Re: Actual Human Support?
So the individual that has previously contributed free (mind you talking free as in no direct financial support) has been relatively silent regarding ZC for both free as well as reportedly paid for support. It's unfortunate for the ZC community. There are others that have proposed their own templates recently and for the most part seem to be functional.
As for paid for templates provided "en masse" rather than customized specifically for ones needs. As seen in the forum, there are some monster of templates that tend to be less adaptable than others and that any change requested of the company costs a good amount more (even if a report is seen that the same modification had previously been reported.)
Regarding the hand holding and in depth explanations, this can be/become a full time job if similar information isn't already otherwise available (there is this forum) and ultimately it tends to be more beneficial to learn how to find what is needed using fairly basic tools such as viewing the web page source (browser), searching from the admin (tools->developers tool kit) and looking at the file(s) (results from search, ftp to files, local copy, online at github, etc...)
Then there are things that can be read/reviewed when a problem occurs... for example the result seen was a blank page: http://www.zen-cart.com/content.php?124-blank-page
But in review of most of the threads related to those templates there are some additional actions needed to be taken for the template to work in ZC 1.5.5 and there may not be any log errors because the issue is partially related to javascript files used in the template as compared to the responsive_classic "equivalent".
Hope that helps a little at least.
Re: Actual Human Support?
Quote:
Originally Posted by
68Bonnie
Has anyone had a responsive template installed recently? I have been trying to contact a major contributor of free templates via several means with no result? What templates do you recommend? What ones would you avoid? For those of you who have used paid support, what has been your experience?
Feel free to use PM if need be! I'm new to this, and would like to have someone do the install, explain the structure and files that need to be edited, as well as be my safety net in an emergency. I really like Sheffield Blue, but the install had nothing from the header down.
Thanks in advance,
Bob
i would expect nothing from a provider of free templates. except the template...
getting a template to work the way you want requires someone who is knowledgeable in modern web design, and probably has some ZC expertise.
plenty of people on this board to help you.
good luck!
Re: Actual Human Support?
I used Responsive Sheffield Blue 2.0 for a number of years. It was updated from earlier version to work with zen cart 1.5.4. There were quite a few work arounds required for it to work with zc 1.5.5. Solutions to most of the requirements are found in the template forum, but not consolidated in one spot, so there is a need to go through the forum to find these helpful tidbits. I found that with each zc update there were a few more issues to deal with, partly template related and partly related to other mods I had worked in myself. With zc 1.5.5f I decided it was time to move on to a more current template. In part this was because the template author has been MIA so I lack confidence that the template will go through a 3.0 revision.
The resident responsive_classic template in zen cart is more up to date. I would caution though that it is not fully responsive. Not all sideboxes, for instance, are available 'out-of-the-box' on non desktop renderings (for instance Language and Currency selection if you market internationally). Other than that it works well and many add-on mods available in the plugins section are up to date and easy to add on. There has been lots of support on that template forum, but I worry a little about it as a key architect of that template is the same as Responsive Sheffield Blue and most of the other free templates available in the plugins.
My experience with a purchased premium template is not positive. While advertised as zc 1.5.5 updated - only the core files were in fact current to the time. Other essential mods were quite outdated and merged into custom template code such that updating the mods would break the template. And not updating those mods meant I couldn't add other mods that I consider essential. My advice on a purchased template - if it does exactly what you need out of the box, fine. If things need changing, run, don't walk away ;o)
On balance, for me, best route is to fiddle with a clone version of the zen cart resident responsive template. Its up to date. Many mods available. Helpful folks on the forums.
Re: Actual Human Support?
Quote:
Originally Posted by
soxophoneplayer
I used Responsive Sheffield Blue 2.0 for a number of years. It was updated from earlier version to work with zen cart 1.5.4. There were quite a few work arounds required for it to work with zc 1.5.5. Solutions to most of the requirements are found in the template forum, but not consolidated in one spot, so there is a need to go through the forum to find these helpful tidbits. I found that with each zc update there were a few more issues to deal with, partly template related and partly related to other mods I had worked in myself. With zc 1.5.5f I decided it was time to move on to a more current template. In part this was because the template author has been MIA so I lack confidence that the template will go through a 3.0 revision.
The resident responsive_classic template in zen cart is more up to date. I would caution though that it is not fully responsive. Not all sideboxes, for instance, are available 'out-of-the-box' on non desktop renderings (for instance Language and Currency selection if you market internationally). Other than that it works well and many add-on mods available in the plugins section are up to date and easy to add on. There has been lots of support on that template forum, but I worry a little about it as a key architect of that template is the same as Responsive Sheffield Blue and most of the other free templates available in the plugins.
My experience with a purchased premium template is not positive. While advertised as zc 1.5.5 updated - only the core files were in fact current to the time. Other essential mods were quite outdated and merged into custom template code such that updating the mods would break the template. And not updating those mods meant I couldn't add other mods that I consider essential. My advice on a purchased template - if it does exactly what you need out of the box, fine. If things need changing, run, don't walk away ;o)
On balance, for me, best route is to fiddle with a clone version of the zen cart resident responsive template. Its up to date. Many mods available. Helpful folks on the forums.
For the changes to support the templates to work on ZC 1.5.5 I would disagree that the solution is not all in one spot. Regarding direct issues with the template(s), perhaps crossed between templates but it seems that each template has had its solution(s) posted in the applicable forum. The general forum thread for all of the templates to work on ZC 1.5.5 is or seems to be: https://www.zen-cart.com/showthread.php?219801 (it's worked for me anyways).
Re: Actual Human Support?
I haven't had any experience of paid support and came to Zen Cart knowing absolutely nothing. ALL I needed was help from the Forum and plenty of time (with a little help from Google for more specialised problems). Eventually you get to the point where no problem is insurmountable (at least none to date) which is a big relief!, and it's possible to adapt Zen Cart to work with other templates to suit your needs, even non-zencart ones such as html5up (not 'typical' designs but can really suit some sites, I created an artists' ecommerce site using one of those and Zen Cart).
If you are prepared to do the leg work you will find everything you need here. There used to be working links to videos and a manual at https://www.zen-cart.com/index.php, I found the manual good for explaining the structure and basics of Zen Cart. You might be able to find a link to it elsewhere, it might be a bit out of date now but should still be relevant and when you need more help just post to the Forum.
Getting started was, for me, pretty daunting but as you've already installed a template you're well on your way. For example if you install a template and get a partial blank page, there's a FAQ for that. Most free templates on this site will have install instructions the basics of which can be used for any Zen Cart template.
For a Zen Cart responsive template you might wish to consider https://www.zen-cart.com/showthread....emplate-(BETA), a new offering, still in development but looks exciting and possibly released soon.
So if you've got the interest and the time I recommend diving in.
Re: Actual Human Support?
I was/am happy to pay for an install to look like her demo? Hard to pay people you can't find! If they don't respond to a paid gig, what happens when my site is down?
Re: Actual Human Support?
Thank you for the responses, I feel less alone in this venture! I am fully prepared to dig in! I am of the teach a man to fish school. I have one PHP book and another on the way. I was hoping for a jump ahead with an author install. mc12345678 thanks for the link, exactly what I was looking for! Any other resources for a noob, please forward!
Re: Actual Human Support?
When I installed Anne free templates including Shefield Blue 2 I had Anne in this forum to reply almost any problem / question.
Now Anne is not here to answer but there are many threads that she and others replied which can answer (almost) all your questions / problems.
