Zen Lightbox addon [Support Thread]

[Nina_Paris_France]

Hello.
English is not my native language and I'm probably not the smartest girl in France, so here are some *blonde* questions...

Question 1: I know this forum does not support purchased templates, but it would be nice to know if Zen Lightbox can mess up my template (from templatemonster.com)? I'm just asking since "overrides" sound so scary...


Questions 2: I do not understand step 4 and step 5 in the Zen Lightbox installation guide (on this site file:///Applications/zen_lightbox-v1.6.2_20110220/readme.html)....

STEP 4: "Upload the entire contents of the includes folder and the images folder to your server, again keeping the file structure intact. (Note: All files make use of the overrides system.)"
I barely know what a "server" is. But I guess this means I should upload the file to my hosts cPanel/Filemanager? If so, shall I upload it to:
/public_html ?
/public_html/includes ?
/public_html/includes/templates ?
/public_html/includes/templates/nameofmyzentemplate ?

And when the popup window asks me if I want to replace exciting files I shall press "yes"?


STEP 5: "Open phpMyAdmin for your site and navigate to your database. Choose 'Import' and then 'choose file' and navigate to and select install.sql then choose 'Go'."
Sorry, but I'm clueless where "phpMyAdmin" is, are they referring to the "admin" of the Zen Cart? Or still in my cPanel/Filemanager?

Thank you from the bottom of my heart for help!
Nina

[ScriptJunkie]

Hello.
English is not my native language and I'm probably not the smartest girl in France, so here are some *blonde* questions...

Question 1: I know this forum does not support purchased templates, but it would be nice to know if Zen Lightbox can mess up my template (from templatemonster.com)? I'm just asking since "overrides" sound so scary...

Hi Nina

Question 1: Templates from templatemonster.com, in my opinion, should be avoided like the plague. Zen Cart mods/addons are designed to work with and enhance Zen Cart functionality - therefore they rely on Zen Cart's core code being intact and functional.

Often times, templates from templatemonster.com are tweaked for design purposes without regard for functionality. In other words, they are all about how Zen Cart looks, rather than how it works. In my opinion, they are only good for Zen Cart shops that are operated "out of the box" with no changes, customizations or addons installed. Even then...they're only good for a time because they don't make use of the override system - meaning that these templates often have changes that will be lost when you update to a new version of Zen Cart.

I can't say whether or not this mod will have problems with your template, but at some point, something you do to Zen Cart - whether it's an upgrade to a new version, a customization that you make, or an addon that you install - at some point, something will you do will probably break your template and/or your cart if you use a template from templatemonster.com.

Recommend you select a template from the Zen Cart template gallery instead. If you can't find one you like, you have two choices. You can either select one that's as close as you like and then learn to modify it to your liking, or pay someone familiar with Zen Cart templates to design one for you. There is an area on the forum where you can request the paid services of others.

I understand the override system sounds scary and overwhelming to those new to Zen Cart, but it is absolutely critical that you learn about and use the override system - otherwise, customizations that you make to your store (including template changes) will be lost when you upgrade to a new version of Zen Cart.

Questions 2: STEP 4: "Upload the entire contents of the includes folder and the images folder to your server, again keeping the file structure intact. (Note: All files make use of the overrides system.)"
I barely know what a "server" is. But I guess this means I should upload the file to my hosts cPanel/Filemanager? If so, shall I upload it to:
/public_html ?
/public_html/includes ?
/public_html/includes/templates ?
/public_html/includes/templates/nameofmyzentemplate ?

The server refers to the computer your hosting company uses to store your website - so yes, you access your server through your cPanel, and yes, your files are located in the Filemanager.

Regarding where to upload the files, that depends on where you installed your Zen Cart. Usually, the file path will be something like this:

If you installed your store on the root of your server as your entire website, it might look like this:

/public_html/YourStoreNameFolder/includes....etc, etc...

or, if you installed your store inside the folder of an existing website on your server, it might look like this:

/public_html/your_website_name/your_store_name_folder/includes...etc, etc...

And when the popup window asks me if I want to replace exciting files I shall press "yes"?

No. You want to make use of the override system instead.

STEP 5: "Open phpMyAdmin for your site and navigate to your database. Choose 'Import' and then 'choose file' and navigate to and select install.sql then choose 'Go'."
Sorry, but I'm clueless where "phpMyAdmin" is, are they referring to the "admin" of the Zen Cart? Or still in my cPanel/Filemanager?

