Will Morgenweck

Store 02.01.00 is now available

will.morgenweck@dotnetnuke.com — Wed, 17 Oct 2007 11:23:33 GMT

It is finally here. The latest release of the Store Project is now available for download. I would also like to officially welcome Gilles Le Pigocher and Benot Sarton to the Store team. Their efforts and patience have been instrumental to this release. I would also like to thank Peter Donker who also helped with merging of the two Store Projects.

Sebastien Leopold also deserves much credit for stepping up and making improvements to the release process. Hopefully this will allow all of the DotNetNuke Projects to make progress that much faster.

Here are few details about this release:

Link to download:
http://www.dotnetnuke.com/tabid/125/default.aspx

Version 02.01.00 of the core Store module.
This release is only supported on DotNetNuke 4.4.1 or greater. This also requires the ASP.NET framework and Visual Studio 2005 SP 1 for development.

CHANGES/ENHANCEMENTS/BUGS:
STO-2963 Fixed problem with Shipping fee amount defaults back to 0.00.
STO-2880 Fixed order history problem with objectQualifier
STO-2577 Added ability for category menu to exist on any page.
STO-2720 Fixed issue with archived Categories
STO-3282 Added localization for customer account.
STO-3281 Fixed broken links in store admin module
STO-2446 Added user interface for order processing and fulfillment
STO-2456 Added ability to specify a "Sale Price" and sale range
STO-2468 Added "templated" Order Confirmation emails in localization settings.
STO-2457 IPortable implemented for Import/Export
STO-2497 Added tokens to product templates for Manufacturer, Model Name, Model Number
STO-2724 "Please log in to checkout" link now loads login control.
STO-2964 Fixed issue with tax rate returing to zero
STO-2722 Added requirement for Category Name
STO-2721 Fixed error when deleting a category that contains products by adding constraint and displaying message with recommended actions.
STO-2576 Product Details displays the Category message can be managed with templates
STO-2450 Fixed confusing workflow to between Mini-Cart and Store Account with consistent naming and localization
STO-2458 Added ability to create sub categories
STO-2472 Improved ability to handle non-US Dollar pricing
STO-2511 Modified StoreAdmin to load provider control within page instead of using redirect.

Store Project - just a few more steps!

will.morgenweck@dotnetnuke.com — Fri, 05 Oct 2007 19:23:11 GMT

It's true. See for yourself...
Store Project Release Tracker

The Store made it through testing. We only have two steps left to complete. We are currently in the Staging phase which will be followed by Dogfooding.

I still don't know exactly when it will be released, but it looks as though modules are starting to make progress in the release tracker.

I think Gilles is even getting excited now.
http://www.dotnetnuke.com/Community/Forums/tabid/795/forumid/114/threadid/174161/scope/posts/Default.aspx

We are keeping our fingers crossed :)

Store back in the release tracker.

will.morgenweck@dotnetnuke.com — Thu, 21 Jun 2007 20:47:11 GMT

We have just re-submitted Store 02.01.00 to the release tracker. Our original submission had some issues SQL issues with localization that were present from the original release. We also needed to clean up the Source install. Gilles did a fantastic job with the new Source install package. We are really hoping to make it all the way through this time. Keep an eye on the release tracker for updates.

Why are you stuck on an old version of DotNetNuke?

will.morgenweck@dotnetnuke.com — Fri, 08 Jun 2007 19:31:54 GMT

When DotNetNuke released version 4.5, we decided that the next version of Active Forums would only support DotNetNuke 4.5 and higher. Why? Because it's the best release we have seen yet and offers some of the latest technology functions that we can leverage in our products. If you haven't upgraded yet, why not?

What I find really amazing is that we have had a handful of new customers purchase Active Forums 3.7 only to find out that they are stuck on an older version of DotNetNuke. DotNetNuke 3.x hasn't seen a release since 11/30/2006 and that was marked as the final release for ASP.NET 1.1.

Let's look at some reasons you could be stuck on an older version and how to avoid them.

