Adding to an existing web site

I have built a website in Dreamweaver using HTML and Flash so far. I have it looking almost exactly how the client wants it and I am now trying to figure out how to add in an ecommerce solution. This is my first attempt at creating a successful ecommerce site and I am honestly feeling a little daunted by the process. Every prebuilt shopping cart seems to want me to make the entire site with it, which is not really needed for this outfit. They only sell 3 products, but the products are customizable.

What I am needing is a way to take variable outputs from AS2.0 and HTML forms and store them along with the orders so that when the invoices are sent to my clients they know what customizations are needed on the products. I don't need any category or search functions. I don't need the whole site to be a storefront. I basically need the submit buttons in the forms to add the items + information to the cart and then allow the customer to select a payment method. I would like to include Google Checkout, Paypal and a feature that allows them to use either paypal or google to just put in their credit cart without having to have an account. My clients also want an upfront shipping calculator.

Can someone help me out a bit? I am a coding novice and have no idea how to get this taken care of. I searched and read a few posts and it seems like this is a great community that really helps each other out. *crosses fingers*

Adam

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I basically need the submit buttons in the forms to add the items + information to the cart and then allow the customer to select a payment method.

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Sorry to disappoint you, but Zen Cart is not designed to operate that way.

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Originally Posted by Kim

Sorry to disappoint you, but Zen Cart is not designed to operate that way.

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That is what I was afraid of. Could anyone point me in the way of a tutorial or free/cheap program that could help me to accomplish my goal. I need something that i can put into my existing framework if at all possible.

There is a "shop-front" that integrates with Dreamweaver's dsign and management system... I can't recall what it's called but if you go to Dreamweaver forums and look for "shpopping cart for Dreamweaver" you may have better luck.

It is a commercial add-on for dreamweaver, but I think it is under $300...

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Originally Posted by Adalast

I have built a website in Dreamweaver using HTML and Flash so far. I have it looking almost exactly how the client wants it and I am now trying to figure out how to add in an ecommerce solution. ...

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This is the part I just cannot understand. How could anyone take on a job that includes an eCommerce component, and design the whole site almost to completion, and only then go looking for the eComm part? That is just plain nuts, if you don't mind my saying so.

Rob

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Originally Posted by rstevenson

This is the part I just cannot understand. How could anyone take on a job that includes an eCommerce component, and design the whole site almost to completion, and only then go looking for the eComm part? That is just plain nuts, if you don't mind my saying so.

Rob

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Good point - and it relates to people being clueless about functionality issues and who regard cosmetics as the priority...

I am fortunate to have a good client-base in this industry, but almost without exception, they all haggle me over stupid things like the "shape of a button" or a "background colour being too dark"...

They have not the slightest inkling or concern for functional reliability - all that stuff that happens deep within the server, completely out of view.

I put part of this problem to bad training in, and knowledge of the basics. These days you can buy and install Adobe CS on Friday, and by Monday start trading as a "web designer".

So sophisticated is the WYSIWYG element these days, that it is practically unnecessary to even know how to spell HTML and CSS - never mind understand what they mean!

But I relish these ignorant designers... a LOT of customers have come on board with me because the person who "built" their site is completely incapable of managing it.

15 years of grounding in, and focus on, the basics is a USP I don't want widely diluted. I am sure my contemporaries in this industry feel the same! :D

I am going to try not to take anything that was said above personally. I am fairly ignorant of the finer aspects of the background functions and I was upfront with my clients about this. By trade I am a 3d artist who took some web design classes for that were included in my 3d animation degree program. The only reason I am doing the web design work instead of Visual Effects is because that is the work I can find where I live. We all have to do something to get by in this economy, right?

I do do all of my coding in HTML and CSS and personally hate the WYSIWYG design stuff... I find it annoying actually. Unfortunately for me my training only included HTML, CSS, Flash and AS2.

Thank you for the advice on the shop-front thing. One question though, did you mean the Adobe Dreamweaver forums or do you know of a better one?

At least now you know to start an e-commerce project with a good platform. The fundamental concepts of a site's purpose can and should be developed first, but then you need to pick a platform that works with those before starting design.

It is quite possible to make good-looking websites without much knowledge of PHP or MySQL, as long as you have a resource for help (like this forum).

Unfortunately the client dragged their feet on getting me the information I needed for the eCommerce. Now I know to make that my starting point. As I have never put together an eCommerce site I had no idea going into it what was going to be needed. Now that I do I will definitely be making my next clients that want eCommerce get me the information for that first.

I have been contemplating if I should just remake the site in one of the opensource carts that are around. I put together a flowchart of how the site needs to work... hoping it might help me in my quest for understanding and completion.

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4004/...ef8815fb_o.jpg

This whole thing would probably be easier if my clients whole business model didn't center around the customization of their products. They sell things that get engraved and the like and need that information sent to them when the order finishes getting processed.

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Originally Posted by Adalast

I am going to try not to take anything that was said above personally. I am fairly ignorant of the finer aspects of the background functions and I was upfront with my clients about this. By trade I am a 3d artist who took some web design classes for that were included in my 3d animation degree program. The only reason I am doing the web design work instead of Visual Effects is because that is the work I can find where I live. We all have to do something to get by in this economy, right?

I do do all of my coding in HTML and CSS and personally hate the WYSIWYG design stuff... I find it annoying actually. Unfortunately for me my training only included HTML, CSS, Flash and AS2.

Thank you for the advice on the shop-front thing. One question though, did you mean the Adobe Dreamweaver forums or do you know of a better one?

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You are absolutely correct, and upon reflection, my post must be seen as a general observation, rather than any slight on your own personal proficiencies. I'm sorry if it sounded offensive.

Please accept my apologies, no offence was meant.

HOWEVER... on the issue of functionality...

What you have created in DW is quite possibly "render-able" in any good CMS, as functions are pretty universal - just that the "engine" driving the functions can be a choice of a wide variety of platforms.

There are many important considerations regarding eCommerce - a large number of them relating to issues like site security, operational integrity and extendability. You could look for a "bolt-on" system to a "flat html" site, but you will probably have to sacrifice some reliability and extendability.

