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Put the zip code first

zipcodefirst.com

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Re: Put the zip code first

#81

Post by spagettnet »

modeless wrote: post #37

> From those 5 characters you can determine the city, the state, and the country False. Many zip codes include more than one city, and some even cross multiple states. And you can't always tell the difference between codes from different countries. Now you're not just instantly filling the rest of the form, you're implementing fancy multi-country filtering logic, editable drop downs, etc. Given the obvious incompeten…

If something is more efficient 95% of the time, and as efficient as normal for the rest of the time, its still a good solution.

Re: Put the zip code first

#82

Post by ezfe »

esrauch wrote: post #75
petee wrote: post #43

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Some areas have duplicate, or very similar street names (ie, 'ave' vs. 'street') I don't think its that much of an ask that a website lets you enter your address correctly

Yeah it should auto fill but not stop you from changing it, best experience 98% of the time. I just looked it up and apparently there's some cases of zip codes that do go across state lines too, but it's rare.

There is a canonical full address for every mailbox in the US. Would be curious to see what these houses show.

My experience living in towns that received mail from other towns is your canonical address IS the other town.

Re: Put the zip code first

#83

Post by rishikeshs »

I’m reading this from UAE where zipcodes don’t exist. I wanted to make a similar post so that when you select UAE as country remove the zip code field. Usually the workaround is to type 000000

Re: Put the zip code first

#84

Post by loloquwowndueo »

Le sigh. It has now a disclaimer at the top. “Hello from across the pond (or whichever body of water separates us). This is a US ZIP code website. We are aware that other countries exist.”

This guy just keeps digging himself into a hole of ignorance - is he aware of Mexico? Canada?

Re: Put the zip code first

#86

Post by ghostly_s »

bicx wrote: post #69
modeless wrote: post #37

> From those 5 characters you can determine the city, the state, and the country False. Many zip codes include more than one city, and some even cross multiple states. And you can't always tell the difference between codes from different countries. Now you're not just instantly filling the rest of the form, you're implementing fancy multi-country filtering logic, editable drop downs, etc. Given the obvious incompeten…

This 1000 times. I’ve tried implementing what OP has mentioned, and quickly learned it isn’t possible. A city can also exist in multiple zip codes. And there can be multiple cities with the same name in the same state. So, to be safe, you have to enter city, state, and zip.

> A city can also exist in multiple zip codes. And there can be multiple cities with the same name in the same state.

These are reasons you cannot deduce the Zip from the city, not the opposite. A ZIP+4 actually encodes all other information for a US address.

Re: Put the zip code first

#87

Post by throwaway173738 »

collabs wrote: post #27
jen20 wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Obviously put country first, then whatever the equivalent of a ZIP code is second. In the UK, a post code gets you down to around 15-16 delivery addresses on average. No-one there really _ever_ needs to type an address.

At that point, should we even show the whole form? Or should we only ask the country first and then based on the answer, decide whether to show a form? That way the form can be different for each country? I think auto full suggestion should be just that -- a suggestion, not validation.

Yeah, I’m thinking about how the address validation databases would for years correct my house’s address to point to a house in a cul-de-sac a block away. I could tell who was auto-correcting my address by which parcels arrived there. The USPS carrier knew too and he would ignore the address on some parcels.

I eventually had to dig through a bunch of USPS documentation for their Address Element Correction database to find their helpdesk. Apparently places like Fedex use that database.

So I agree as well, and I would be pretty angry if someone forced me to pick from a list instead of just trusting that I know my own address.

Also as another aside I was a shipping clerk for a while and occasionally came across an address like “across from such-and such store halfway down the alley.” So the author is making a pretty bold assumption that there is such a thing as a standard address that can be auto-filled.

Re: Put the zip code first

#88

Post by NicuCalcea »

hyperhello wrote: post #60
NicuCalcea wrote: post #42

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yup, the second sentence in the post is incorrect. > From those 5 characters you can determine the city, the state, and the country. You can't infer the country from a postcode.

In the example, you might at least be able to cut down your menu choices to Maine or Mexico.

That assumes the existence of a reliable, free postcode API of all addresses on the planet.

I did a very brief search, and none of the commercial offerings I could test recognised the postcode of the Eastern European neighbourhood I was born in. Also, like half of African countries don't have postcodes. It's just not a good system.

Re: Put the zip code first

#89

Post by peyton »

avidiax wrote: post #50
loloquwowndueo wrote: post #10

US-centric. I typed a Mexico postal code (it’s five digits) and got routed to somewhere in Maine. So - yeah the whole “I can tell you’re in the US just by the zip code” premise is entirely flawed.

Should be titled "Put the Zipcode and country first". Would be simple enough to have someone type the zip or postal code first, then move the countries that are known to have that zip code to the top of the drop down (still in alphabetical order), and all the other countries below that (also in alphabetical order). Leave all the fields editable, i.e. the postal code only suggests, ranks, or prepopulates. Seems like t…

ZIP Code (tm) is claimed as a trademark by the US Postal Service. If you don’t have a ZIP Code, why would you put something in the ZIP Code field?

Re: Put the zip code first

#90

Post by birdsongs »

Macha wrote: post #67
birdsongs wrote: post #62

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The best times are when US ecommerce sites try to confidently lint foreign addresses, even when they allow shipping there. I've had them tell me I need 5 digits for my postal code in Norway, which uses 4 digits. I selected Norway in the shipping web form. Or when they tell me special characters aren't allowed, yet the "special characters" are just letters in the Norwegian alphabet. My address contains ø. These aren't…

I remember US based sites insisting I provide them a post code for like a decade before most of my country _had_ post codes.

Hah. Post codes are just weird and non standard. I've had times travelling where the point of sale asks me for a zip code after using my non-US card.

I learned from a cashier to type 00000 and it has always worked.

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