Questions before I use Zen Cart...
Hi,
I'm new here.
I do PHP, MySQL, CSS & XHTML.
A client has asked me to build a shopping cart so they can:
- Create categories/sub-categories.
- Upload products to those categories.
- The customer can add items to his/her cart then complete an order just by completing and submitting a form, no checkout payment required. The contents of the form are emailed to the client who then prepares the product for collection/delivery.
- For Delivery, the client can have different prices for the different area that the customer is from. The client has a rate to say(£5 if 3 miles away, £10 if 10miles away etc.)
- The customer chooses either to collect or have the item delivered.
- The client can create special offers(discount codes etc.)
- Use an existing SKU coding scheme.
- It must allow registered members(user groups) AND these registered users can then view more categories when logged in.
Many thanks for any help, really appreciate the time given to a newbie :)
InvisionII
Re: Questions before I use Zen Cart...
All of this is possible in Zen Cart, though some bits are harder than others.
Have a look at the Tutorials/FAQ section to get started. Download and install Zen Cart locally for testing. (Use XAMPP or MAMP as local servers.)
Ask lots of questions here.:D
Rob
Re: Questions before I use Zen Cart...
Yes... all of this is possible.
For the shipping, you may need to consider a commercially available module (Advanced Shipper by ceon) that handles shipping by geo-location. This module allows you to configure shipping charges by DISTANCE from your warehouse (set by entering the warehouse's postcode).
Re: Questions before I use Zen Cart...
Many thanks for the speedy replies guys. Seems like a friendly lot here :)
OK, so on the surface the only 'tricky' part which may require extra work would be the Shipping part.
What's your thoughts rstevenson, what parts do you feel would be more time-consuming than others?
I am currently installing ZenCart as we speak and may be back :)
Re: Questions before I use Zen Cart...
Quote:
... what parts do you feel would be more time-consuming than others?
From what you've descrbed, setting up the (non) payment in a way that your customers will understand will be, um, interesting. It's not that ZC does not have the options you'll need, it's more a matter of communicating to the customer. I think you'll be doing a mix of settings in admin and customizing the language defines to make it all look sensible. But very doable.
Rob
Re: Questions before I use Zen Cart...
Quote:
Originally Posted by
invision2
... OK, so on the surface the only 'tricky' part which may require extra work would be the Shipping part...
Conor Kerr (aka ceon in this forum) did a HUGE amount of work developing a one-size-fits-most shipping module. I know it took him a couple of hundred hours. I contributed to its development, because at the time (November 2006) I needed a shipping module that would cater for shipping based on the distance between the delivery depot and the customer's address.
Conor started with a Region Tables module that embodied geo-location (initially for UK postcodes but now includes many other countries). This module was then further developed into the Advanced Shipper.
By all means, try configuring a geo-location module yourself - (Conor proved its possible), but why re-invent the wheel? OK, so Conor sells his mod - but I believe you will save yourself a lot of hassle, time and money using the Advanced Shipper.
PM ceon for further details.
Re: Questions before I use Zen Cart...
Again, can't thank you guys enough for your help with this.
Quote:
By all means, try configuring a geo-location module yourself - (Conor proved its possible), but why re-invent the wheel? OK, so Conor sells his mod - but I believe you will save yourself a lot of hassle, time and money using the Advanced Shipper.
Yes, I would never have taken on the dev work when an existing module already works.
Thanks, I will pm ceon for more info on this.
A couple more questions if you guys can help...
- Can customers view their own past orders and current orders to see if they're 'pending' or 'complete'(?)
- Should I buy: e-Start Your Web Store With Zen Cart eBook ?
- Do I need CURL for any of the above? I assume not.
Thanks again!
Re: Questions before I use Zen Cart...
Quote:
Originally Posted by
invision2
- Can customers view their own past orders and current orders to see if they're 'pending' or 'complete'(?)
Yes
Quote:
Originally Posted by
invision2
- Should I buy: e-Start Your Web Store With Zen Cart eBook ?
Yes
Quote:
Originally Posted by
invision2
- Do I need CURL for any of the above? I assume not.
cURL "may" be necessary - it's also used in things like updating currencies - not just to talk to payment gateways. You'll need a ZC "expert" to fully advise here - I'm just a novice!
Re: Questions before I use Zen Cart...
Thanks fairestcape! Great signature too :)
Re: Questions before I use Zen Cart...
Hi,
I'm testing adding a product but a little unsure what these fields are for:
Quote:
Product Qty Minimum:
Product Qty Maximum:
Product Qty Units:
Product Qty Min/Unit Mix:
Products Quantity:
Thanks again guys!