Archiwum kategorii: Article

i-systems release – version 4.3

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Another version of our system has been released. This time, changelog reached a record number of 258 positions, such as: adding new full-text advanced search engine, redirection module, spam shield module, as well as HTTP Auth configurable authorization.  

What is advanced Solr search engine?

This module is an extension of an advanced product searcher (PAS), which uses Solr for searching. What is Solr? It is an efficient platform for full-text search. The previous version of the system was based on storing product data in database, however it was much slower. Solr is quicker than database query.

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This option can be efficiently scalable and expandable, unlike the previous version, where additional queries were needed. In case of PAS module, all changes in product features had to be refreshed, so that data could be outdated. Now, they are being refreshed incrementally every 5 minutes, and all data is being refreshed every hour. This means that  the longest waiting time for this changes on frontend level is 5 minutes. Moreover, customers get Solr search engine bundled with version 4.3.

Redirection module

This module allows to create and import URL redirections from the panel level. The customers want to keep URL address, they had in the previous store, because of positioning. Therefore, we prepared a tool, which in a very universal way, deals with tasks, which until now have been carried out in an individual way.

Spam Shield Module

Spam Shield reduces email spam from the contact forms, as Internet bots send unwanted content. This protection is based on both analysis of the display time and time needed to send a form – to small interval alerts application to bot. Also, a hidden box has been added, the fulfillment of which will inform the system about the threat.

HTTP Auth configurable authorization

Along with the launching new versions of the multidomain stores, when the customer does not want the store to be indexed by Google, while working simultaneously with the current store, the module introduces an additional authorization for a particular domain. This means, that the stores continue working, and the module introduces an additional authorization, preventing content indexing by Google.

What else?

In addition, discount politics module has been updated. The following changes have been introduced: discount limit support, base price discount, improvement of Allegro cart price calculation, improvement of transport registration, transport surcharge support, and conditional coupons support. Release 4.3 also includes new options for logistics modules, and improvement of UX in the administration panel.

Advantages and disadvantages of open source

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eCommerce market is a rapidly growing area. For companies which understand the potential of online sales it has become an important source of income. Fitting the needs of modern, more and more mobile customer, who wants to buy online efficiently and comfortably, is a basic feature of an efficiently functioning online store.

Choosing the right software for your business, either dedicated or open source, is a foundation while creating an online store. While following the internet portals, it is hard to resist the feeling that there is a bit of disinformation concerning advantages and disadvantages of an open source software.

Undoubtedly, it has a huge contribution to the popularization and development of eCommerce. However, being aware of the benefits and drawbacks of this kind of software, one can adjust the online sales system to the specifics of business, and most of all – demands of current and future customers.

Open source software in Poland and over the world

Among 10,000 biggest online stores worldwide, the most popular open source engine is Magento. According to Built With, Magento engine drives over 14% of all online stores, and next 8% are driven by Magento Enterprise engine.

Created by i-systems on the basis of: Global eCommerce Technology Distribution http://trends.builtwith.com/shop. The shopping cart technologies used by online stores globally. Last updated Jan 20th 2016.

Created by i-systems on the basis of: Global eCommerce Technology Distribution http://trends.builtwith.com/shop. The shopping cart technologies used by online stores globally. Last updated Jan 20th 2016.

Taking Poland into the consideration, Magento considerably losses in the market in favor of other solutions. This software supports only 4% of the Polish online stores. The leader at this level is PrestaShop, which is selected by 25% of the market. A common software is also WooCommerce, which occupies 19% of the market.

Created by i-systems, on the basis of: Top in Ecommerce usage in Poland · Week beginning Jan 25th 2016

Created by i-systems, on the basis of: Top in Ecommerce usage in Poland. Week beginning Jan 25th 2016.

Open source – the cost of implementation and development

The word ”open” doesn’t mean that the software is free of charge – it determines the open source code. Therefore, persons with appropriate development skills and the time can freely modify the store’s engine for their own needs. It is possible to create online store on this basis, however one should not expect that it would be totally for free. If you don’t have programming skills or time, or if you rather focus on actions to increase sales – you have to pay for such services.