What you should do at this juncture (assuming you feel ZC is appropriate technology for eCommerce), is look at "slicing" your design into Zencart. This is generally achievable, though if you are on a tight deadline you may have to "buy in" some zc expertise.

This forum has a LOT of help and advice, and despite my earlier "brash" comment, I'll willingly contribute to commentaries if I have the knowledge...

"They sell things that get engraved and the like and need that information sent to them when the order finishes getting processed."

Zen Cart has the ability for customers to input text and image files during product ordering, so this is not an obstacle.

Apology accepted School, and I assumed that the comments were a venting dialogue directed at the world as a whole rather than just me. I have a tenancy to do to the same thing.

As far as the site goes, how exactly would it work for storing the text and variable data that are needed to be communicated with the product manufacturing process once payment has been processed. I guess that is one problem I am having with understanding what I should be doing. As far as expandability goes, I really don't need too much expandability as they have stated that they are not interested in adding any more products. If/when they do decide to, that will constitute a whole new contract and I can address the concerns then. Right now we are just trying to get them up and running so they can start selling.

I did just remember another complication that they have. They are partnered with hotels for events and need the ability to give the hotel a coupon code that will take off certain items. That is probably really easy to do, but as I've stated before, I'm new to all of this and it seems complicated.

When Zen Cart processes an order, the information collecrted is stored in the database and sent to customer and admin in an e-mail. You could copy this e-mail to the manufacturer, or with more work set up a special e-mail that goes just to them with only the info they need.

ZC has a gift certificate system, and a user group discount system, so there is probably something that could be set up to work with the hotels. This will depend on the specifics of the situation.

Ok, this is sounding more and more doable. Now to assess my other options and decide on the best one. What are those "bolt-on" carts that school was talking about? They sound like what I was originally wanting where I would just add them to the template I already have made. As I stated previously, the storefront will only have 3 items in it and is not likely to be needing any more added on. So if something would make it easy to just add a few buttons to each product page and send the items and information to the cart, I would think that would be the best course of action.

A couple of years ago I came across a zencart site that had been developed for customers to customize jewellery - diamond engagement rings to be exact.

In much the same way that many webshops now have flash-driven "t-shirt designers", this site allowed customers (using a graphical, flash-driven interface), to "build" their ideal engagement ring by selecting and assembling images of different ring shapes, clasps, diamonds, etc.

When the final custom ring was ready, they clicked "Add to Cart", and the whole system would magically "build" the product specs, price it accordingly and enable everything to be added to the cart and then checked out.

I did not bookmark the URL, but it shows what can be done.

About a year ago I had a request to build a Corporate Gifts site, where the requirement was for customers to upload a company logo (or any image) that could then be overlaid and re-sized on the company's products. (I immediately thought of that jewellery site, as I needed the exact same feature...

I approched a company (well-known and respected on this forum) to give me a quote... £7,000 to £10,000. I put this to the client but as you can imagine, did not get a favourable response...

This told me two things...

1. It is possible to integrate a flash-driven customizing tool in zencart...

2. It's not a cheap exercise!

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Originally Posted by Adalast

What are those "bolt-on" carts that school was talking about?

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cartweaver.com/

I was looking at catweaver the other day actually and trying to figure out if it would be able to do what I need it to with minimal argument. I may have to revisit that and see how my clients want to procede. This project is for $3000 so it wasn't too underpriced considering what I have had to do up to this point, though the sales part is becoming a bit of a pain. It sounds like I have a few avenues to choose from, and once I figure out what it would take to do it with Cartweaver or the like, I will be able to speak with the involved parties and decide on how they want to procede.

I do have to say though, if I end up with ZC I will probably become quite annoying over the next couple weeks with questions and problems.

I do have to say thank you for all of the help thus far with my dilema. This has been the best experience I have had on any technical forum by far.

As Glen pointed out earlier, ATTRIBUTES can be used to do the "data collection" and "pricing" in the case of engraving is concerned.

If the engraving is alpha-numeric, and the store charges "by letter" or "by word", then you can create a text-field attribute formatted to append a cost to each letter (or word) entered by the customer.

I have this feature on a site that sells cakes, where the customers want a birthday greeting on a cake, such as:

Happy Birthday Barack

That is 19 letters, and we have formatted that attribute to price each letter at £1.25 - so 19 X £1.25 = £23.75, which is then ADDED to the price of the cake.

Luckilly all of their pricing is flat rate, so what is engraved is not an issue. All products will only have one price each. I think I could get this working, if i could just figure out how to make it look right to fit into the site. Would I be able to make just the 4 pages that have to do with eCommerce with ZC and leave the things like their photo gallery and contact pages how they are? Would I be able to get the ZC pages to sit inside of the HTML site in any way? Perhaps with an <iframe>. If i can do that, I would need to remove the interface completely and just leave the individual products and their accompanying text fields without any of the navigation stuff. Somehow I feel like this should be a whole lot simpler than it is shaping up to be. Is there no way to just have ZC handle the cart portion only and accept input from other HTML pages with forms on them? That's all I really need, other than the flash output portion, which should be able to be accomplished with a PHP intermediary script that is called by the Flash application and hands the variables to the cart. I don't need an interface. I don't need any navigation, search or category functions. I just need a button that puts the information from the HTML form into the cart and lets people pay for the products. Does it really need to get all complicated or is there an easier way that I am just missing?

(Sorry if this came off as a curt, I am feeling a little overwhelmed by the whole prospect of how to get this working. It sounds like I should be able to do everything I need with ZC, but I would love it if I could clear the superfluous clutter out.)

If we could see what you have designed it would b e easier to give you good answers.

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Originally Posted by Adalast

Luckilly all of their pricing is flat rate, so what is engraved is not an issue. All products will only have one price each. I think I could get this working, if i could just figure out how to make it look right to fit into the site. Would I be able to make just the 4 pages that have to do with eCommerce with ZC and leave the things like their photo gallery and contact pages how they are? Would I be able to get the ZC pages to sit inside of the HTML site in any way? Perhaps with an <iframe>. If i can do that, I would need to remove the interface completely and just leave the individual products and their accompanying text fields without any of the navigation stuff. Somehow I feel like this should be a whole lot simpler than it is shaping up to be. Is there no way to just have ZC handle the cart portion only and accept input from other HTML pages with forms on them? That's all I really need, other than the flash output portion, which should be able to be accomplished with a PHP intermediary script that is called by the Flash application and hands the variables to the cart. I don't need an interface. I don't need any navigation, search or category functions. I just need a button that puts the information from the HTML form into the cart and lets people pay for the products. Does it really need to get all complicated or is there an easier way that I am just missing?

