areas that I am perplexed that shipping is so backward and non functional. I need to have the functionality of being able to offer free shipping to a modifiable list of zipcodes. Any zipcode not listed would need to default to a different shipping method such as UPS.
If this proposed mod would be able to do this, count me in! If not, I would love to hear from a programmer that could provide a script that would do this.

Well aawebtools, it is interesting that I have been harping about the lack of functionality in the shipping module for a long time now and not many see it.
 
If you are shipping one item or so it is easy to setup. Ah! anyway I have written this so many times, it is frustrating.
 
Most here seems to have done it their own way; some rugged some with outside help.
 
I thought if enough of us made it a concern, Viart may do something or we could all chip in get some customization done to suit our shops.

Obviously, they aren't very concerned about this. It looks like nothing has been done and no comment has been made regarding this issue for over two years. Must be this is just a hobby project for them as they are not putting in any effort to make improvements or address concerns. Makes me wonder if I want to get on board their ship with my business. I will always wonder when the ship is going to sink.
 
Do you know a programmer and have you gotten an idea what it would cost to make the mods? Do you have a specification written as to what you envision the mod looking like?
 
I think what I am looking for would be quite simple as you could probably use the existing code for country or state and make it an input field that would accept a comma delineated list of zip codes.

I guess there is nothing happening here. I am moving on to a cart where the developers care about serving their customers. It is obvious that isn't happening here. Must be the developers are financially secure and don't need new customers.

Sorry, have been busy. I have a much different need. Nonetheless, I have been harping about the shipping module for the longest time and the only way for me to rectify is by customizing it to suit my store.

@Foxtrot
 
What has Viart said on this issue, will they implement it ?

Implement the shipping changes? I don't think so. I even gave up on ViArt doing anything about shipping.
 
This is such an integral part of any shopping software, I do not understand why this is not been brought up and corrected long time ago.
 
I think most shops are just 1 item 1 box and in most cases the shops actually end up making some money from the shipping so no one raises it as an issue.
 
Anyway we can try this again and have a few chip in and get it customized and agreed that it will not be sold to anyone else or included in any future upgrade.

Foxtrot,
 
Seroiusly?! Okay, well, many of us have paid for different enhancements to the viart software for our sites, and have had those implemented. We've chipped in on features that are important for our stores. You neglect to think that many of the features that you're using today have been paid for by other users where you have not. Yet when you pay for something, it's 'mine mine mine'. Nice.

Hello TOCDCO;
 
I hear your frustration and anger and can appreciate it too. Yes, you are right in that many enhancements have been paid for by the users and then implemented in future versions.
 
For your information I too have paid for enhancements that became part of the software. I paid for the implementation of the Canadian dual tax system that was in effect a few years ago (GST and PST). There were two of us that paid ViArt for the customization. So you see it is not always about "me, me, me".
 
Lets look at it a bit differently shall we; don't you think that when you have paid for an enhancement that you should be perhaps given something in return? For instance lets say you commission a custom product that many want but most do not wish to pay, they will hang around till someone else has paid for it so they can get it for free. Well that is fine but do you not feel that you should get something too, for instance how about the next upgrade for free from ViArt, especially since you are helping to better their product?
 
There should be some incentive for members to forward the software as well. Why should some of the most basic requirements become custom modules? Should some of the most fundamental requirements of a software not be part of it to begin with.
 
It is not a matter of being selfish, more to also get others to start to contribute as well. It should not be a case of few paying for the betterment of many. Especially some that just hang for someone else to foot the bill.
 
Don't you also think that if members are paying for many of the improvements then what is the company doing? The custom products are FULLY covered in terms of cost. It is not as if you were getting 50% off the cost of your customization. So you cover the complete cost and it gets into the general software for others that did not pay for it, and the company adds that into their features list.
 
I had even recommended that in some instances they sell the custom products as add on modules. This would stop many from waiting and getting it for free.
 
This modules has been discussed for 2 years, with no resolution in site. Do you think ViArt will make the changes? Will others chip in and help? Will ViArt wait till a user pays for its development? Will others wait till someone else pays for it and it gets added to the software so they can start using it? We wait and see.
 
I hope you see my point of view.

I completely agree with what you're saying. I also agree that if you've contributed to the next release, why would you be even asked to pay for the upgrade to the new version!?
 
I have a great deal of love for the ViArt Suite of products, however I'm not sure I agree with the changes that are in place. Why is it that we go from frequent updates, to barely hearing from them? What have they taken on that has gotten them so busy? They used to make enhancements on their own, and then if we needed them to rush and release early, it was custom work. Now it seems as though the whole cart is becoming peice work that is thrown together.
 
I don't want a cart with modules, as those are choppy systems.
 
I like the product that Volusion has, but don't want to pay monthly for something. Would rather purchase something up front.