Due to high demand, prices of the Magento specialists are one of the highest among the eCommerce programmers. The open source license such as basic Magento Community is free. However, if you want to have technical support and marketing modules, you have to buy Magento Enterprise with an annual license fee in the amount of more than 22,000 $.

Safety when choosing open source software

The open code is a solution that has its strengths and weaknesses. On the one hand it can mean better detection of errors and fixing them faster, and on the other hand increased risk of attack. Checking code by a large community is also fuzzy responsibility for errors. The example can be OpenSSL and gap “hearbleed”. For more than two years the gap was in browsers and web servers. No one noticed it, thinking that this was already checked.

Problems with updates and compatibility with following versions of open source

Open source is rarely compatible with the following versions. The problems associated with updates are often the subject on the forums. When there is a new version of Magento and online stores try to migrate, it is very often that integrations and dedicated extensions of the store stop working properly. Sometimes even official modules refuse to work. Then the store has to be built practically from scratch. Update complications caused that significant percentage of online stores is still working on the Magento version 1.7 engines.

Open source and the change of the company implementing online store

Open source allows to change the agency which creates eCommerce system. However, you should remember that the agency, being aware of the temporary agreement with the customer, not always fully engage in the tasks. It happens that stores generated on open source are written in a hurry, without consistent rules, attention to comments, specification and code culture. It means that the new agency in the initial phase has a huge problem, because they need to understand what the programmer had in mind. As a result, though trial and error, changes are being introduced, or some parts of the store are written from scratch. Then arises the so called “effect of technical debt”, which means biggest costs of modifications and software development in the future.

Commercialization of open source

Every software is finally replaced by the new solutions. The example can be OsCommerce software, which for a long time has been the most popular system for online stores. However currently, it is gradually displaced from the market in favor of other systems.

Popularity of open source software, created by i-systems on the basis of: http://www.slideshare.net/AuroraCreation/szkolenia-magento-dekalog-bezpieczestwa-magento

Popularity of open source software, created by i-systems on the basis of:
http://www.slideshare.net/AuroraCreation/szkolenia-magento-dekalog-bezpieczestwa-magento

Currently, the driving force behind Magento 2, the premiere of which was announced more than three years ago, is ebay. During the works on the project, CEO and software creator – Varien – has left the company. He admitted off the record that he had different definition of “open source” than ebay. Development direction of this software can be seen by comparing Community and Enterprise version. The commercialization of open source software is standard practice. List of free modules, the number of users and products is gradually reduced, so as to companies wishing to develop their online activities, chosen paid model.

The cost of maintaining the open source software

The highest fixed costs of maintaining online store are hosting and the time of programmers. Open source is often an overextended system. For this reason it requires several times bigger resources than dedicated system of the same size. Optimization is troublesome, and the increase in traffic means the necessity to add computing power.

Open source created by self-educated community

Open source high popularity owes to the self-educated community. It is directly affected by growing number of new agencies implementing stores basing on the open source software. Open source software will always be more popular, because it clearly shortens the way of each interactive agency to the possibility of creating online stores. However, this type of stores has a low level of security – they are often a victim of attacks and data theft. It is also the most commonly used solution for creating fictitious shops.

Open source and new solutions

Today’s sales systems have moved beyond standard collection and handling of orders a long time ago. The current eCommerce market is changing very rapidly. Open source is always a few steps behind solutions that are developed by commercial companies in closed teams. That was in case of Responsive Web Design and OmniChannel. Waiting for a moment when a module will be ready may result in loss of customers of an online store, as they will be interested in shopping according to applicable standards at this time.

Open source software, such as Magento, WooCommerce and Presta is a very good complement of eCommerce market. It responds to the needs of small and medium-sized companies that have the experience and resources to independently develop a standard store. However, when a company wants to focus efforts on increasing sales, and it prefers to pay an external company to take care of the support, hosting and technical matters, dedicated software is worth considering. The costs of implementation and further development may be much lower than in the case of open source. Implementation of dedicated solutions is especially worth considering when the store’s functionalities are beyond standard ones, and they require constant monitoring and quick response to errors.

