3.5.5.6. Real-time shipping providers
Kartris includes support for UPS, USPS and Fedex real-time
shipping systems. These use an external web API call to send weight
and location details, and then the available shipping method types
and their costs are returned. The open plugin architecture of
Kartris means other providers can be supported if suitable plugins
are crafted. You need a free user account with whichever shipping
system(s) you are using, and to set up the plugin within the Payment
and Shipping Gateways section of the back end.
3.5.5.6.1. UPS setup
To activate UPS as an option, you must first create an
account with UPS.
Go to www.ups.com and sign up to create an account. Next, you will need access to the API, and also an 'access key' to retrieve the shipping rates (you need the XML key, when the option is given). You can apply for these here:
https://www.ups.com/upsdeveloperkit?loc=en_US
Note that the UPS web site is almost unfathomably complicated in layout, confusing to find anything, and the forms seem to behave in inexplicable fashion, asking for you to fix errors which are not displayed, wiping your address and other data and so on. Nothing we can do about this unfortunately. You might have to contact UPS support if you cannot figure it out.
Once you have the 'access key', you can start to enter your account details into the UPS settings in Kartris. You will need to refer to UPS documentation with regarding to what values to enter for the various fields.
Once the STATUS field is set to ON, UPS will be available. You can then go to shipping and view the shipping methods and rates. For each band you add, or for the 'all higher orders', you will see an extra text field. You can add 'UPS' or 'USPS' into this, if you want orders meeting this criteria to use real-time shipping. If you want to edit an existing band, you must delete it and create a new one with your preferred shipping provider, or value. This system is therefore very flexible; you can mix both UPS and USPS, specifying one or the other for particular locations (regions) and weights (or costs). You can also have your own static pricing for orders over the limit of what UPS or USPS will deal with (if for example you can use some other provider for large orders, or even hire a truck).
Go to www.ups.com and sign up to create an account. Next, you will need access to the API, and also an 'access key' to retrieve the shipping rates (you need the XML key, when the option is given). You can apply for these here:
https://www.ups.com/upsdeveloperkit?loc=en_US
Note that the UPS web site is almost unfathomably complicated in layout, confusing to find anything, and the forms seem to behave in inexplicable fashion, asking for you to fix errors which are not displayed, wiping your address and other data and so on. Nothing we can do about this unfortunately. You might have to contact UPS support if you cannot figure it out.
Once you have the 'access key', you can start to enter your account details into the UPS settings in Kartris. You will need to refer to UPS documentation with regarding to what values to enter for the various fields.
Once the STATUS field is set to ON, UPS will be available. You can then go to shipping and view the shipping methods and rates. For each band you add, or for the 'all higher orders', you will see an extra text field. You can add 'UPS' or 'USPS' into this, if you want orders meeting this criteria to use real-time shipping. If you want to edit an existing band, you must delete it and create a new one with your preferred shipping provider, or value. This system is therefore very flexible; you can mix both UPS and USPS, specifying one or the other for particular locations (regions) and weights (or costs). You can also have your own static pricing for orders over the limit of what UPS or USPS will deal with (if for example you can use some other provider for large orders, or even hire a truck).