(Sorry if this came off as a curt, I am feeling a little overwhelmed by the whole prospect of how to get this working. It sounds like I should be able to do everything I need with ZC, but I would love it if I could clear the superfluous clutter out.)

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Zencart (like all generic carts) cannot be "sliced up" and used piecemeal. There are almost a million lines of code in a comprehensive installation - all dependant in some way on each other.

And embedding into a frame is a no - no . Payment gateways will reject a pass from an iframe and you will also encounter serious session issues.

Session issues will also be a problem if you "house" zencart in a sub-directory as these are timed to expire (for very valid security reasons). Basically, this means that if I am on your site, adding products to the cart, and I get distracted into a gallery that is not an embedded component of your store... if I spend too long in that gallery, the shopping cart section of the site will expire the session and the shopping cart will evaporate.

Customers will not (in the majority of cases) attempt to re-fill the cart and will simply take their business elsewhere.

So there are a LOT of supplementary technical AND procedural considerations - issues that relate to the protocols of things like cURL-based bi-directional communication, invoking of SSL at critical junctures, session management...

You only need to really concern yourself with the details of the above suff when you start looking for techniques to embed ZC into an established site. If you do the opposite (embed the site into ZC) then the above issues are largely taken care of.

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Originally Posted by Kim

If we could see what you have designed it would b e easier to give you good answers.

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Here is the link to what I have so far. Not sure if it's good or not, but if you have any good constructive suggestions beyond the scope of the current problem please feel free to share them. I have not started on the diamond or bible pages yet, I decided that it would be best if I got the commerce part working before I stepped into that section. If you need me to, I can knock out those pages tomorrow and we can go from there.

The design you have so far can easily be incorporated into Zen Cart.

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Originally Posted by schoolboy

Zencart (like all generic carts) cannot be "sliced up" and used piecemeal. There are almost a million lines of code in a comprehensive installation - all dependant in some way on each other.

And embedding into a frame is a no - no . Payment gateways will reject a pass from an iframe and you will also encounter serious session issues.

Session issues will also be a problem if you "house" zencart in a sub-directory as these are timed to expire (for very valid security reasons). Basically, this means that if I am on your site, adding products to the cart, and I get distracted into a gallery that is not an embedded component of your store... if I spend too long in that gallery, the shopping cart section of the site will expire the session and the shopping cart will evaporate.

Customers will not (in the majority of cases) attempt to re-fill the cart and will simply take their business elsewhere.

So there are a LOT of supplementary technical AND procedural considerations - issues that relate to the protocols of things like cURL-based bi-directional communication, invoking of SSL at critical junctures, session management...

You only need to really concern yourself with the details of the above suff when you start looking for techniques to embed ZC into an established site. If you do the opposite (embed the site into ZC) then the above issues are largely taken care of.

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ok... surprisingly that all made sense to me. it is late so you will have to pardon my poor grammar. what would be needed to create the pages i need to work in zencart? would i need to completely remake the website or could i just make the 4 pages that are involved in the sales aspect of it? if i were to make the 4 pages, would i be able to make them indiscernible from the rest of the site? for me the whole setup seems a little overwhelming and alien to how i'm used to doing web development. I like being able to look at all of my code and see what is going on when i'm editing... i think that might be why i have such a problem with actual programing languages... you have to make the entire thing before you can even see what it is going to look like. is there any way i can convert my HTML site into a format that will work with ZC? once i make the pages... how do i put the information on them? how do i do layout? if i am going to do this, i am going to be starting with a blank skillset and i am completely lost.

Thank you all so much for all of the help you have given me today. i wish there were some way i could repay you all.

adam

There are no "pages" in zencart...

There are resources, elements and functions.

The resources are "clumps" of information - usually housed in the database - that are gathered up when needed.

Elements are generally static components, such as images, bundles of html (usually housed and stored in <divs>) and other things like flash files (if you use them)

Functions are generally algorithms in the code that perform calculations, check validity and relevance, and assemble the data.

Zencart (like any CMS) uses a programming code (php) to "cobble" pages together "on the fly". Depending on the link clicked by a visitor, the php gets to work assembling a page from the resources and elements, making sure to invoke any functions along the way, and then it parses the result into a template which is rendered in html and then sent to the broswer.

When the visitor navigates out of that page, it "evaporates". It ceases to exist, and the link (or button) that was clicked will result in the assembly of a brand new page.

Any given "page" can comprise several hundred individual components - all cobbled together by the php.

So, there can be literally thousands of ways that a CMS website can extract all these bits (resources, elements and functions) to build "dynamic" pages. A zencart site (depending on the number of products it hosts) can have tens of thousands of potential "pages" - each "page" created only for the duration it needs to be visible in the user's browser.

So...

UN-learn all you know about HTML page editing. While it extremely helpful to have this knowledge, it is of no practical use to you when designing your template. The template is written in php.

Yes... you will see "bits" of html code written into the php (because ultimately the "cobbled" page has to be in html format for the browser to render it), but you cannot edit a "page" in the same way you would with Dreamweaver - the "page" does not exist!

I may have a solution for you...

Tell me...

How easy is it to get your "box builder" flash file to create a unique link?

For example... I can use your box builder to select a whole range of colours and components...

The final TAB is "SUBMIT ORDER"


If you can get your flash file to write a unique URL - based on the selections made, you could have an answer.

Let's say I make the following choices...

1. Satin Color = Navy Blue
2. Flower or Bow = Bow
3. Text Input (ignore this for the moment)
4. Image = Wedding Bells
5. Ribbon Color = Fossil

If you can get this to parse a unique URL, there may be a solution... So, tell me if you can get a unique URL out of your system - based on the choices...