Herbamedicus expands the group of its customers through eCommerce

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Herbamedicus Poland was established in 2010. With the Swiss preparations the owner met two years earlier. However, at this time he worked for a different international corporation, so he made a decision to carry out market analysis. After extensive research, it turned out that Polish consumers want to use natural healthy products.
Herbamedicus Poland offers Swiss preparations of natural medicine. All products contain extracts of herbs and medicinal plants, creating a fully natural products. The brand can be found in pharmacies, herbal shops, as well as in drug stores and retail chains, located throughout the country.

Reaching wider group of customers

The company carries out activities aimed at increasing the range of its customers. In April, they started cooperation with the Polish champion in bodybuilding – Michał Sawicki. Thanks of the campaign, Herbamedicus products are more and more often selected by active people.

– Not so long ago, our offer was addressed to the customer who was over 45 years old. However, we decided to expand our business and reach younger customer. Products for athletes, dermocosmetics, and coconut oils, addressed to all people who want to live a dynamic and healthy live were made. To reach younger customer, besides offline sales, we have created a mobile and technologically advanced eCommerce system – says Adam Jakobiuk, Chairman of the Board at Herbamedicus
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Awards for modern eCommerce system

The company has recently been recognized with many awards. They received “Skrzydła Biznesu” [Business Wings] – an award granted to the companies searching for the new solutions for development, silver medal in “Konsumencki Lider Jakości 2016” [Consumer Quality Leader 2016], and title “Dobra Marka 2016” [Good Brand 2016]. Due to an implementation of the modern eCommerce system, Herbamedicus received title of “e-gazela biznesu” [Business e-gazelle]. Herbamedicus online store has a lot of B2B solutions and functionalities to support the automation of payments and order fulfillment. The management board particularly appreciate the dedicated Call Center module. Thanks to the implementation of this solution, the company effectively increases phone sales.

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– Our eCommerce system is an innovative project. On the one hand it is easy-to-use and intuitive, on the other – it has several developed functionalities to increase the quality of customer service. We hired external companies to run phone sales. The decision to create proprietary Call Center module was a good choice – states Iwona Urbaniak, Office Manager at Herbamedicus.


Development of the new brands

The Swiss Herbamedicus company is not the only brand offered by a Polish company. In their offer they also have their own brands, such as Vitamedicus – herbal preparations, and Herba Pure – dietary supplements.
Despite many successes the company is not slowing down its development. They recently purchased land for the new office and warehouse. Currently they are waiting for an appropriate permissions and finalizing the construction project. The new warehouse is to be environment friendly and consistent with the overall idea of ​​the company. Completion of construction works is planned at the end of next year.

i-stats application dedicated to i-systems customers

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A free i-stats app has been prepared for i-systems customers, who have eCommerce system from version 4.3. The application is used to display statistics of an online store. Each user with the appropriate permissions, or the person managing an online store can see which products are most popular and what are the sales results of the store in a given period of time. It can be also a helpful tool in case of choosing effective methods of further development of eCommerce actions.

Data from different time periods

i-stats can be used to obtain interesting data from different periods of time – for the day, week, month or even a year. An app is simple and intuitive – user who wants to download data simply has to select suitable interval.

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Information to determine the further development of eCommerce actions

Thanks to i-stats application one can trace the value of contracts, both in the form of chart and text data. User can also check the amount of executed orders. It can also get information on what days an online store reports the highest or lowest value of sales. Moreover, the application shows summary data, i.e. how many contracts were finalized with a prepayment or by cash on delivery. The system also allows to check the amount of products ordered. Thanks to this it can be found out if the customers prefer to buy less high-end products or more cheaper products. This app also allows to determine the average time of order execution.

How to download i-stats?

Mobile app is available for iOS and Android. It can be downloaded from Google Play, as well as App Store. Only online store’s address, as well as login and password is needed to log in. Once entered, the data is saved, and the application automatically updates the values downloaded from the store.

Download

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UrbanGames eCommerce system awarded by adidas

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UrbanGames – an online store of Arco company, operating on the market of sports shoes for almost twenty years, received “adidas Poland Quality Mark”. The award was granted for compliance with the adidas Group eCommerce guidelines.

The Arco company has a network of stationary stores, located throughout Poland. Showrooms offer their customers clothing and sports footwear by manufacturers such as: adidas, Nike and Reebok. The next and at the same time natural step for the representatives of the company was the opening for the eCommerce market .

