For all the features it gets right, sometimes Magento unintentionally hobbles businesses through default functionality. One of these key oversights is in the order numbering scheme, which also encompasses invoice numbers, shipment numbers, and credit memo numbers. Default numbering begins at 100000001 and increments up from there, which can be problematic for the reasons listed below. Luckily, as with most Magento functional areas, a number of extensions exist to optimize order numbering. Why would you want to do that?

They Reveal Private Information

Let’s say a customer orders a shirt, then decides to get a matching shirt one week later. With Magento’s default order numbering, they might be able to estimate turnover by comparing numbers. Now imagine how easy it would be for a competitor to get that same business information. It’s the principle of the matter—no one should be able to hack your sales figures quite so easily. Also, who would want to be customer #1, or even #10? You shouldn’t have to disclose that kind of sensitive information.

They Don’t Fulfill their Potential

There’s all sorts of information you can encode into the order number. This can be redundant, sure, but you definitely don’t want to be in a position where you’re lacking crucial information when an issue comes up. Multiple stores? Need to distinguish between order number types? Dates and times? All this and more is possible and customizable. Many elements dynamically change to reflect conditions at point of sale.

With the best extensions, you can set up simultaneous numbering systems, so that internal numbering can follow alternate logic to make things easier on your team or to preserve legacy record-keeping. Or retroactively adjust old order numbers to achieve across-the-board consistency!

They’re Unwieldy

While it isn’t as much of an issue, it can be a headache for customers to rattle off a 9-digit order number when they have questions or problems. A more sensible numbering scheme cuts down on human error and avoids confusion or aggravation where it matters most. Some extensions permit you to tool with the length, increment number, or even the alphanumeric makeup of order numbers.

Be Aware…

Of course, just changing your ordering scheme doesn’t solve every problem, and there are a few things you should know beforehand. In no particular order:

•    Changing length or content could involve rewriting Magento core code. Whether or not this is accomplished automatically during installation and setup of the extension, it may cause headaches come update time. Magento updates have a tendency to reset the core code, which may render extensions incompatible.
•    As with many extensions, you may have to spring for the pro version to get all the functionality you want. This article is a great starting place, but it’s not a replacement for the diligent research that should go into any purchasing decision.
•    If you use external systems outside of Magento, be prepared to analyze these integrations before, during, and after implementation. Don’t let customers point out malfunctioning modules for you! As a side note, this can be a great reason to use custom order numbers in the first place—if you’re already tracking orders on an external system, it makes sense to align with it within Magento.

We Can Help!

Last, but not least, you should know that Hara Partners successfully navigates Magento development, customization, integrations, and extensions for large and small organizations alike. If you’re considering Magento custom order numbers, we can walk you through the process and ensure a seamless transition. Contact us today to see what Hara Partners can do for you!

Connect your NetSuite ERP to the world’s favorite e-Commerce platform Magento, with Magento NetSuite integration from Hara Partners

In an effort to bring the best storefront the web has to offer to users of the most powerful cloud-based ERP available the Magento Development experts at Hara Partners is now offering NetSuite Integration services.

Magento NetSuite Integration

The Magento Netsuite Connector from Hara Partners works in real time to send all pertinent order and customer information from your Magento storefront directly into your NetSuite ERP.

Other Features include

• Maintains the same look and feel as the stock NetSuite app for smooth transitioning
• Easily maintained and updated because its built in the same manner as Magento and NetSuite so there’s no 3rd party system to decipher
• No field restrictions like other connectors

Visit – Hara Partners Magento NetSuite Connector so you can combine two of the internet’s best business systems freeing time and saving money.

Tax laws are complex, multilayered and often changing so keeping your Magento e-commerce website up-to-date yourself can be a real hassle, if not downright impossible. Instead, use SalesTax.com by CCH, the Magento sales tax solution offering from Magento Industry Partner SalesTax.com by CCH, the largest tax research and solution company in the world, to do all the work for you.

SalesTax by CCH, formerly CorpSystem Sales Tax Online, is the cloud-based, world class Sales Tax & Rules Engine that runs in real-time to accurately make all your sales tax calculations. The program is easily integrated into your existing accounting software or ERP using the Software Development Kit, easily downloadable from the company’s site, or, you can add the tax calculation capabilities directly into your Microsoft Dynamics AX or GP ERP system for even more complete synchrony.