EG: for my choices above, the system would present the following URL:

index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=558_578&products_id=1558


However... if I choose a different color RIBBON, say "Chutney", then the URL could be...

index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=558_578&products_id=1546


Can yiou get your system to generate such unique links, based on the array of choices?

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Originally Posted by schoolboy

How easy is it to get your "box builder" flash file to create a unique link?

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I suppose it wouldn't be to have each button change a variable, then when the "add to cart" button is hit, the variables are strung together to create a unique web link. There is a PHP call [sendAndLoad("mailer.php", my_vars, "POST")] that handles sending out the information right now. I think if i change that so that the mailer.php call (which is in there to send an email with the variables once the button is hit) to something like "mailer.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=558_578&products_id="+variable1+variabl e2+variable3+variable4 it should call the unique item code. I know that i won't be using a "sendandload" because that is for sending the whole code. But if I call it as a web link in the browser, I should have no problem doing it.

think that would that work? and if i do that, how would i get the text fields out?

Here's my thinking...

embed the box designer in an IFRAME inside a zencart page.

(I do this on a couple of sites)

The customer can still build their box using the designer.

When they have their design done, the URL generated during this process points to a PRODUCT in zencart.

It means you have to create a separate product in zencart for every box variation - but each will have its own category and product ID - which is what zencart locates...

Hence the URL:

index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=558_578&products_id=1558

embedded into the box designer's CART link, will take them to the product they have just configured...

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Originally Posted by rstevenson

This is the part I just cannot understand. How could anyone take on a job that includes an eCommerce component, and design the whole site almost to completion, and only then go looking for the eComm part? That is just plain nuts, if you don't mind my saying so.

Rob

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Rob, perhaps this might help you understand.

I have written some Python scripts that allow the user to put their 3D product purchase history into a database. I did this first for my own use, showed it to some friends, they showed it to some friends...and it has become a product to sell. So, I needed a HTML/php/MySQL web site to sell these (since the potential market could be hundreds if not thousands, I wanted to avoid the casual e-mail sales). I know HTML, but not php/MySQL...so I bought a book, modified the code to reflect my needs, and now just need the PayPal shopping cart, with the IPN capability that the book doesn't cover. I looked around, found Zen Cart, and I do like the capabilities of the platform...but it really isn't the most obvious learning path when you first dive into the pond. I finally read most of the available info, 3 days long hours, and think I have the core of an understanding of how & what it does. I actually think I may have something up & working in a couple of days. But I too am not pleased with having to re-code everything I already wrote - I will do it, but that doesn't make me eager to do so.

But to have to deal with the blindness - almost arrogance - of "This is the part I just cannot understand." is irritating...not everyone of us who comes to this point does so as fully knowledgeable of all you have to offer us. Some of us got here through some fairly thick underbrush, and are weary of having to learn yet "another" new way to redo what we've already done. And we DO appreciate the help we are getting - thus far I've gotten some great assistance. The WIKI, once you get orientated, is very useful. But being looked down at for having tried to do it without you is not helpful. Help if you can, but remember that not everyone is as lucky as you to have found Zen Cart right at the start, avoiding the stumbles...in fact, I consider the time spent stumbling as very useful in seeing the advantages of your product.

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Originally Posted by schoolboy

Here's my thinking...

embed the box designer in an IFRAME inside a zencart page.

(I do this on a couple of sites)

The customer can still build their box using the designer.

When they have their design done, the URL generated during this process points to a PRODUCT in zencart.

It means you have to create a separate product in zencart for every box variation - but each will have its own category and product ID - which is what zencart locates...

Hence the URL:

index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=558_578&products_id=1558

embedded into the box designer's CART link, will take them to the product they have just configured...

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I see where you are going with this... and I see how it would work. I really really would like to avoid it if at all possible though because the permutations are astronomical. 192 ribbon colors * 25 satins * 2 boxes * 18 images (currently, though that is dynamic so they can add more) = 172800 unique entries. Then for every image they want to add... there would need to be 9600 new items added to the database. I don't know about anyone else, but entering 172k database entries all for the exact same product would take me way too long and get really tedious... especially since it doesn't change the price. Isn't there a way to have a script store the variables when the box gets added to the cart, then when the payment is cleared and the emails for the receipt are sent out it reads those variables and drops them into an email to my client? Even with my limited coding skills I can only imagine that making that work would be faster than virtually duplicating the entries 172k times. As far as the eCommerce is concerned, none of the settings mean anything, it's just a count of the number of each items. What is written or what other options they pick have no meaning to the price or what needs to be displayed in the cart, unless there is an easy way to display the options they have selected without making an individual sales object for each and every option. In all reality, I could get away with just 3 objects for sale, one for the diamonds, one for the bibles and one for the boxes since (barring coupon codes from the hotels) the prices are static for each item.

I was looking at just using Google Checkout to do it and that is still an option for me if I need to, but I couldn't figure out how to make it display a cart page, just the floating one up in the corner which I know for a fact that my clients will not like. Is there some other way that I could be doing this that might be simpler. An HTML form with a submit button that adds to a cart would suffice I think for this client. The cart would need the above mentioned features of the step 1 shipping calculator and Google/Paypal/Credit Cart purchase options and a catchka or however you spell it to help weed out the bots.

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Originally Posted by OrcaSoul

Rob, perhaps this might help you understand.

I have written some Python scripts that allow the user to put their 3D product purchase history into a database. I did this first for my own use, showed it to some friends, they showed it to some friends...and it has become a product to sell. So, I needed a HTML/php/MySQL web site to sell these (since the potential market could be hundreds if not thousands, I wanted to avoid the casual e-mail sales). I know HTML, but not php/MySQL...so I bought a book, modified the code to reflect my needs, and now just need the PayPal shopping cart, with the IPN capability that the book doesn't cover. I looked around, found Zen Cart, and I do like the capabilities of the platform...but it really isn't the most obvious learning path when you first dive into the pond. I finally read most of the available info, 3 days long hours, and think I have the core of an understanding of how & what it does. I actually think I may have something up & working in a couple of days. But I too am not pleased with having to re-code everything I already wrote - I will do it, but that doesn't make me eager to do so.