Recognition for dedicated solutions

Developed product sheets has been implemented in the new eCommerce system. Thanks to separate tabs in product sheets, customer has a possibility to familiarize with all the details, such as: payments, shipping, warranty, returns, without the necessity to look for these information in the store’s terms and conditions. Developed product sheets also consist of such details as blade size.

– The quality of the store, modules supporting customer service, as well as dedicated solutions related to product presentation are the reasons why we were awarded by “adidas Poland Quality Mark” – claims Łukasz Nagły, eCommerce Manager at UrbanGames


Next development directions

Developing a network of monobrand stores, with close collaboration with producers, allowed UrbanGames to achieve very high level of of both customer service and knowledge of modern trends. Experience in the selection of appropriate models of the products contributed to the development and strengthening the brand position in the market. However for company’s representatives there is no room for complacency. They completely understand the power of online activities, so the new UrbanGames online store will be soon promoted in social media. By these actions the company would like to start cooperation with Polish bloggers and engage in the promotion and sponsorship of talented young athletes.

– According to our assumptions, UrbanGames online store should form a coherent whole along with stationary shops and complement each other – says Łukasz Nagły, eCommerce Manager at UrbanGames


Representatives of the company intend to intensify efforts to combine offline and online sales. Implemented eCommerce system in fact is to be a support for continuously expanding network of stationary stores.

The advantages of i-systems cloud

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Servers are one of the most crucial parts of the eCommerce system. Therefore, we decided to crate our own, fully adjusted to the demands of e-market, cloud hosting infrastructure. We present the nine technological advantages of i-systems solutions.

Administration

Dedicated servers or vps/cloud suppliers make clean servers available for their customers. The customer gets a password, IP address and other necessary information needed to administrate. Next, user has to configure, secure and optimize servers. Configuring the scalable environment for the store itself needs 5-10 virtual servers (load balancers, application servers, empty servers, servers’ replications, cache servers, etc.). Except for configuration the servers needs to be optimized, which is not a one-time task, contrary to popular belief. At i-systems, all the works connected with server administration are conducted by a team.

Incremental backup

One of the most important resources of eCommerce system is data. Keeping backups of all data, even after a few months, is connected with a necessity to have enormous disc resources. Therefore, i-systems team created own solution: incremental backup. It allows to recover data state, even a few months back, without a necessity to have all the disc resources. It is possible because the only thing that is saved on backup are the differences in files since the last backup. There is always a catalog with an exact copy of a backup system. If it is necessary, the differences are applied to the last version of the system and thus we recover all data.

Vertical scalability

Vertical scalability of servers is increasing a number of processors and RAM in virtual server. Such actions are a natural development of infrastructure. That gives us a rapid possibility to increase the number of users the web can handle. However, this kind of scalability has a certain limit. At some point, the addition of resources is not possible (there is no physical possibility to add another disc or memory), or it is not effective anymore (system reached its maximum efficiency). When vertical scalability is no longer an option, the only option is horizontal scalability.

Horizontal scalability

Horizontal scalability of servers is increasing an infrastructure by physically adding another servers and to split particular tasks between them. The task assigned to the particular server is not visible for the users in any way. This kind of scalability and tasks’ division allows multiple increase in number of users the web can handle. Horizontal scalability is limited only by apps capabilities and the knowledge of admins.

Service monitoring

On every server, no matter who is the supplier, a range of functionalities is installed. From those indispensable, as www servers, cache, data bases, to dedicated services. In the context of hosting services it is very often that the only thing that is monitored is computer operation. What is excluded from the monitoring is the operation of each functionality separately. In case of i-systems cloud solution all the functionalities of the server are being monitored and its operation is checked every 5 minutes. This monitoring also checks CPU load and the amount of available disc space. Network admins are on duty 24/7 and in case of any problem they are additionally alerted via email or text message.

Service-level agreement

Thanks to the own solutions we guarantee that all the server’s functionalities will work. Hosting suppliers ensures only the availability of the machine. When the functionality of www server stops working, which means that the webpage is not working, it is not a problem of the hosting company. It can cause a situation, where hosting company fulfills the agreement (the hardware physically is working indeed), however it is not responsible for the failure of one single functionality. SLA for us is a responsibility for servers operation as well as the functionalities installed on them.

