Product Description problem....

[sobeman]

This seems like a really odd issue, any product that I have a blank product description for, the add to cart option disappears. My products don't really have descriptions as they are self-explanatory. Does Zen-Cart REQUIRE a description in order for it to be a purchasable item?

Any help would be appreciated.

[gjh42]

No, a description would not be required. A link tp see your site will let us offer ideas on what might be the problem.

[sobeman]

Sorry for the late response,was out yesterday.

no description, no add to cart option

http://ashleygalleryinc.com/index.ph...roducts_id=113

has description and add to cart option

http://ashleygalleryinc.com/index.ph...products_id=87

[schoolboy]

You are using (it seems) a commercial (templatemonster) template.

These are known to have often hacked out core ZC functionality...

This is very common, and the forum is full of tearful posts from people who can't understand:

1. Why their sites don't behave,
2. Why helpers on the forum are at a loss as to suggest a solution.

What happens if you switch the store back to CLASSIC template?

[sobeman]

Yea it seems that it is the custom template that is causing the issue. Anyway to narrow down where I need to look to fix the problem?

[schoolboy]

Yea it seems that it is the custom template that is causing the issue. Anyway to narrow down where I need to look to fix the problem?

Your first port of call is then the vendor of the template...

The difficulty we (on this forum) will have here is TIME... I certainly don't have 5 free hours to unpick the TM code to see where it has been hacked...

[sobeman]

I certainly did not expect anyone to spend a large amount of time to help me fix this issue. I simply was wondering if maybe someone had encountered this issue before as I know there is a number of people who use template-monster templates. I will contact them for support. Thanks for the help.

[schoolboy]

I apologise for sounding a bit abrupt - that is not my intention...

TM has a notorious reputation for taking customers' cash and then leaving them to flounder about...

I hear many instances of people who go back to TM, only to be told by them to come to THIS forum for support!

I have (in the past) made many attempts for clients who initially bought these products, to fix them and it is NOT simple...

Even for someone relatively skilled at php, and who has knowledge of the ZC schema, the process requires a FULL analysis and file comparison of the TM files and core files. Then one has to assess why the edits were made, how/if/where they are inter-related, and then what to do to restore functionality without affecting design intentions.

It is complex and time-consuming, and very seldom is it just "one little code alteration"... Most of the time, these TM files are so heavily hacked and modified, that the code bears little resemblance to core zc code.

These days I usually recommend to clients (who have initially installed TM) to cut their losses and re-design the site on a fully ZC-compliant template... It's cheaper and better for all future functional reliability.

[sobeman]

I am beginning to see why, my employer purchased this without my knowledge so it was not my first choice. I guess I will just have to try my best to make it work. Thanks for the assistance.