Thank you from the bottom of my heart for help!
Nina

phpMyAdmin can be found in your cPanel. Navigate to your database means to click or double click on your Zen Cart database to open it. Many hosting companies offer tutorials on how to use phpMyAdmin for those unfamiliar with it.

Lastly, you will encounter these same steps with any mod/addon that you choose to install - so I strongly encourage you to learn as much as you can about Zen Cart and the Override System.

Here are some links to get you started:

• Understanding the Override System
• The Override System really simplified
• How do I set up the Template Overrides?
• Overrides Chart

Good luck and happy Zenning

[sigung]

FRENCH TRANSLATION BELOW
A blonde French girl, huh, boy, you are breaking my heart . Okay, here goes. Number one, the previous post cautioning you about template monster is good advice. That being said, I know of an expert programmer and zen cart template designer who has several amazing free templates on her website, and if you ever need any help in future upgrades, she will be able to help you. Her Facebook name is Picaflor Azul, and her website is http://picaflor-azul.com/. If you would like to see one of her templates on a real site, you can see her template "Andover Modern" on my website which is: http://martialartsoutpost.com/. Now on to the help part.

DON'T MAKE ANY CHANGES BEFORE DOING A BACKUP OF YOUR STORE AND DATABASE - INSTRUCTIONS BELOW

If your zen cart is in a sub-directory of the public_html folder, say for example in a folder named "shop" then go directly to the steps below. IF it is installed LOOSE in your public_html directory, download a copy of the zen cart installation you have from the download area on this website to your local hard drive, then extract the contents and put them into a folder and open it in list view, that way you will have a working model showing you exactly which files you need to back up. Then open your cPanel>File manager and navigate to your public_html folder. Create a new folder called shop or store or something. Select ALL of the zen cart files using the previously downloaded files as your model for which files to back up. Once you have them selected, choose the Move command at the top of the screen. Move all of the files into the folder you just created ( public_html/shop ) temporarily just for the purpose of doing the following backup. Once you complete the backup, reverse the process by navigating into the public_html/shop folder, selecting all the files, and moving them back UP to the public_html directory.

BACKUP INSTRUCTIONS

1) Make a backup of your store and database by following these steps ( there are other ways, but I find this to be the quickest and easiest).
a) Log into your cpanel
b) Find "File Manager", open it, and locate the directory ( folder ) your zen cart is installed in
b) Select the entire folder by either clicking on the checkbox to the left of the folder name, or if you have the latest version of cpanel, you will select the folder by clicking on it directly ONE time.
c) In the upper right corner of your screen, you will see that the icon for the word "Compress" is now active
d) Compress your store directory by clicking on this icon and choose the .zip option as it is the most common and accessable, don't worry, it's making a compressed COPY of your store and will leave the original directory intact.
e) When the compression is finished, scroll down and find the compressed file you just created, click on it once, and in the upper left side of you screen, click on "Download" and download it to your computer.
f) Go back to your main cpanel and scroll down until you find an application called "PHPMyAdmin", it should be around 3rd from the bottom; click on it once, and you will be taken to your database (s).
g) Find your zen cart database, it should look something like "_zc1" with something else as the prefix. For example, if your username is nina, it might look like "nina_zc1"
h) Click on the -zc1 portion of it ONCE. A bunch of stuff will pop up in the right side of the window.
i) Look at the tabs at the very top, and locate the one that says "Export". Click on it ONCE, a new window will appear.
j) The default settings in the new window should be showing all the database tables selected, you will see a bunch of table names highlighted dark gray. Make sure the default export format is "SQL"
k) Scroll to the bottom, and check the "Save as file" box, and choose "ZIP" for the compression format
l) On the lower right you will see a button that says "GO" click it once, and this will start your sql database download.

Once you have finished this process, you have successfully backed up your shop and database, and it will not matter if you corrupt the template, since you can always re-upload your original files and start from scratch. I recommend you follow this process every time you make significant changes to your store, as servers have a way of getting corrupted or going out of services at the worst possible moment.

Now on to the upload. IF your zen cart is installed LOOSE in your public_html folder, you will upload all files to that folder. IF it is installed in a sub-folder, say for example "public_html/shop". You will upload all files into that sub-folder.