Adjustment to the system

i-systems cloud is build on the basis of many years of experience in maintaining customer’s systems from different suppliers, in different configurations and different servers. Currently, all the hardware infrastructure, network, as well as server software is optimized to fit i-systems software apps. Thanks to this, servers are free from panels which slow them down (they are managed by script) and they are created optimally to the eCommerce actions. Own solutions and adjustment to the eCommerce, since the beginning makes the system work 40% faster than in commonly used Linux in the same hardware configuration.

Redundancy

Single Point of Failure (SPoF) is a threat to the servers. It is a part of the infrastructure, which failure is a cause of the whole system paralysis. This is why in i-system cloud solution every machine has among others: two CPUs, two independent power supply units, disc matrix, double power source, emergency power supply (UPS and generators), links from multiple operators, and double network devices. Thanks to this, a failure of one element has no impact on servers and their services operation.

High Availability

High Availability systems can be characterized by high reliability. Implementing HA system consist in connecting cloud hosting with system’s capabilities. While creating HA solution, it is assumed that, despite the best hardware, every element of infrastructure can fail and the system still has to work. The i-systems software may work in HA/cluster mode. Hardware working on i-systems cloud is based in two independent server rooms, 13 km away from each other. Such distance allows live replication of all data and automatic failure repair of even all data center.

The new release of Monnari online store

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With the change of collection, Monnari unveiled a new design of an online store.

Monnari is one of the most well-known Polish clothing brands. The company is listed on the Stock Exchange in Warsaw. Currently Monnari’s chain of stationary  stores has 146 showrooms located throughout the country. Monnari online store has been operating for over 5 years. At first, the store functioned on Magneto, then on PrestaShop. For over two years it has been operating and developing on i-systems software.

Mobile potential

The work on new version of Monnari store mainly covered mobile side of sales.  New layout of the home page, as well as all subpages, has been designed. All the development and implementation works has been executed according to mobile first rule, to make it easy for target customers to search and buy products on mobile devices.

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New lookbook

New Monnari store has also a refreshed lookbook. It means that product page consists of photos of high quality, with the models presenting new collections. Each product presented on the photo has its equivalent in online store. This solution can have an impact on many shopping decisions. What is more, new lookbook is more clear and creates an interactive product gallery. Among all the functionalities there are for instance: a possibility to create lookbooks’ categories, a possibility to assign multiple lookbooks to one category, a possibility to add multiple photos to one lookbook, a possibility to determine the date of publication of the lookbook, and the possibility to enter photographer’s data to the lookbook.

From online to offline

Currently Monnari’s chain of stationary stores has 146 showrooms located throughout Poland. Each of them is located in convenient and frequently visited place. Online customers have also a possibility to order directly to the stationary store. During the process of placing an order, customer can choose where it can be delivered.

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Brand-new Monnari online store means also less visible changes for users. Works covered among others: an improvement of the way products are put up on auction site (an option of automatic price change), ERP integrator update, and last but not least, dedicated cloud servers optimization.

The new online store can be found here: http://emonnari.pl

i-systems release – version 4.1

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Brand new i-systems release has been recently launched. The changelog consists of 38 records, including 11 updates of features such as coupons, remarketing, payments and auctions. The major change introduced in our latest software update has been the migration to the Git revision control system.

Release adjusted to the Git revision control system

All the development works has been executed on the basis of Bazaar revision control system so far. However there were some deficiencies, such as: a kind of archaic solutions, and, the most troublesome, lack of development and adjustment to the changing systems and environment. While creating over a dozen releases during the year, as well as systems of increasing structure, this problem seem to grow bigger with every update of i-systems software. IT team had to create their own solutions in Bazaar very often.

In the long-term perspective it appears to be very ineffective. Therefore all the versions from level 4.1 and upward will function based on Git revision control system. Current release is a key to the transition process, because it identified and solved all the problems and discrepancies between Bazaar and Git. This above mentioned discrepancies concerned among others: adding new scripts, refactoring autoload, and adjusting components to the corresponding location in the project tree.

Why Git?