You modified the DotNetNuke Core.
I have some very strong opinions about modifying the Core so take them as you like. Why would you possibly want to modify the Core? Aside from possibly fixing bugs, why would you make a change to an application that will prevent you from upgrading in the future? Since the beginning of DotNetNuke, I have deployed well over 100 custom DotNetNuke solutions. Never once did I have to modify the Core. I never encountered a situation that could not be handled with a third-party module, custom module, skin object or in the skin itself. If you are going to customize DotNetNuke, then you should go ahead and build everything custom or be ready to buy source for all your third-party modules. Honestly, if you think you need to modify the Core then you should take a step back and re-evaluate your solution. You don't need to modify the Core!

You have built a custom module that is going to break when you upgrade.
Fair enough. Open your project back up. Change the reference to DotNetNuke 4.5 and see what breaks, then fix it. The largest amount of breaking changes for modules had to be from version 2.1.2 to 3.0. You name it and it was changed. Even still, in just a few hours you could have your module back up and running under the latest version.

The developer who built my custom module has gone missing.
Even better reason to take the time to upgrade. Your module not only depends on DotNetNuke, but also ASP.NET, IIS, Windows Server and SQL Server. Eventually something will change that will break your module. Wouldn't you like to take action to prevent yourself from ending up in a crisis situation? Find a DotNetNuke Developer that can help you fix the module and get your site upgraded. The investment now would be minimal compared to when something breaks and brings down your whole site.

My hosting provider only supports DotNetNuke X.X.
Find a new hosting provider! Seriously, if your hosting provider can't even stay up-to-date with a web application like DotNetNuke what makes you think they are keeping their servers up-to-date. There are numerous hosting providers specializing in DotNetNuke and some will even help you move your site and upgrade.

People on the DotNetNuke forums are saying there are problems with the upgrade.
Let's all agree on one thing, even Microsoft releases software with bugs. Not every release is going to be perfect, but that doesn't mean the bugs will affect you. I try to read almost every post about upgrade/install problems on the DNN Forums because it provides insight as to what our customers may experience. I would say that the majority of upgrade problems that I have seen come from configuration problems to begin with. This could be as simple as permission on your DotNetNuke folders or your server encountering a resource problem during the upgrade process. I still have several sites that started as DotNetNuke 2.x and have been upgrade all the way to DNN 4.5, without problems. I always make a complete back up of my site and database before applying any upgrade. In some cases I will even create a completely new website instance just for the upgrade. You could always find a hosting provider or consultant to help you with the upgrade.

Don't get stuck.
There are so many reasons you should stay up-to-date with the latest version of any software application you are using. Security problems, bugs, performance issues are all problems that could have a negative impact on your site. Staying current with the latest release helps you protect your website investment and in most cases, your business.

Store has entered the release process.

will.morgenweck@dotnetnuke.com — Fri, 08 Jun 2007 17:41:29 GMT

Store 02.01.00 has now officially entered the release process. You can track the progress in the Project Release Tracker.

I wouldn't be surprised if it fails at some step of the process as this my first release. However, we are ready to quickly fix and resubmit when a problem does arise. Since I know it will be asked: I have no idea when it will be finally released. I would suggest keeping an eye on the Project Release Tracker, just like we will be doing.

Thanks again for your patience and a huge thanks to Gilles Le Pigocher, Benoît Sarton, Peter Donker and other members of the French DotNetNuke User Group for their contributions to the project.

Store Project Update - What to expect in the next release

will.morgenweck@dotnetnuke.com — Tue, 05 Jun 2007 15:49:00 GMT

We are getting much closer to submitting the Store Project to the release process (this week) . Below is a comparison grid that shows some of the changes/features you can expect to see in the next release.

Store Update

will.morgenweck@dotnetnuke.com — Mon, 14 May 2007 23:10:00 GMT

A little over a month ago I was contacted by a member of the French DotNetNuke User Group. Benoît Sarton explained to me that they have pretty much completed a new version of the Store. To make a long story short, the French DotNetNuke User Group had put together a highly modified version of the Store that addresses nearly every need for Europeans trying to put together an on-line store. As many of you know, the previous very version was lacking in several localization areas and other features necessary for International support.