Making use of the overrides system simply means that all of the files will magically go into their correct folders and sub-folders, adding files where needed, leaving the rest of the files intact, and overwriting existing files that have the same name, so yes, you will need to press "yes" to replace existing files.

Since you did the backup already ( you did didn't you ) you are now familiar with how to get to PHPMyAdmin. Retrace the steps above to get to your zen cart database in PHPMyAdmin, and this time choose the "Import" tab to import the database tables you need for your lightbox.

I'm going to run this post through Google translate to maybe make it easier for you to read. I am also going to do a Camtasia movie of this whole process and post it in a little while so you can actually see the process.

TRANSLATION BELOW

Une jeune fille blonde française, hein, mon garçon, vous brisez mon coeur! D'accord, allons-y. Premièrement, le post précédent vous garde sur Monster modèle est de bons conseils. Cela étant dit, je connais un programmeur expert et concepteur du modèle Zen Cart qui a plusieurs étonnant modèles gratuits sur son site, et si jamais vous avez besoin d'aide dans les futures mises à jour, elle sera en mesure de vous aider. Son nom est Picaflor Facebook Azul, et son site est http://picaflor-azul.com/. Si vous voulez voir un de ses modèles sur un site réel, vous pouvez voir son modèle "Andover moderne" sur mon site qui est: http://martialartsoutpost.com/. Passons maintenant à la partie de l'aide.

NE PAS FAIRE DES CHANGEMENTS AVANT DE FAIRE UNE SAUVEGARDE DE VOTRE MAGASIN ET BASE DE DONNEES - INSTRUCTIONS CI-DESSOUS

Si votre panier zen se trouve dans un sous-répertoire du dossier public_html, disons par exemple dans un dossier nommé "shop", puis aller directement à la procédure ci-dessous. S'il est installé en vrac dans votre répertoire public_html, télécharger une copie de l'installation Zen Cart vous avez de la zone de téléchargement sur ce site sur votre disque dur local, puis extraire le contenu et les mettre dans un dossier et l'ouvrir en mode liste, de cette façon vous aurez un modèle de travail, vous montrant exactement quels fichiers vous avez besoin de sauvegarder. Ensuite, ouvrez votre> cPanel Gestionnaire de fichiers et de naviguer dans votre dossier public_html. Créer un nouveau dossier appelé boutique ou le magasin ou quelque chose. Sélectionnez TOUS les Zen Cart fichiers en utilisant les fichiers téléchargés précédemment en tant que votre modèle pour lequel les fichiers à sauvegarder. Une fois que vous les avez sélectionné, choisissez la commande Déplacer en haut de l'écran. Déplacez tous les fichiers dans le dossier que vous venez de créer (public_html / shop) temporairement seulement pour le but de faire la sauvegarde suivante. Une fois que vous avez terminé la sauvegarde, d'inverser le processus en naviguant dans le dossier magasin public_html /, en sélectionnant tous les fichiers, les déplacer et de retour au répertoire public_html.

INSTRUCTIONS DE SAUVEGARDE

1) Faire une sauvegarde de votre magasin et base de données en suivant ces étapes (il ya d'autres façons, mais je trouve que c'est plus rapide et le plus facile).
a) Connectez-vous à votre cpanel
b) Trouvez "File Manager", ouvrez-le et recherchez le répertoire (dossier) votre panier zen est installé dans
b) Sélectionnez l'intégralité du dossier soit en cliquant sur la case située à gauche du nom du dossier, ou si vous avez la dernière version de cPanel, vous sélectionnez le dossier en cliquant dessus directement UNE fois.
c) Dans le coin supérieur droit de votre écran, vous verrez que l'icône du mot «Compress» est maintenant
d) Compressez vos répertoire de stockage en cliquant sur cette icône et choisissez l'option zip. car il est le plus commun et accessible, ne vous inquiétez pas, cela fait une copie compressée de votre magasin et laisser le répertoire d'origine intact.
e) Lorsque la compression est terminée, faites défiler vers le bas et trouver le fichier compressé que vous venez de créer, cliquez une fois dessus, et dans le coin supérieur gauche de votre écran, cliquez sur "Télécharger" et téléchargez-le sur votre ordinateur.
f) Revenez à votre cpanel principal et défiler vers le bas jusqu'à ce que vous trouverez une application appelée "PhpMyAdmin", il devrait être autour de troisième à partir du bas, cliquez une fois dessus, et vous serez dirigé vers votre base de données (s).
g) Trouver votre base de données Zen Cart, il devrait ressembler à quelque chose comme "_zc1" avec autre chose que le préfixe. Par exemple, si votre nom d'utilisateur est nina, il pourrait ressembler à "nina_zc1"
h) Cliquez sur la partie-ZC1 d'une fois. Un tas de trucs apparaîtra dans la partie droite de la fenêtre.
i) Regardez les onglets tout en haut, et de localiser celui qui dit "Exporter". Cliquez une fois dessus, une nouvelle fenêtre apparaîtra.
j) Les réglages par défaut dans la nouvelle fenêtre devrait apparaître toutes les tables de base de données sélectionnée, vous verrez un tas de noms de table en surbrillance gris foncé. Assurez-vous que le format d'exportation par défaut est "SQL"
k) Faites défiler vers le bas, et cochez la case "Enregistrer en tant que fichier", et choisissez "ZIP" pour le format de compression
l) En bas à droite vous verrez un bouton «GO» cliquez une fois dessus, et cela va commencer votre téléchargement de bases de données SQL.

