TransFirst Magento Module

Back Story -Why it all Started

Motivation
Empty pockets…
Well - I was dead broke and could not afford anything like a fancy turkey E-commerce system. I had a fear  of being  charged to much for very little.
 
Curiosity…
The lack of creativity and features in the OS commerce platform made me curious about other systems. I found the determination to learn PHP and Python, and manage three other projects at the same time. Necessity is the mother of all snap-lets. All that I had to do was.. Figure it all out.
 
 
What I figured I had to do was:
 
  1. Learn about transaction automation,
    This involves programmatically reducing the number of people handling customers Credit Card Numbers , effortlessly reducing the employee hassle, and the chances of theft or general mishandling.
  2. Know My PHP,
    I have always been a self taught programmer. This is a good thing, because as is usual, business does things not taught in college textbooks. The first thing was to understand the relationship PHP 5.x has to server environments. Example: As long as allow_url_fopen is usable in PHP.ini, you can use HTTP and FTP URL's with most of the functions that take a filename as a parameter, however, if server to server communications deny the use of allow_url_fopen, It will not matter if PHP.ini enables the function.
  3. Bend My Mind Around Magento's Protocols,
    Magento uses a XML style structure for a wide range of things. XML determines all of the administration configurations, positions, hierarchy, and SQL schema. The PHP's object oriented class to function definitions allow easier modifications to Magento's overall functionality. After you understand the abstract layer, you can take similar variables and use them in different ways, or change them in various new ways. Thanks to the ZEND engine, it has added better performance and functionality to the PHP.
  4. Understand TransFirst's API,
    The TransFirst API has undergone various evolutionary phases to increase security and improve customer service. It has been stable in the last 4 years that I have used it.  It uses POST to XML response headers to improve system convenience and error reporting, unlike standard systems that use variable send backs ie. [&vb=answer] The advantages of using the XML system is commented error reporting, and in depth response codes. After using this system I would be unhappy to go back to anything else.
  5. Learn All About Server Restrictions,
    Initially I began with a standard GoDaddy account. I am actually thankful that I did this because I learned a valuable lesson. The biggest lesson was working around my GoDaddy Shared Plan restrictions. The VPS from GoDaddy provided no functionality in the PHP INI for allow_url_fopen  (this function allows you to read a URI to buffer space). Without this you could not send or receive a response. I tried numerous work-around's with no true satisfaction. The final mess was finally resolved by a switching to a new host.
 
WHY YOU MAY NEED THIS MODULE
The underlying point of this module is Transaction Automation. If you do not have the module, you will have to save the credit card numbers on a per invoice basis, then during your free time, (usually at the end of the day) go to your merchant card site, and manually -one by one by tedious one, enter the days transactions. It is a waste of your valuable time from your main pursuit. You could also use your valuable time over the next months to learn all about PHP, XML, Magento Database Structure, Magento programming structure, the TransFirst API Protocols, and then VERY quickly create your own module, thus saving you countless dollars.
 
WHAT My Module Does.
Provides the first full Magento integration to the TransFirst ⁄ TransAction Central Payment Gateway.
The following may not seem like much, however many things happens behind the scenes.
 
At the point of checkout, my module does the following transaction:
 
  • Instantly and securely transmits credit card information to TransFirst.
  • Conduct Authorization (Is the customers card valid?).
  • Conduct Capture (Save the card into a batch process)
  • In two business days you have your money.
  • Multi-store, multi-currency and multi-Merchant Account support
  • Fully configurable via the Magento Back Office administration screens.
  • Has passed a 2 year rigorous testing process
The module is available for the Magento Community and Enterprise editions with full FREE phone support.