Revision control system is responsible for tracking changes in files and code. It also enables reestablishment of any previous version during the process of creating eCommerce software. What is more, there is a possibility to compare this versions and find out who implemented those changes, when did it happen, and what are the specific changes implemented. This is a key factor considering system development, and it is very helpful in case of large projects and teams. Git system is a response to challenges that IT teams have to face while working on developed projects. Git is disturbed, fast, it protects against repository errors and eliminates all the CVS errors. Among its specific advantages there are possibilities to:

– track project development from the beginning to the current state; 


– reestablish any previous version; 


– track changes in code in offline mode; 


– maintain every repository as a separate branch, what is very helpful in case of projects with above 900 branches;


– merge changes introduced by different people in different time; 


– build branches, to allow parallel work of several programmers on several solutions without blocking and interfering each other; 


– make the revision control system work faster (easy to notice on large projects); 


– merge from any place in the project to any other place;


– save a complete change view, in opposition to other revision control systems, where only particular changes could have been saved.


Adjusting release to the Git revision control system is a part of long-term development plan of i-systems software.

From continuous delivery…

The vision of the i-systems software development assumes faster growth, as well as more effective adjustment to the market demands and to the dedicated customer demands. Therefore, introducing Git revision control system will allow more effective transition to the continuous delivery model. Continuous delivery is a process of automatic code implementation for the testing environment, where it can be a subject of other tests and where other functionalities can be created, until the desired result is obtained. After a completion of series of tests, the product is being transferred to the “production line”, which means that functionalities tested are being applied into production server.

Of course, despite increased automation, all the decisions are to be made by the team. An intense process of software development has no impact on stability and safety of the projects. Continuous delivery method is being applied in aviation, banking and medical industry. It is assumed that NASA applies this method in case of space probes. Only after passing all the tests and being approved by the team, the software can be used by the customers.

With the automation of the routine tasks and quick feedback, continuous delivery process improves satisfaction level of the programmers as well.

…to continuous integrations

In the long-term perspective all the changes have to result in continuous integration of the i-systems software. Continuous integration is characterized by a systematic addition of current changes in the code to the main repository. A frequency of the changes mentioned can reach the amount of even several times a day. However, the optimal frequency, taking i-systems into the consideration, is smaller. The most important advantages of the continuous integration are: increased efficiency when combining work during projects, the ability to detect any possible errors and constant access to the latest code version. In practice, continuous integration provides a set of tools for the programmers, which compiles code, creates build, performs automatic tests and other static code analysis.

All the changes in the process of software development will be implemented gradually, and will be practically invisible for the i-systems customers – what changes is only an organization of the part of IT team itself.

Polskie Fabryki Porcelany “Ćmielów” i “Chodzież” S.A. and i-systems together in eCommerce

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One of the oldest Polish brands, established in 1790, has launched a new online store. All of the works has been performed by i-systems.

Everything started in Ćmielów, Poland in 1790, when a local potter, Wojtas, started a workshop of clay pots and faience. In 1838 production of porcelain begin. Polskie Fabryki Porcelany combines three brands of different nature: elegant and luxury Ćmielów, classic and functional Chodzież, as well as modern and bold Ćmielów Design Studio. Moreover, Polskie Fabryki Porcelany is a member of the Wistil capital group.

– Ćmielów is one of the 10 oldest brands in Poland. The fact that such brands can see the potential in eCommerce and are willing to take a full advantage of it, by investing in new B2B and B2C solutions, is very significant. – claims Marcin Rutkowski, PR & Marketing Manager at i-systems.

– We wanted to combine our rich tradition with the best solutions on IT market. As a result we are now in possession of the system that enables us to take advantage of the fact that we are a well-recognized brand and thus – reach the client’s attention even more effectively. – says Sebastian Kozłowski, Production & Development Manager at Polskie Fabryki Porcelany “Ćmielów” i “Chodzież” S.A.

Where tradition meets modernity

Historical collections made by Polskie Fabryki Porcelany “Ćmielów” i “Chodzież” S.A. from generations can be found among others in the Chancellery of the President of the Republic of Poland, the Chancellery of the Prime Minister of the Republic of Poland, in Vatican, and what is more, in many diplomatic institutions.

The main intention was to create an online store that would represent brand’s values and meet the demands of the mobile users. All the design and development works were conducted according to responsive web design solution, which enables the new online store to adjust excellently to every mobile device.