Lorsque vous avez terminé ce processus, vous avez réussi à sauvegarder votre boutique et base de données, et il ne sera pas grave si vous corrompre le modèle, puisque vous pouvez toujours re-télécharger vos fichiers d'origine et recommencer à zéro. Je vous recommande de suivre ce processus chaque fois que vous apportez des modifications importantes à votre magasin, que les serveurs ont une façon de se sortir corrompu ou des services au pire moment possible.

Passons maintenant à l'upload. Si votre panier zen est installé en vrac dans votre dossier public_html, vous pourrez télécharger tous les fichiers dans ce dossier. S'il est installé dans un sous-dossier, dire par exemple "public_html / shop". Vous pourrez télécharger tous les fichiers dans ce sous-dossier.

À l'aide du système de dérogations signifie simplement que tous les fichiers comme par magie se rendre dans leur dossiers corrects et sous-dossiers, l'ajout de fichiers en cas de besoin, en laissant le reste des fichiers intacts, et écraser les fichiers existants qui ont le même nom, alors oui , vous devrez appuyer sur "oui" pour remplacer des fichiers existants.

Puisque vous n'avez déjà la sauvegarde (vous ne ne vous ai pas ) vous sont maintenant familiers avec la façon de se rendre à PHPMyAdmin. Retracer les étapes ci-dessus pour accéder à votre base de données Zen Cart dans PHPMyAdmin, et cette fois, choisissez "Importer" onglet pour importer les tables de base de données dont vous avez besoin pour votre panier.

[sigung]

Okay, I've made a Camtasia recording of the backup procedure outlined above. You can watch it at:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bc3MGdLHpdY

I'm sure there are other ways to do this, so the rest of you feel free to comment.

In my video, you will see me backing up a lot of files you you probably don't have, that's because I've made so many modifications to my zen cart.

[dw08gm]

Hi all

I discovered that certain error messages returned through faulty customer input are being displayed in zen lightbox format, rather than directly above the page content, where they displayed prior to installing this mod. I have found this mostly occurs when the customer neglects to select a required option on a product page.

Is there an admin switch or code change to restore the pre-installation arrangement.

Thanks in advacne.
[139h localhost setup]

[niestudio]

Hi all

I discovered that certain error messages returned through faulty customer input are being displayed in zen lightbox format, rather than directly above the page content, where they displayed prior to installing this mod. I have found this mostly occurs when the customer neglects to select a required option on a product page.

Is there an admin switch or code change to restore the pre-installation arrangement.

Thanks in advacne.
[139h localhost setup]

can you post a screenshot and/or instructions on how I can re-create the scenario?

daniel

[DarkAngel]

Hello.
English is not my native language and I'm probably not the smartest girl in France, so here are some *blonde* questions...

Question 1: I know this forum does not support purchased templates, but it would be nice to know if Zen Lightbox can mess up my template (from templatemonster.com)? I'm just asking since "overrides" sound so scary...


Questions 2: I do not understand step 4 and step 5 in the Zen Lightbox installation guide (on this site file:///Applications/zen_lightbox-v1.6.2_20110220/readme.html)....