I will provide more details about the exact feature set later this week. We have a very good spreadsheet that details all the different features and enhancements. In the meantime, I can tell you that right now we are testing, working on documentation, testing, providing an upgrade path and more testing. Once we get a little bit closer I will put up a test site so everyone can get a preview of the next release of the store.

I want to thank the French DotNetNuke User Group for their contribution and support.

Store Documentation - Part 1

will.morgenweck@dotnetnuke.com — Wed, 04 Apr 2007 16:54:00 GMT

Brief documentation for getting started with the DotNetNuke Store Module

Store Project Update

will.morgenweck@dotnetnuke.com — Wed, 28 Feb 2007 15:25:00 GMT

As I mentioned in the previous update, a decision needed to be made about the development path of the store project. After talking with some of the previous project participants I decided to use the code from the 1.1 release as the starting point.

The first step was to convert the current code base over to VS 2005 and make it compatible with DNN 4.4. Those of you familiar with the source code for the store know that their are several projects in the solution. I let the VS 2005 Upgrade wizard do most of the work. I then converted the Web Controls project over to a Web Application Project. After updating a few DotNetNuke references I was able to build the Store solution under VS 2005 without any problems. I then decided to work on a few bugs and evaluate some usability issues.

Many people have commented in the forums about the checkout process and the requirement for a registered user. I also find this to be a problem and I'm working on a solution now. The checkout process should give the user the ability to login, create new account or skip. If they skip then we should have an option to automatically create the account. I would like to make this a setting that can be set in the Admin options.

I also plan on adding support for soft goods. This would enable you to sell software, subscriptions, e-books, etc. The first phase of this feature would automatically add a user to a given role upon order completion. Eventually we will incorporate the ability to distribute the soft goods and reoccurring transactions.

Thanks,
Will

Getting Started with the Store Project

will.morgenweck@dotnetnuke.com — Thu, 08 Feb 2007 03:10:00 GMT

A few years ago I had a very busy month and was working on several web site projects at once. All of these web sites needed many of the same features. I decided there had to be a way to build these sites more efficiently. I began using IIBuySpy and shortly after became a DotNetNuke addict. Also at that time I was running a small community website with a custom portal framework I developed. I wanted to switch that site to DotNetNuke, but needed a forum module with a few unique features. A few months later I released my first module, Active Forums and started Active Modules, Inc.

I am now the Project Lead for the DotNetNuke Store Module. I don't think many people realize the potential that exists in the Store module. Robert Collins and his team really did a fantastic job on this module. We should be very grateful that Robert and his team provided the community with such a great module.

It's not very often that you get to inherit a project that is as stable and well designed as the Store. Several people have asked me, "What are you doing working on a free module?" And yes, I asked myself the same thing a few times as well. I have three reasons and they are really pretty simple:

I have several years experience building e-commerce applications, but my business is now focused around community and business applications. The Store module has a great foundation and will give me the ability to put my experience to use.
As a commercial module developer, we encounter issues/roadblocks/situations that other developers may not. I feel the DotNetNuke project as a whole can benefit from these experiences.
It's time to give something back. DotNetNuke has given me the ability to build a business that meets my needs and the needs of others. This is a great way to say thank you!

Now that the boring introductions are out of the way, lets talk about the Store Project. As you may have read in the forums a lot of work has gone into Store 2.0. I am currently evaluating code and project setup. The project was converted to VS 2005 and being converted to the Web Application Project model, which I prefer. However, I know there are some bugs that need to be addressed in the current release. My goal is to have a release for the Store within the next 30-45 days. I will be making a decision in the next few days whether we will be working to get Store 2.0 released or an intermediate release leading up to Store 2.0. I will of course let everyone know once this has been decided.

I have several features I would like to add to the Store and will be looking in the forums for ideas from others. I'm really looking forward to working with the community.

- Will