forum.vdsworld.com

jwfv · Posted: Tue Apr 04, 2006 1:13 pm Post subject: General HTML Questions

This is not specifically about VDS, although I hope to be able to use VDS to do a couple of the steps:

I am trying to integrate my application with my credit card merchant account. I use Authorize.Net currently - via their virtual terminal.

Authorize.net has an integration method that seems pretty easy to use. The simplest method is to have a form with a submit button and when that button is pressed, it requests a simple payment form from the Authorize.net gateway. For example, here is that code:

<html>
<body>


<FORM METHOD=POST ACTION="https://secure.authorize.net/gateway/transact.dll">
<INPUT TYPE=HIDDEN NAME="x_Login" VALUE="mylogincode">
<INPUT TYPE=HIDDEN NAME="x_Show_Form" VALUE="PAYMENT_FORM">
<INPUT TYPE=HIDDEN NAME="x_Amount" VALUE="100.00">
<INPUT TYPE=HIDDEN NAME="x_first_name" VALUE="John">
<INPUT TYPE=HIDDEN NAME="x_last_name" VALUE="Doe">
<INPUT TYPE=SUBMIT VALUE="Click here for secure payment form">
</FORM>

</body>
</html>

When I put that code in a static page on my website and change "mylogincode" to the correct value, it works great. I click the button and I get a nice payment form for John Doe for $100.00, ready to have his credit card data entered.

Here is my question. Obviously I can't have a static web page for each customer. How can I pass a parameter when I call this page and have it integrate those values into the form?

Something like:

www.mysite.com/credcard.htm?fname=john&lname=doe

???

(Also, I know that I can use the string.dll to encode the URL that I send.)

If anyone with HTML knowledge can point me in the right direction, it would be much appreciated. My HTML experience is extremely limited.

Thanks -

jwfv · Posted: Tue Apr 04, 2006 1:27 pm Post subject:

One other thing - I don't think I can create a local .html page and run it in my browser for two reasons:

1.) It has to use the "InsertFP" function to generate a "fingerprint" to send also. (In the example above.)

2.) I have to have a referrer URL registered at Authorize.net. In other words, the request has to come from an http:// or https:// address.

Dr. Dread · Posted: Tue Apr 04, 2006 6:01 pm Post subject:

If you can use PHP or ASP on your web server it would be quite easy to pass parameters to your script
and generate page content according to that.

Greetz
Dread

jwfv · Posted: Tue Apr 04, 2006 6:10 pm Post subject:

Yes - I think I can use either of those on my server.

So how would I begin? For instance, how would I have my web server generate the html above, but be able to control whether it put "John" or "Sue" for the x_first_name in the form?

I guess I would need to write a PHP/javascript/vbscript script? And then use VDS to issue an HTTP Post command to it? I'm afraid that is above my abilities.

Basically, I want my local VDS executable to somehow generate a web page form (like above) and to send the value for the variables and have them used in the form code.

Thanks for the response - just not sure I quite understand.

Dr. Dread · Posted: Tue Apr 04, 2006 7:43 pm Post subject:

To do what you need there you have to make a dynamic page on your web server. PHP and ASP are great for
that, and there are loads of help to find on the Net.

Then you call that page with the parameters you need (like you said, for instance http://www.yourserver.com/dynpage.php?name=John&surname=Doe), and it will be able to fill in the the document.

Small example in PHP:

jwfv · Posted: Tue Apr 04, 2006 7:59 pm Post subject:

I'm going to test this out. Then if I get this to work I guess I would just change the output of the code to output something like:

echo '<input type=hidden name="x_first_name" VALUE=$name>'

Does that look right? (Instead of "John" in example above, replaced with $name)

jwfv · Posted: Tue Apr 04, 2006 8:02 pm Post subject:

Hmmm. Just tested out your example and I get no response. Maybe I don't have PHP after all. Shouldn't it be on a Windows server? Or is it just Linux?

jwfv · Posted: Tue Apr 04, 2006 8:26 pm Post subject:

Okay - I have had some success. I looked at an online vbScript tutorial to try to set the same thing up as an .asp script - and it works!

Now I guess I just need to do some formatting and it should output my form, instead of just HTML text .... ? Hope so.

One other question, Dread -

If I get this part working, then the Authorize.net website is going to give me a response, letting me know if it is accepted or declined, etc. I can specify a URL for it to "POST" to. I guess that would be another script I would write? Could I then make that script accept the variables in the URL that is "Post"-ed, and then write that to a text file or something like that?

That way I can import that file into my database, etc.

Dr. Dread · Posted: Wed Apr 05, 2006 8:09 am Post subject:

Exactemente... There's no difference in that. You just make another script to handle feedback from Authorize.net -
once you made the first one, the next should be really simple.

Good luck Wink

Dread

jwfv · Posted: Wed Apr 05, 2006 12:57 pm Post subject:

Thanks for your help. Here is my solution:

<html>
<body>
<%
response.write "<form name=form method=post action=https://secure.authorize.net/gateway/transact.dll>"
response.write "<input type=hidden name=x_login value=xxxxxx>"
response.write "<input type=hidden name=x_show_form value=payment_form>"
response.write "<input type=hidden name=x_amount value=" & Request.QueryString("amount")& ">"
response.write "<input type=hidden name=x_first_name value=" & Request.QueryString("fname")& ">"
response.write "<input type=hidden name=x_last_name value=" & Request.QueryString("lname")& ">"
response.write "</form>"
response.write "<script>"
response.write "document.form.submit()"
response.write "</script>"
%>
</body>
</html>

I don't even have to press a button for the payment form - this automatically submits this form, so that by running this .asp script with the correct name and amount in the url, I get my payment form all ready to go! Pretty sweet. (I Googled around for these code snippets, amazing what you can find.)

Remaining issues:

1.) I need to write a script for the reply post, to record the results in a text file or database table on my web server.

2.) I plan to display this form in a VDSSURFX browser. I wish that there was a way in VDSSURFX to get the text of the page that is returned (so my VDS program would know immediately whether the transaction was accepted or declined.) I know that the VDS browser element has this capability, but in another thread, we established that the VDS browser won't work in some cases on a Windows Terminal Server, which I sometimes use.

So I am 90% of the way there - just a couple more hurdles.