But to have to deal with the blindness - almost arrogance - of "This is the part I just cannot understand." is irritating...not everyone of us who comes to this point does so as fully knowledgeable of all you have to offer us. Some of us got here through some fairly thick underbrush, and are weary of having to learn yet "another" new way to redo what we've already done. And we DO appreciate the help we are getting - thus far I've gotten some great assistance. The WIKI, once you get orientated, is very useful. But being looked down at for having tried to do it without you is not helpful. Help if you can, but remember that not everyone is as lucky as you to have found Zen Cart right at the start, avoiding the stumbles...in fact, I consider the time spent stumbling as very useful in seeing the advantages of your product.

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Thank you so much. I was just ignoring the post, but had I replied, I don't think I could have phrased it better myself.

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Originally Posted by Adalast

I see where you are going with this... and I see how it would work. I really really would like to avoid it if at all possible though because the permutations are astronomical.

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I did spend a brief moment thinking about the exponential nature of the calculations... but the idea was worth a shot anyway.:D

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Originally Posted by OrcaSoul

Rob, perhaps this might help you understand. ...
But to have to deal with the blindness - almost arrogance - of "This is the part I just cannot understand." is irritating...not everyone of us who comes to this point does so as fully knowledgeable of all you have to offer us. ...

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Sorry to have upset you. I was responding to the situation as outlined to that point in the thread. The situation seemed to be that of a designer who accepted a job that they didn't know how to finish. Later info in the thread tells me that was not so, but there was no way to know that at the time I posted my remark. And it is an all too familiar situation, which I have had to deal with in my own business, cleaning up after someone else has failed. I hope it's obvious now I was just speaking out of momentary frustration and did not mean any offense to any particular individual.

Rob

Thanks for the apology Rob. I did get in over my head a bit on the whole commerce portion of the site, but I'm learning. Still no answer on any possible alternatives to zencart that might be a little more simplistic? If not, is there anywhere else I might be albe to go to get an answer? I would like to have a few methods to propose to my clients along with the pros and cons of each so that they can make a decision of how they want me to procede.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by rstevenson

Sorry to have upset you. I was responding to the situation as outlined to that point in the thread. The situation seemed to be that of a designer who accepted a job that they didn't know how to finish. Later info in the thread tells me that was not so, but there was no way to know that at the time I posted my remark. And it is an all too familiar situation, which I have had to deal with in my own business, cleaning up after someone else has failed. I hope it's obvious now I was just speaking out of momentary frustration and did not mean any offense to any particular individual.

Rob

---

Rob,

Apology accepted - and please accept mine in return. I had just gotten up from a restless night - something to do with a cat that has discovered my body makes a wonderful walkway in the middle of the night...and offers her thanks by massaging my neck...:censored:

I love her dearly, but...:bangin:

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Adalast

... Still no answer on any possible alternatives to zencart that might be a little more simplistic? ...

---

Like many here, I came to Zen Cart after finally deciding the "simple" alternatives were anything but. Yes, it would be nice to be able to drop a Buy Me button into an HTML-based site anywhere you want, but the invisible things you get with a full solution like Zen Cart, including but not limited to security, multiple payment gateways, shipping modules to cover any situation, etc. really outweigh the pain of the learning curve.

If you can get through the first few weeks of learning and become an expert at designing within Zen Cart (and there really is almost nothing you can't do visually within ZC) you'll have a leg up on the competition, and can offer your clients a solid alternative.

And the best part of the whole thing is that you'll find lots of helpful people on this forum (and some occasionally grumpy ones :blush:) to help you up the learning curve.

Rob

OK... well that is understandable. Now how do I get started putting together this layout to look like the site I have made? Also, will I be able to use ZC for just the selling portions of my site and then use the HTML pages for the parts that do not need any sales aspects? Also, will I be able to use the identical menus that I have? They are a CSS/PHP driven system. How do I get started making a template to make it look exactly like I have now?

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Adalast

Now how do I get started putting together this layout to look like the site I have made?

---

Best place to start is in the Turtorials/FAQ section, link at the top of this page. In particular learn about the overrides system, so you get things in the right place right off the top.

Then have a look at the free templates available for Zen Cart. You should be able to find one that is leaning in the direction you want to go a lot farther than the stock template that comes with ZC.

Experiment with the stylesheet just to get a feel for what it controls. There's a huge amount of control possible using the stylesheet. Moving code is sometimes required. Writing code is rarely needed.

Check out the Free Software Add Ons (link, top-left) for mods that you will find useful. A lot of people have already invented the wheel, so no need to reinvent it.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Adalast

Also, will I be able to use ZC for just the selling portions of my site and then use the HTML pages for the parts that do not need any sales aspects?

---

Best to use ZC for the whole thing. In the Tut/FAQs look up EZ Pages. Those are easy to make pages which automatically fit into the ZC navigation system and can hold any content. They're particularly good for "static" HTML content.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Adalast

Also, will I be able to use the identical menus that I have? They are a CSS/PHP driven system.

---

I had a look at what you've done so far. That looks like a combination of category menus and attributes. This is an ideal thing to do using jQuery, which will be, I think, a part of Zen Cart 2.0 when it's released. (Or am I thinking of AJAX?) In the meantime, I believe it is possible to use jQuery within ZC now. There are a few threads here in the forum which touch on it.

But even without jQuery you should be able to do what you need using Attributes (again, see that topic in the Tut/FAQs.)

I hope this gets you moving in the right direction. Ask specific questions in new threads, one for each question, and you'll find lots of help here.

Rob

Ok... I am off to a good start, but I can't seem to find some of the information I am needing.

• How do I set an EZ page as the home page?
• How do I move the menu from the top of the page to directly below my logo?
• How do I add EZ pages to the menu I am trying to move?
• Is there any way to replace the PHP script that is controlling that menu with the one that I am using on my original site?
• Should I be trying to make the Box Builder as an EZ page or as a product page?
• How do I remove the title from the EZ pages?
• How do I remove the login function completely? My client has no need for people to make accounts with them. If it is unable to be removed, I will try to find a way to spin it, but I would like to see it gone entirely.