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Pro sales and pro logistic solutions

eCommerce system, prepared especially for Polskie Fabryki Porcelany “Ćmielów” i “Chodzież” S.A. has a number of pro sales solutions, for instance: intelligent groups and extended coupons, a possibility to add reviews, extended filters, advanced cart history, and fully automatic, two-way integration with Allegro.

Another advantage of the new eCommerce system is supporting the brand in logistics. With dedicated warehouse modules it is easier for the system’s administrator to manage product flow in both internal and external warehouses, prioritize, and verify states systematically.

The new online shop can be found here: http://sklep.porcelana.com.pl

Release i-systems – version 3.46

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Another software upgrade has been released. The changelog lists as many as 59 items and is one of the biggest upgrades in the history of i-systems software. Every changelog consist of new features, bug fixes and refactoring. The most interesting changes in release 3.46 include:

Adding a content preview of the order status change notification for the customer

Sales service is related to sending the target customer information about the current status. Now it is enough to click the magnifying glass icon next to the order information to see the content of all messages directly in the panel. This change allows for a quick check of the correspondence with the customer and control of message correctness.

Adding a class for multivariant distribution to separate filters in the advanced product browser

Some products have many variables by which they can be browsed. Shoes from the newbalance.pl shop are an example here: the footwear from individual collections has two variants – standard size and shoe width (a rarer parameter). Thus, the browsed products previously had to fulfill both conditions to be displayed on the list of browsing results. The new class in the PAS (Product Advanced Search) browser allows for distributing both variants to two independent filters. As in the newbalance.pl shop, the customer can now find the New Balance ML574POG shoe model no matter if he/she uses a “size 42.5” or a “D width” filter.

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Adding a task module in the background

Customer teams operating an online shop wish to send information packages comfortably via API to the shipment manager. With several hundred or more orders, such information takes up a lot of space, but API usually requires sending all information via one request. This activity may last longer and thus hinder the work. The task module in the background allows for performing time-consuming operations in the background of the system. No more rotating loaders or white pages while waiting for the target page to open – the operations are now delegated. At the same time, the customer service staff can see the task progress status.

Adding a box module

Personalization of online shopping is currently implemented in many ways. One of them may be offering the target customer the possibility of choosing the packaging. The customer can select a box for the goods in the order basket.
The boxes have a virtual warehouse status, which serves solely informative purposes useful to the shop administrator. The box in the basket is only available for the products which have an appropriate box size ascribed. It has a name, color, size, warehouse status and photo.
The shop staff can see the information about the selected boxes in order details and on generated shipment lists. Box selection is displayed next to every ordered item for which the box has been chosen. There is also a summary at the bottom of the generated document, which includes the number of boxes for the selected configurations of size and color. This minimizes the risk of making a mistake when packing the products.

Adding a shipment plug-in for InPost service

Release 3.46 has also widened the range of courier companies available. InPost courier services are provided in Poland and 18 European countries. Recipients expecting a quick delivery may also choose an option of guaranteed delivery till the noon of the next working day (though one must remember that this service is only available in selected places in Poland). At the beginning, the integration uses the option of payment on collection, but it will be possible to configure other forms of delivery in the future.

Adding the handling of cookies in the affiliate partner module

The affiliate module is aimed at tracking the visits of target customers from the partners with which the shop signed a partnership agreement. Such partners may include blogs, news websites, advertizing networks and other online shops. Each partner is identified individually using a GET parameter. The identification allows for settlement between the partners: if the target customer visits the shop by clicking the partner’s link and makes a purchase, a suitable piece of information will be displayed in the order view in the administrative panel. The added cookie handling function replaces the session-based solution and will measure affiliations better.

Improvement of UX of the purchase process

The release also includes changes immediately visible to the customers. The 3.46 version has improved minor design elements in the order summary. Thus, the content is now displayed better on mobile devices and the phenomenon of abandoning the baskets should decrease.

Adding new authentication methods via REST

The safety of connections is one of the most important issues in eCommerce and the entire IT. The applications are now protected against unauthorized access by REST-handled authentication methods such as SessionCookie, OAuth1 and HTTPAuthBasic.

This is the last series 3 release – the next software upgrade will already be numbered as 4.0. Beside standard updates, it will also refresh the whole administrative panel layout. Stay tuned for the details.