STEP 4: "Upload the entire contents of the includes folder and the images folder to your server, again keeping the file structure intact. (Note: All files make use of the overrides system.)"
I barely know what a "server" is. But I guess this means I should upload the file to my hosts cPanel/Filemanager? If so, shall I upload it to:
/public_html ?
/public_html/includes ?
/public_html/includes/templates ?
/public_html/includes/templates/nameofmyzentemplate ?

And when the popup window asks me if I want to replace exciting files I shall press "yes"?


STEP 5: "Open phpMyAdmin for your site and navigate to your database. Choose 'Import' and then 'choose file' and navigate to and select install.sql then choose 'Go'."
Sorry, but I'm clueless where "phpMyAdmin" is, are they referring to the "admin" of the Zen Cart? Or still in my cPanel/Filemanager?

Thank you from the bottom of my heart for help!
Nina

I have installed this on several bought templates and it was no walk in the park...many problems and if you ask the site that you bought the template from to do it for you is where they make their money...they charge you a lot to do it for you since they have reworked the coding of the original files to suit their purposes.

If possible do get a template from here and add modification to get the features you like from the other one.

You do not rename the zipped items to upload them to your server---they are renamed to make the uploading of the files to the proper places is correct. So no you do not want to click yes or the other files will disappear---a mistake I too did in the beginning.

So even merging the files could give you errors that will be harer to fix.

[Nina_Paris_France]

Thanks you so much for great answers ScriptJunkie, sigung and DarkAngel!! *Free hugs* for you I'm so grateful that you would answer me, I even considered quitting Zen Cart and just stick to ETSY since I'm such a newbie and things are too complicated for me, but it looks brighter now. I'll do the backup and try to install the light-box this evening...

One question I forgot to ask was concerning step 4: "Upload the entire contents of the includes folder and the images folder to your server, again keeping the file structure intact." How can I manage to "keep the file structure intact"? I've unzipped the ZIP in my MAC. When I'm at the File Managers upload page, my pointer won't let me choose the entire "includes" and "images" folds, so shall I create two new folders where my zencart is located in the Filemanager and call the folders "includes" and "images" and then create and name the sub-folders within them and then upload all the files one by one into them in the same place/order they are in the ZIP file?

[ScriptJunkie]

Hi Nina

Many times when I was new to Zen Cart, I felt overwhelmed and like giving up. But thanks to the wonderful people in the Zen Cart community and all the help I got on the forums, I stuck with it. And it is very worth it! I think one day you will feel the same

Regarding uploading....You should NOT have to create new folders, as the folders for Zen Cart are already in place. Creating new folders will only break your cart.

Suggest you download and install a file upload program like FileZilla for Mac. This is a free program that will allow you to upload files while keeping the file structure intact.

Below are links to the instructions on how to configure FileZilla once you have it installed on your Mac. Once you have it configured, you can begin using it to install your files.

Written Instructions
YouTube Video Instructions

The video is probably easier to follow and understand

Good luck & happy Zenning

Thanks you so much for great answers ScriptJunkie, sigung and DarkAngel!! *Free hugs* for you I'm so grateful that you would answer me, I even considered quitting Zen Cart and just stick to ETSY since I'm such a newbie and things are too complicated for me, but it looks brighter now. I'll do the backup and try to install the light-box this evening...

One question I forgot to ask was concerning step 4: "Upload the entire contents of the includes folder and the images folder to your server, again keeping the file structure intact." How can I manage to "keep the file structure intact"? I've unzipped the ZIP in my MAC. When I'm at the File Managers upload page, my pointer won't let me choose the entire "includes" and "images" folds, so shall I create two new folders where my zencart is located in the Filemanager and call the folders "includes" and "images" and then create and name the sub-folders within them and then upload all the files one by one into them in the same place/order they are in the ZIP file?

[DivaVocals]

Suggest you download and install a file upload program like FileZilla for Mac. This is a free program that will allow you to upload files while keeping the file structure intact.

Never knew there was a version of Filezilla for the Mac.. (note to self)

That said wanted to also suggest Cyberduck for FTPing on the Mac. IMHO, it was very close in functionality to Cute FTP for the PC..

http://cyberduck.ch/


Also gonna make a GENERAL suggestion.. It's great that everyone is pitching in ideas, but the support thread for Zen Lightbox is NOT the correct place for providing general information on FTPing, and other general Zen Cart how-tos.. Perhaps this discussion should be moved to a NEW thread as this discussion is a tad off topic at this point..