I suppose that the way the menu works for the EZ pages right now would work overall... if I could get the product pages on there too. I am personally thinking of making the box builder as an EZ page and then trying to get the other two as product pages. Then all I have to do is figure out how to make the flash output the variables and I think I'll be in business.

• How do I set an EZ page as the home page?
  
  If you want static content on the home page, turn off anything you don't want in admin/Configuration/Index Listing, then add content to the home page by using admin/Tools/Define Pages Editor > define_main_page.php
  
  
• How do I move the menu from the top of the page to directly below my logo?
• How do I add EZ pages to the menu I am trying to move?
  
  Your EZ-Page links can be in the header links, along with Home, Log In and so on; they can be in the footer; and they can be in the Important Links sidebox. And maybe all three at once? Not sure about that. Have a look at admin/Configuration/EZ Pages Settings.
  
  
• Should I be trying to make the Box Builder as an EZ page or as a product page?
  
  As a product page so you can use the attributes. Or as an EZ-Page so you can employ totally custom code. Your choice.
  
  
• How do I remove the title from the EZ pages?
  
  You'd have to customize the php file which controls the layout of EZ-Pages. Off hand, I don't know where that is.
  
  
• How do I remove the login function completely? My client has no need for people to make accounts with them. If it is unable to be removed, I will try to find a way to spin it, but I would like to see it gone entirely.
  
  Search these forums for COWOA. And search the Free Software Add Ons for Login.
  

Rob

How do I remove the title from the EZ pages?

Add to your stylesheet

h1#ezPagesHeading {display: none;}

Quote:

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Originally Posted by rstevenson

How do I set an EZ page as the home page?

If you want static content on the home page, turn off anything you don't want in admin/Configuration/Index Listing, then add content to the home page by using admin/Tools/Define Pages Editor > define_main_page.php

---

How exactly does this work? That page is no longer the page that shows up when I go to my site. For some reason the one and only product I have added is the one that shows up. Should I add more products and this will change back?

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by rstevenson

How do I move the menu from the top of the page to directly below my logo?
How do I add EZ pages to the menu I am trying to move?

Your EZ-Page links can be in the header links, along with Home, Log In and so on; they can be in the footer; and they can be in the Important Links sidebox. And maybe all three at once? Not sure about that. Have a look at admin/Configuration/EZ Pages Settings.

---

OK, so I see how that works, but how do I move that menu below my logo? Also, is there a plugin or something for ZC that would allow me to use drop down menus?

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by rstevenson

Should I be trying to make the Box Builder as an EZ page or as a product page?

As a product page so you can use the attributes. Or as an EZ-Page so you can employ totally custom code. Your choice.

---

I think that this will have to be the last thing I try to get working as it seems like it might be the biggest pain.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by rstevenson

How do I remove the title from the EZ pages?

You'd have to customize the php file which controls the layout of EZ-Pages. Off hand, I don't know where that is.

---

That {display:none} thing seems like it would work best.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by rstevenson

How do I remove the login function completely? My client has no need for people to make accounts with them. If it is unable to be removed, I will try to find a way to spin it, but I would like to see it gone entirely.

Search these forums for COWOA. And search the Free Software Add Ons for Login.

---

I will have to look into this. Thank you for the suggestion.

OK, when I added more products the other home page appeared again... guess I can get to work on making the index page how I want it to look.

Admin > Configuration > Layout Settings > Skip 1-prod categories

This will make categories with only one product go straight to the product info page instead of having to click through a single-item listing page. If you want the listing page with its category description to show in all cases, set this to false or 0.

I really would like to do without a listing page all together. I only have 3 products that my client is selling and it is not likely to increase, so I just need individual pages for each product. I will be working the rest of this week to get the individual pages looking how the client wants them to. After that I will need to see about getting the rest of it functioning.

In that case, putting each product in its own category will let them be handled properly by the Zen Cart category/product system, and you can set the skip to true. Name the category the same as the product, and any navigation will be clear and direct.

Alright, I have been fighting with it for a while now and I can't seem to get the site working right. I have put in my HTML code into admin/Tools/Define Pages Editor > define_main_page.php and now all I get is a blank page. When I check the source code for it, my HTML is there, but it isn't being rendered.

Also, I cannot seem to find any of the options that you guys have mentioned for consolidating my menus into just one bar. At this point I guess I don't care where it is in relation to the logo, I just need

• Home (Modified Home Page)
• Wedding Boxes (EZ Page)
• Bibles (Product Category)
• Diamonds (Product Category)
• Photo Gallery (EZ Page)
• About (EZ Page)
• Contact (EZ Page)

all on one bar and in that order.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Adalast

Alright, I have been fighting with it for a while now and I can't seem to get the site working right. I have put in my HTML code into admin/Tools/Define Pages Editor > define_main_page.php and now all I get is a blank page. When I check the source code for it, my HTML is there, but it isn't being rendered.

Also, I cannot seem to find any of the options that you guys have mentioned for consolidating my menus into just one bar. At this point I guess I don't care where it is in relation to the logo, I just need

• Home (Modified Home Page)
• Wedding Boxes (EZ Page)
• Bibles (Product Category)
• Diamonds (Product Category)
• Photo Gallery (EZ Page)
• About (EZ Page)
• Contact (EZ Page)

all on one bar and in that order.

---

Ignore the first half of the post, I realized what was going on and got it fixed. The menu problem is really all that I am having at this point... but it seems to be a :frusty: problem.

You can put all of those links in your ez-page header bar. For the ones that are not ez-pages, create ez-page internal links for them, with the destination page name, and they will appear as links to that page.

Ok... thanks for the speedy reply gjh42. Now do you know how to do all of that, because I am not sure how to make an "ez-page internal link". It does sound like exactly what I need, but i'm not sure how to do it.

Go to Tools > EZ-Pages, start a new page, and read the directions at the bottom of the page.

Perfect and thank you so much. It will feel so good to finally have this site finished and out. Also, since I'm sure it will be a problem, what should I expect to run into when I transfer this off of my server and onto theirs. I am hoping it's as simple as just copying the whole folder over and everything will work once I fix the URL information in it.

