[RESOLVED] Update shopping cart before checking out

middleman666

Hey All,

I have a shopping cart that has an update button and a checkout button. On each line in the shopping cart a quantity field is displayed, users change the quantity, press update and the new price is calculated.

These quantity fields are all within a form tag as inputs and the Update button is the one that controls the forms action.

Trouble is, every once in a while a user will come along, put a new number in the quantity field, not press update and go straight for the checkout button - the user is given plenty of chances to review their order after pressing checkout, but they just don't seem to want to read. This means that they've ordered 1, when they thought they ordered 2... or something like that.

So I'm trying to figure out a way of updating the order before or as the user presses the checkout button.

Does anyone have any suggestions?

I wanted to try and avoid using javascript to disable the checkout button, but at the moment, it's the only method I can think of...

Thanks.

sneakyimp

Javascript to me sounds like pretty much your only option. If someone changes a field and fails to update, there is no way that PHP will ever know. I would put an onChange event in each of the quantity fields that disables the checkout button. Either that or the onChange event could set a variable which would set a var (boolFormChanged) to true and then your onSubmit function for your form could check bookFormChanged and if it's true then tell them they need to update rather than checkout.

middleman666

Cheers, thought as much. In case anyone wants to see the code for future reference:

<script language="javascript">
<!--
function DisableCheckout(){
  var CheckoutButt = document.getElementById("CheckoutButt");
  CheckoutButt.disabled = true;
  CheckoutButt.value="Press Update First";
}
-->
</script>

<input name="qty" type="text" id="qty" size="3" value="<?php echo $qty; ?>" onchange="DisableCheckout();">

<input name="CheckoutButt" id="CheckoutButt" type="button" value="Checkout" onClick="window.location.href='checkout.php';">

bradgrafelman

Can't you simply check if the quantity entered when checking out matches the quantity originally displayed?

What if a user doesn't have Javascript enabled/supported?

middleman666

Can't you simply check if the quantity entered when checking out matches the quantity originally displayed?

I'd still have to post the quantity values wouldn't I? At the moment the 'Update' button submits the quantity values, the checkout button just takes the user to the next page. Is there a way of having two buttons to submit the same form?

What if a user doesn't have Javascript enabled/supported?

Using the above method, if the user doesn't have javascript then nothing will happen, they would just have to press update... this does mean we could end up with the same initial problem though.

bradgrafelman

middleman666 wrote:
I'd still have to post the quantity values wouldn't I?

Depends. You could store the initial items/quantities as hidden POST elements, or you could store them in a session.

middleman666

bradgrafelman;10902557 wrote:
Depends. You could store the initial items/quantities as hidden POST elements, or you could store them in a session.

So would you get rid of the Update button altogether and just have the checkout button submit the quantity values?

...only problem with that is the user would have to go to the next page to update the price etc.

middleman666

Or did you mean to store as hidden post elements on a separate form submitted by the checkout button. So a javascript would update a hidden value in the checkout form onchange of a quantity field?

I guess that still relies on javascript though.

Or I could just have a + and - button next to each quantity field - that way the page would have to refresh when ever a user used them.... it just means a lot of page refreshes...

bradgrafelman

I just meant that you could store the initially chosen quantities in a hidden POST element. If they click update, then you would update those hidden values with the new values (along with any new calculations that you do when 'updating' a basket/cart/whatever).

When you process the "checkout" button, check to see that the quantities POST'ed in the quantities box (or wherever they would update the quantities) matches the quantities in the hidden POST elements. If they do not, then you need to update the order. If they do, then the user didn't change anything and you can proceed with the normal checkout procedure.

EDIT: Just thought I should mention this; using Javascript isn't a bad thing - it's very helpful in providing immediate feedback/results, enhanced functionality, etc. Relying/depending on it, however, can be detrimental. That's why it's never a bad thing to provide client-side validation of a form using Javascript so long as you also duplicate the validation on the server-side as well.

sneakyimp

middleman666;10902556 wrote:
Is there a way of having two buttons to submit the same form?

Yes, you can have two different buttons in a form that both submit the form. This works for me in firefox anyway. BTW, if the focus is on the text box and you hit the enter/return key, then it defaults to the first submit button.

<?
if (isset($_POST)) {
        $posted = print_r( $_POST, TRUE);
}
?>
<html>
<body>
<?=$posted ?>
<form method="post" action="<?=$_SERVER['PHP_SELF'] ?>">
<input type="text" value="some value" name="my_name">
<input type="submit" name="submit1" value="submit1">
<input type="submit" name="submit2" value="submit2">
</form>
</body>
</html>