Released 4.0.0RC11

[jonyo]

Version 4.0.0 RC11 (Release Candidate 11) is now available for download in the client area of our site. Refer to this post for more information on what the release number means, and specifically what we mean when we say that this is a "Release Candidate".

For those of you who have already read previous release information for the 4.0.0 platform, I've made all information new in RC11 in red so you can easily skip down to info specific to RC11.

This new version includes a lot of new features compared to the 3.1 line, you can see more info on them in the release notes linked below. This version is tieing up a lot of loose ends, it has a number of bug fixes, along with new features that were not 100% finished until this edition. This will be the last release candidate for the 4.0 platform. See the RC11 specific release notes further down for more info.

Requires PHP 5
The new version requires at least PHP 5.2.0. We highly recommend the latest stable version of PHP 5.2, currently PHP 5.2.8.

You can see the discussion about changing to require at least PHP 5 here. We also gave advanced warning of the minimum requirement change to current clients in our blog and more details in the forums. If you do not meet the new minimum requirements, you will still be able to download the latest version of Geo 3.1 that requires PHP 4.3, we will continue to support the 3.1 line and keep making maintenance releases as needed, but no new features will be made for the 3.1 line.

Who Should Update

Anyone using any of the prior 4.0.0 release candidates should update to this new version, as it fixes problems found in previous release candidates.

For anyone currently using 3.1.9 or below:
This is a major feature release, with many new features, and changes to how existing features work. We have made the update process as seamless as possible, but it is still not as simple as updating a maintenance release. You will not loose existing design, but there are new pages and areas in the software that you may wish to customize the design or text for those pages.

Code modifications: As always, if you have any PHP code modifications, to update you will need to re-apply those changes after you update, and custom code modifications are not supported in the helpdesk system. Keep this in mind when deciding whether you want to update or not. This is even more important for this version, since there have been so many changes to how the software works, more than likely changes will need to be made to make your modifications or addons compatible with Geo 4.0.

High traffic sites For high traffic sites, it is recommended to first test the update on a test location, so that the update on the live site is as seamless as possible.

Software Update Cost
If you have purchased the software within the last year, this will be a free software update. If you are outside of your 1 year of downloads, or are not sure, contact the sales department at sales@geodesicsolutions.com to get a free price quote for this new feature release.

Geo Client Area
If you do not have an account to log into the client area, you will need to be added to our new client area in order to download the new version. Send the following details to sales@geodesicsolutions.com when you are requesting the software update:

First Name:
Last Name:
Address:
City:
USA State:
Non-USA Province:
Zip / Postal Code:
Country:
Phone:
E-mail Address:

Release Notes:
Specific to RC11 (not credited in release notes for 4.0.0)

• Fixed editing listings for buy now auctions.
• Fixed other misc. problems when editing and renewing listings.
• Fixed problems with the require subscription to proceed functionality
• Fixed the "restart/extend/upgrade" listing from the admin to work properly with the new order system.
• Fixed final fees to work properly. Also added ability to auto-charge final fees if using authorize.net aim method, or if using account balance, but need to turn the "auto charge final fees" setting on for either payment gateway to enable it. If the final fees are not able to be auto-paid for at the time the listing closes, then the final fees will be appended to the user's order the next time they place a listing.
• If using "account balance", added a setting that when checked, will force account balance to be used to pay for everything (except when adding money to account balance). Counting this as a "fix" since this was previously available in 3.1.
• [FEATURE] In admin, display more info when viewing details of orders or order items.
• [FEATURE] New "My Account Home" page, that displays various things.
• [FEATURE] New "My Account Links" module, that displays the my account links.
• [FEATURE] New template that makes use of the "my account links" and is used for my account type stuff (on a fresh install).
• [FEATURE] Added ability to view invoice for account balance transactions.
• [FEATURE] When in any cart process, added display of the "add to cart" steps. (for example, something like "Start > Category > Details > Extras > Cart")
• [FEATURE] When editing listings, added "preview" button.
• [FEATURE] When editing a listing, as long as nothing else is in the "cart", once you hit "finish edit" the edit process is finished. In other words, it will now skip the cart view when editing a listing.
• [FEATURE] New "e-mail friendly reminder" sent for everyone with negative account balance.