Ok, question on my photo gallery. How can I get my shadowbox php scripts to work right? I have tried referancing them with a full URL like I have done my images, but no go it seems. The shadowbox gallery is kinda one of the selling points on the site, so I really hope there is a way to make it work.

Edit: I think I may have realized what the problem is... I need to add onload="shadowbox3b_g1();" to the <body> tag. Anyone know how to add things like that to the body tag on one of these pages?

Edit 2: Oh... I can just put it right in the HTML window and it works. Solved it on my own... yay.

You will have to make sure any custom database content is also transferred. Do they have an installation yet, or is this going to be totally new for them?
See the tutorial: https://www.zen-cart.com/tutorials/i...hp?article=100

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by gjh42

You will have to make sure any custom database content is also transferred. Do they have an installation yet, or is this going to be totally new for them?
See the tutorial: https://www.zen-cart.com/tutorials/i...hp?article=100

---

well that is kinda what I am asking. Will I have to install it on their servers or could I transfer the folder strait from my server to theirs? I know that any web linkages I have will need to be updated for things like flash files and images, but what else will I need to do beyond that when I move the store from my server to theirs?

(and also, I got the homepage done and it looks great, thanks for all of the help so far. All I have left to do is get the products talking to the cart properly and get that with all of the functionality they want and I'll be done.)

Did you read the tutorial yet? It answers most of your questions.

You should be using relative links wherever possible (usually possible within Zen Cart) so that they are server-independent.
Things like <a href="index.php?main_page=whatever&whatever=whatever">

I would like to use the relative links, but I'm not sure how/where to store HTML referenced materials in ZC. I have .jpg, .png, .swf and .xml files that all need referenced by either HTML code in ZC or by the .swf files. I have several dynamically loaded content flashes that read .xml files and load either .png or .jpg into the frames.

As for reading the tutorial, I have yet to find one. I click on the Tutorial link and all I find in every section is a Q&A. If someone could post a link to it, I would be more than happy to read it cover to cover.

Wonderful wonderful. I just looked over their request for the crystal page and they want a dynamically loaded image based on customer selection. Is that possible with ZC? They also want to add a bulk price and second product onto the page for the light stands with it's own quantity. Somehow I think this page just got a whole lot more complicated. I really hope that's a comprehensive tutorial... or else i might end up with another flash application to handle this ><.

edit: i think that the bibles might end up facing similar problems. It looks as though they want a dynamic set of attributes to be loaded based on a drop-down box selection. Please tell me this is possible ><.

There is not one big "Tutorial"; each item in that Q&A page is a tutorial on one feature or process.

And yes, that does complicate matters significantly. They have an extremely complex and uncommon set of requirements.

There are mods for switching the main product image with the additional images, but I'm not sure about attributes. It could be done, but you might need to do much of it yourself. It's certainly worth examining Free Addons, and searching the forum for similar requests that may have info.

"I'm not sure how/where to store HTML referenced materials in ZC. I have .jpg, .png, .swf and .xml files that all need referenced by either HTML code in ZC or by the .swf files."

Product-related images would reasonably go in the base /images/ folder, where you would address them by
<img src="images/yourimage.gif" alt="Your Image" />

I'm not sure of the best place for .xml files; .js files have a special folder setup, described in detail in the wiki article on using javascript.

I emailed them and told them that most of their requests fall outside of the scope of work for the contract that they signed, so i'm not doing it. I am trying to get this done by the end of the week, so if they want stuff like that they get to pay me more money after I finish.

What I am thinking of doing is making 2 seperate products for the crystal diamonds, one for with the light stand and one for without, and 3 for the bibles, one for each option that they want. I know that is the easiest way to deal with the several options they are wanting. I would like to make the navigation options into flyout menus if that is at all possible. I know that will be needed if I am going to make this work. I searched the knowledge base and I cannot find any information on flyout/dropdown menus. Basically what I want is for the customer to roll over the "diamonds" nav option and have "w/lightstand" and "w/o lightstand" to pop out below it for them to select. Similar thing for the bibles.

In Free Addons, there are several CSS dropdown/flyout menu mods.

Ok, that will work. I'll get on those when I get my products working right. Speaking of which... I cannot for the life of me figure out how to make it register as "in stock". below my image it says "0 units in stock" and the sales area has a red circle that says "sold out". How do I make my products work so I can add them to the cart? I have looked over the FAQs and I can't find a single entry that involves this problem... at all. The information about how to add products doesn't deal with it either.

edit: Also, how do I change the design by text at the bottom. I have completely modified that template and would like to claim it as my own.

Is there a particular reason you don't want to have the lightstand as an attribute for the crystals? You could have a couple of additional images showing nice examples, and the selection would be straightforward (I think, not knowing the product).
If you need to allow different quantities of crystals and lightstands, that would be a reason to separate them.

To get the best possible attribute layout flexibility, with unlimited extra text sections between selection boxes, you might want to try my Flexible Attributes mod (not yet activated in Free Addons; you can get it from the support thread).

I figured out how to do the lightstands as an attribute and I think for now it will work. Their document they gave me has a seperate quantity field for the lightstands. They also want a discount on the price of 10 or more. I think that can be done, but I have to dig more. Right now my major problem is that I can't figure out how to make it so that i can add things to the cart. This is what I have right now for it. For some reason I cannot get the "out of stock" thing to go away and let me add things to the cart. Why is it doing that?

Ok, figured out the whole cart problem, now I'm facing another. Is there any way to completely remove the ability to make an account on the site? The client doesn't want that at all and when the customer goes to checkout, it's still asking them to make an account. How do I turn that off? I read on the FAQs that it's not possible, but is there an addon that would do it or something? This was something that my clients specifically did not want.

You can't remove the requirement to enter the information, but you can change the output text to make it clear that the info is for being able to fulfill their order.
The COWOA mod will make the account optional, and I'm sure its support thread has info on removing the "account" choice completely. Look in the wiki for more info. A good thing about COWOA is that customers can purchase multiple times with the same e-mail address without causing a problem (only one account can be created for an e-mail address).

You can also (in admin) reduce the information that checkout asks for to the minimum necessary for order fulfillment.