Magento Sales Tax module is available in 3 tiered versions, Core, Plus and Pro, (the pro level is strictly for tax professionals so we won’t discuss it), with each level offering users a CPA-centric interface and CCH’s wonderful service and support. The Core level of the program offers all of the sales and use tax functionality including: real-time automated Magento sales tax calculations and a robust reporting suite. The next tier, the Plus level, adds automated form generation, automated tax filing and a calendar alert system.

Whichever version of this indispensable tax solution you opt for you’ll be worry free with SalesTax.com by CCH, the same technology used by the IRS and all BIG-4 accounting firms. Start using SalesTax.com for Magento to calculate your taxes.

Magento is offering a Fundamentals of Magento Development course on September 10-14th, 2012 in Newark, NJ at the Renaissance Newark Airport Hotel (1000 Spring Street Elizabeth, New Jersey 07201), catered to Magento developers and those aspiring to become Magento developers.

The course costs $3850, and discounts are available (see below).

You can find all detail information here: Magento Training in Newark NJ

More course details can e found at: Magento Training Site

—

This course is for any Magento Developer who wants to learn the architecture, terminology, and core functionality of Magento, along with best practices of extending the platform. This course is appropriate for both developers who are new to Magento, as well as those developers who are experienced with launching and extending the platform.

This course will introduce the new Magento developer to the Magento architecture. The student will review how Magento leverages MVC, Zend Framework and Object-oriented programming. The course will take the student through the process of Magento Rendering, Request Flow, Adminhtml, Database and EAV. The course is lecture-lab format with extended hands-on exercises on Magento EE.

The class will be on September 10-14, 2012 at:
Renaissance Newark Airport Hotel
1000 Spring Street,
Elizabeth, NJ 07201

There are only 15 spots and it WILL fill quickly since there has not been a class offered on the East Coast in over a year. You are eligible to receive 50% off coupons for the training classes (Gold: 4 seats at 50% off; Silver: 2 seats at 50% off; All additional seats at: 20% off). You can request your coupon now by going to: https://magento.wufoo.com/forms/magento-u-discount-coupon-order-form/ Once you receive your coupon you can order the classes and register students through the Magento Website.

Please sign up in the next few days to reserve your spot: http://www.magentocommerce.com/training/register

ComScore’s 2010 US Digital Year in Review talks about a recap about group buy that affects Hara Partners and business overall.
We have specifically pulled a screen shot of the below to highlight to our clients that the projects we are working on for them are definitely on the right track.

See this link to subscribe and download this useful article.

Let’s begin with the basics of Magento Speed up. Tips here are mainly just configuration tweaks. They are easy to implement and test. And if you don’t like them you can easily revert all your changes. Make sure you restart your service after the configuration change.

I will cover 5 easy points in this article, additional methods will be explained in the advanced article:

1. Save the sessions in database
2. Enable Magento Cache
3. MySQL Query Cache
4. Enable file compression in .htaccess
5. Clean up the template

More than often, we need to create a new Magento attribute to extend some Magento functions, or even a new attribute group to serve our own module.  Here is how we do it using the sql setup file.

First, a few words about the sql setup file.

If this is the first time building the module or fresh installation, create a php file, say “mysql4-install-0.1.0.php”, in [company]/[module]/sql/[module]/[module]_setup/ folder, where the version 0.1.0 is defined the the config.xml file.

In case of module upgrade, try something like “mysql4-upgrade-0.1.0-0.2.0.php”, again, verify your upgrade version in the config.xml file.

Inside this file, first we need to initiate:

[codesyntax lang=”php” lines=”fancy”]

$installer = $this;
$setup = new Mage_Eav_Model_Entity_Setup('core_setup');
$installer->startSetup();

[/codesyntax]

Adding a Custom Block to Magento CMS Page

Adding a custom block to Magento CMS page is a very good way to improve the flexibility of these static pages. This will help us to keep our CMS page tight, without copy-pasting the same large paragraph of scripts into every single page.

It’s usually an over-shoot to build a whole new module for this, a new block class would be sufficient for this purpose.
Since it’s CMS related, we can simply do the following:

• Extend the Magento core module: core/Mage/CMS
• Create local/Mage/Cms/Block/xxx.php
• Also create the corresponding .phtml template
• (No update needed for the layout/ folder)