Read the release notes for information on new features and bug fixes between 3.1.9 and 4.0 in the linked page.

Changed Files:
Files changed between 3.1 to 4.0:
N/A
Since this is a major feature release, it would be impractical to give the changed file list, as most if not all of the files have modifications to them between 3.1 and 4.0.

Update Instructions:

1. Perform the update as specified in the User Manual.

Update Wizard Issues:
Firefox, and potentially other browsers, seems to add .gz or similar to the install/update executable when downloaded from the client area of our site. If your download ends in anything besides .exe when downloading a wizard package, remove it so that it ends in .exe. Also, if you have problems when you use the wizard, see this post.

Example Addon:
The Example Addon is used by developers as a starting point and as "working documentation" to build 3rd party addons.

The Example Addon is not yet updated for Geo 4.0 (as of this post). We will be updating the Example Addon's documentation to match changes made for Geo 4.0, and a version specific for Geo 4.0 will be released soon.

You can get the example addon (instructions may change):

1. Purchase the example addon (for free) in the cart, by logging into the client area, and viewing the details of an enterprise order, find the link that says "Buy new addons, support and upgrade packages" and click on it.
2. Go to the order details page for the order you just purchased.
3. There should be a download for the example addon on this page.

If you have any problems, start a support ticket, or post a reply to this thread.

Troubleshooting

• Troubleshooting will be located in the tools available in the support section of our site, the main resource being the updates user manual. Currently there are no troubleshooting tips specifically for this release.

4.0.0 Final "todo" list:

• Authorize.net and final fees: The final fees will not be able to be auto-charged at the listing close using authorize.net if the initial order total was $0, because the system does not currently collect payment info if the initial amount due is $0. Between now and 4.0 final we plan to add checks so that if using authorize.net, the cart total is $0, and there are any auctions in the cart that might be accuring final fees, it will still ask for (and validate) CC info to be able to use to charge the final fees.
• We will be adding more ways to view order items and invoices.
• There is currently no cron jobs to remove old order/order items/invoices.
• Update the Example Addon for 4.0.
• Finish 4.0 user manual.
• [Just a note, not an issue] If you are using what used to be referred to as "negative balance" or "invoice me", that has been removed and replaced with the ability for the account balance to go positive or negative. Anyone in the system that still has unpaid invoices, the unpaid invoices are converted over to negative account balance during the update to 4.0. We will be adding more features to expand on this in upcoming releases.

[jonyo]

SEO v. 2.1.0 - problem found with that version (distributed with Enterprise editions of 4.0.0RC11). If you are using that version of the SEO addon, you will need to update to the latest edition of the SEO addon v.2.1.1 to fix problems where it broke popup image links. Note that we have since patched the Enterprise edition packages to use the fixed SEO v. 2.1.1.

If you are using Enterprise edition and have SEO v2.1.0 installed, contact support for help with updating to the fixed version. If you prefer to update yourself, the easiest way to update to v2.1.1, download the "zipped update" package for 4.0.0RC11, and unzip it to your hard drive. Then upload the entire addons/SEO/ directory to your site, over-writing your current files. Then in the admin at Addons > Addon management be sure to run the update to SEO 2.1.1.

NOTE: Only apply the changes above for SEO v.2.1.0, if you have 2.1.1 or later you already have the fix applied. Also, do not attempt to use SEO 2.1.1 on Geo versions before 4.0.0RC11 as there could be compatibility issues.

[jonyo]

New issue found - using "My Account Links" module and Cache turned on in admin: It caches the output of the new module when it shouldn't, resulting in the module not displaying correctly, and resulting in the cart data not being accurate.

We have since patched the 4.0.0RC11 download packages to fix this issue, so if you have updated your software after the time of this post, then you already have the fix applied.

If you experience this problem, resulting in the "my account links" module not displaying correctly after it is cached, either contact support to apply the fix for you, or to fix yourself:

1. Upload the fixed file classes/php5_classes/Cache.class.php from the latest 4.0 zipped package (downloaded after the time this post was made) to your site, over-writing the current file.
2. In your admin, at Site Setup > General Settings - Click the button to "clear all cache".

Do NOT attempt to apply the fix on any versions except for Geo v. 4.0.0RC11.