I am trying to install the addon Fast and Easy Checkout, but I am running into some issues getting it to initialize. I did back up my server before I attempted to install it, so I will be able to restore it if need be.

Is there anything that I need to do to activate addons other than merge the files onto the server and run the sql installer files? I think I got everything put in there, though I may have messed up the order at one point, but I tried to fix it and it gave me an error saying that I was making duplicate entries. Should I roll back my server or am I missing something to get the addon turned on and working?

Most mods are fully activated by installing their files (and running the SQL patch if there is one). You will likely need to adjust filepaths to your custom template name - if you fail to do that where required, the files are not installed on your template but in some boilerplate folder. Some mods have an admin switch or setting that needs to be made to select the desired function.

Where do I usually have to change the path, because in the instructions I was told to merge the files that came with the addon with my template. I did this, so the file should all be in the right place. Maybe that order thing did mess me up. I will try fixing that now and get back to you guys after I get it done over again.

OK... wth is going on here? I think this is what is wrong with that addon... and I have no idea how to fix it. At the top of the page, this code has appeared:

Code:

---

// $origin_href = zen_back_link_only(true); $_SESSION['navigation']->clear_snapshot(); zen_redirect($origin_href); } else { zen_redirect(zen_href_link(FILENAME_DEFAULT, '', $request_type)); } } } } } if ($error == true) { $zco_notifier->notify('NOTIFY_LOGIN_FAILURE'); } $breadcrumb->add(NAVBAR_TITLE); // Check for PayPal express checkout button suitability: $paypalec_enabled = (defined('MODULE_PAYMENT_PAYPALWPP_STATUS') && MODULE_PAYMENT_PAYPALWPP_STATUS == 'True'); // Check for express checkout button suitability: $ec_button_enabled = ($paypalec_enabled && ($_SESSION['cart']->count_contents() > 0 && $_SESSION['cart']->total > 0)); // check if shipping address should be displayed if (FEC_SHIPPING_ADDRESS == 'true') $shippingAddressCheck = true; // check if the copybilling checkbox should be checked if (FEC_COPYBILLING == 'true') $shippingAddress = true; else $shippingAddress = false; if (FEC_ORDER_TOTAL == 'true' && $_SESSION['cart']->count_contents() > 0) { require(DIR_WS_CLASSES . 'order.php'); $order = new order; require(DIR_WS_CLASSES . 'order_total.php'); $order_total_modules = new order_total; $fec_order_total_enabled = true; } else { $fec_order_total_enabled = false; } // check if country field should be hidden $numcountries = zen_get_countries(); if (sizeof($numcountries) <= 1) { $disable_country = true; } else { $disable_country = false; } // This should be last line of the script: $zco_notifier->notify('NOTIFY_HEADER_END_LOGIN'); $zco_notifier->notify('NOTIFY_HEADER_END_EASY_SIGNUP'); ?> eLabel").setAttribute('className', 'hiddenField'); document.getElementById("stText").className = 'hiddenField'; document.getElementById("stText").setAttribute('className', 'hiddenField'); document.getElementById("stBreak").className = 'hiddenField'; document.getElementById("stBreak").setAttribute('className', 'hiddenField'); } function hideStateFieldShipping(theForm) { theForm.state_shipping.disabled = true; theForm.state_shipping.className = 'hiddenField'; theForm.state_shipping.setAttribute('className', 'hiddenField'); document.getElementById("stateLabelShipping").className = 'hiddenField'; document.getElementById("stateLabelShipping").setAttribute('className', 'hiddenField'); document.getElementById("stTextShipping").className = 'hiddenField'; document.getElementById("stTextShipping").setAttribute('className', 'hiddenField'); document.getElementById("stBreakShipping").className = 'hiddenField'; document.getElementById("stBreakShipping").setAttribute('className', 'hiddenField'); } function showStateField(theForm) { theForm.state.disabled = false; theForm.state.className = 'inputLabel visibleField'; theForm.state.setAttribute('className', 'visibleField'); document.getElementById("stateLabel").className = 'inputLabel visibleField'; document.getElementById("stateLabel").setAttribute('className', 'inputLabel visibleField'); document.getElementById("stText").className = 'alert visibleField'; document.getElementById("stText").setAttribute('className', 'alert visibleField'); document.getElementById("stBreak").className = 'clearBoth visibleField'; document.getElementById("stBreak").setAttribute('className', 'clearBoth visibleField'); } function showStateFieldShipping(theForm) { theForm.state_shipping.disabled = false; theForm.state_shipping.className = 'inputLabel visibleField'; theForm.state_shipping.setAttribute('className', 'visibleField'); document.getElementById("stateLabelShipping").className = 'inputLabel visibleField'; document.getElementById("stateLabelShipping").setAttribute('className', 'inputLabel visibleField'); document.getElementById("stTextShipping").className = 'alert visibleField'; document.getElementById("stTextShipping").setAttribute('className', 'alert visibleField'); document.getElementById("stBreakShipping").className = 'clearBoth visibleField'; document.getElementById("stBreakShipping").setAttribute('className', 'clearBoth visibleField'); } //--> TE_ERROR_SELECT . '");' . "\n"; ?> check_select("country", "", "You must select a country from the Countries pull down menu."); check_input("telephone", 3, "Your Telephone Number must contain a minimum of 3 characters."); check_password("password", "confirmation", 5, "Your Password must contain a minimum of 5 characters.", "The Password Confirmation must match your Password."); check_password_new("password_current", "password_new", "password_confirmation", 5, "Your Password must contain a minimum of 5 characters.", "Your new Password must contain a minimum of 5 characters.", "The Password Confirmation must match your new Password."); if (error == true) { alert(error_message); return false; } else { submitted = true; return true; } } //-->

    * Home
    * Log In
    * Shopping Cart
    * Checkout

---

I have no idea where that came from. The only thing I can think of is that somehow my addon messed up and now I have this partial code bit here. Any ideas?

Also, how would I put together a php script file that could communicate attributes to the cart? I am going to need it for my box builder. I know how to make flash execute a .php script when a button is clicked, which is how I am planning to get the sales information out of flash. I just need to know how to get it from there and into the cart.