Lost order and a frustrated customer - please fix this bug!

[dgray]

This refers to the bug where customers can no longer checkout once incorrect data has been submitted, such as card number, zip or CVV2 (see my recent msg entitled CVV2 deadlock). Perhaps it might help to show you a typical customer reaction, received Saturday:

Dear David,
I have been trying to order Jigsaws Galore again (3rd time) for 3 days and 4 nights now and nada!. I get thru the order process o'k until I try to finalize it. Then I get a failure notice (I think) zip code incorrect, problem with security code on card or incorrect expiration date. Well you've got me checking my mail and the zipcode is correct and after looking at my card til my eyes crossed I actually called ny banks 24/7 number at 3:30 a.m. this morning and the security code and expiration date are also correct. Since I believe it is your fault that I;m addicted to this %#@*&^% game I think it's up to you to straighten this out! Is that clear??? Please? I hope you can help me withthis before "they" catch up with me for buying it again. I'm sure you know how "they" are. Everybody alse does. But after reading this lovely missive I'm sure you'll agree I need to get this quickly for my nerves! Hope to hear from you soon..like in 3 minutes maybe?
Stay safe
Sincerely,
[name withheld]

I'm tearing my hair out and not getting even an acknowledgement from ShopSite. I've even suggested how to fix it. Come on, you're better than this, aren't you?

[beley]

Have you asked the customer to clear their internet cache and delete the cookies? If it has anything to do with data they've entered, that would fix the problem.

[dgray]

Um, yes I can say to these customers, sorry, our e-Commerce system is a little buggy please clear your cart and start the order from scratch. And by the way don't make any mistakes this time! That works but I think you'll agree it's not ideal, to put it mildly. And this is happening regularly, this is just the latest customer who bothered to complain. How many don't bother to complain?

The point is, this appears to be a simple, clearly understood interaction with the gateway and has an easy fix. Here's the fix: Generate a new linkpoint order id whenever a cart is submitted. Or, even simpler, leave the order id blank because linkpoint will generate it's own.

To reiterate the problem, the gateway rejects any re-submitted orders as duplicate orders because it already has the order id in its database. So if an order is declined for, say, a mis-typed zip or card or CVV2, it will forever be rejected as a duplicate order even when the order is re-submitted with corrected data. So, generate a new oid each time and problem solved. Am I missing something?

[beley]

For what it's worth, I'm using Authorize.net and test extensively (I have several e-commerce shops and also develop them for clients) and have never come across this issue.

Could it be a problem with LinkPoint's gateway and not with ShopSite?

[dgray]

Yes, it appears to be a protocol mismatch between linkpoint and Shopsite. Since the way linkpoint operates is well documented I would think the onus is on ShopSite to conform to it. Linkpoint rejects orders with the same order id (a 32 digit number specific to the linkpoint protocol, not the Shopsite order number) which doesn't seem unreasonable. Linkpoint will even accept a blank field here and generate a number internally. But it won't accept the same order id twice which is what Shopsite are asking it to do.

The only mystery is why Shopsite have yet to pass comment. Maybe that part of their code is third party and out of their hands, I don't know, I'm guessing. I seem to recall that linkpoint software is written by a company called Clear Commerce whom we actually used directly for order processing some years ago but left when they withdrew the service.

[beley]

Well, these are the forums not an official support channel. Your best bet is to call or email ShopSite Support directly during normal business hours. That's the sure-fire best way to get a response.

[dgray]

Thanks Brandon.

I have submitted a bug report to my host, Pair, and they have forwarded the bug report to ShopSite. We'll see if there's any response via that "official" channel.

[dgray]

I'm happy to announce that after reporting the bug via my host, Pair, ShopSite quickly created and released a patch to me which fixes this problem.

[sdps]

Hey there, I have the same problem. Clearing cache and cookies fixes it temporarily. I'm using linkpoint too. Who did you talk to to get the patch? Maybe that'll fix mine too.

I don't know about other OS's but Windows 2003 has missed the past two updates. We're still on 8.1.3.1. No updates available since 12/20/06.

[Jim]

No patch is available for Windows yet. The linkpoint problem should be resolved in the ShopSite 8.3 Windows version when it is released.

Oddities in the way Windows handles some of the new features is what has delayed its release. It should be released some time in May if all goes well with the final testing..

[sdps]

Thank you. I look forward to the release.