Is there a way to "hide" attributes?

I promise I have looked for the answers but my little eyes can't take looking anymore! I hope one of you genius helpers can help me out. I've actually found a few posts that tried to explain the opposite of what I'd like to achieve, but trying the opposite of those didn't help me.
I am running the latest version of zen. My husband put the template in, but it hasn't affected the admin, as far as I can tell.
1 - List order: I'm wanting to show the newest products first, but no matter what I do, they list alphabetically. How can I use the date added to show newest products first?
2 - Add to cart: I would like to have the little box that you enter the amount, and the add to cart at the bottom of the listing page. Somehow, one of my products is doing this, but even though I am trying to do everything exactly the same on the other products, they won't show it. This is simply because when I am offering a whole category of freebies, I think customers should be able to click "add to cart" on that listing page, without having to check out each individual product page. While I am at it, is there a way to make the default amount to enter in the little box "1"? Right now the one that works shows "0".

If you need me to explain more what I need, please ask. I can sometimes send mixed signals.

Thanks so much!!

Oh you can see here the one product that is doing what I want: http://life-scrappers.com/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=32

God bless,
Jenn

As regards your second question...

The minute you apply attributes to a product, the "more info..." link will appear on the product listing. This is because the customer has to make specific choices to that specific product before it can be added to the cart.

I suppose what you are asking is this:

Is it possible to display the attributes in the product listing page, so that the selections can be made there, and the add to cart quantity box therefore shows up.

Short answer: In a standard install, no.

There may be a way to custom code this, but it will be quite complicated... Just thinking about it suggests to me that it will not be easily possible becuase of the way attributes are handled with product associations in the database...

(I may be wrong, and perhaps a GURU would offer a different prognosis).

fairestcape:

As regards your second question...

The minute you apply attributes to a product, the "more info..." link will appear on the product listing. This is because the customer has to make specific choices to that specific product before it can be added to the cart.

I suppose what you are asking is this:

Is it possible to display the attributes in the product listing page, so that the selections can be made there, and the add to cart quantity box therefore shows up.

Short answer: In a standard install, no.

There may be a way to custom code this, but it will be quite complicated... Just thinking about it suggests to me that it will not be easily possible becuase of the way attributes are handled with product associations in the database...

(I may be wrong, and perhaps a GURU would offer a different prognosis).

See, I didn't explain myself LOL.
I'm not talking about attributes...These products have no attributes. They are free downloads. Did you click on the link I submitted? The very first freebie is showing up the way I want it to, with the little "add" and box that you can put the amount you want in...

I'm still correct...

I clicked on one of the "more info..." links on the page you refer to above, and got to the following product:

http://life-scrappers.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=32&products_id=59

This product has an ATTRIBUTE associated with it.

(as do all the others where the "more info..." link appears.

How do I know there's an attribute attached... ?

It says:

Please Choose:

Then a radio button is default selected...

These are attributes, plain and simple.

Oh My I feel very foolish. I knew I had to be missing something - I forgot the download on that certain freebie.
OK so if there are attributes (including download links) it's not possible to give a customer the option to NOT view more info?

lifescrappers:

Oh My I feel very foolish.

... we are all learning things. No foolishness is involved when we learn...

lifescrappers:

OK so if there are attributes (including download links) it's not possible to give a customer the option to NOT view more info?

In a product listing page, when there are additional selections a customer must make to configuring their product choice, the "more info..." link will appear, in order for the customer to move to that product info more exclusively. At the product info page level, these additional choices are displayed, as they are unique to that product. The customer then configures his choices, and the product can then be added to the cart.

You may like to re-consider if some of these products need "additional choice" parameters - particularly when there is only one choice anyway - ie: you've set only ONE attribute that is selected by default. This is superfluous and unnecessary. Consider removing these attributes. When/if you do remove them, the "more info..." link will disappear, and the add to cart box will show in the product listing pages.

Taking away the actual download links is not an option, but listing them on the detail page isn't necessary...So is there a way to turn that off?

And I still would really like to know how to make the product list in order of date added, not alphabetically.

I asked two questions in the "admin" section, and found out one of my questions was moot, since I had something set wrong.
BUT now I need to know, is there a way to "hide" attributes that the customer really doesn't need to see (it's actually the number of downloaded files they will be getting, when they purchase a digital scrapbooking kit) so that the "more info" doesn't show up in the product listing?
I have the newest version of zen, and my site is http://life-scrappers.com, just in case...
Thanks so much.

Does anyone have any info on this? I would really like for my customers to purchase items on a page listing, without going to each individual product page. Since I have attributes listed (the download links available on the particular kit) I have "more info" showing up instead of "add now". I want there to be the option to see more info, of course, but I'd like for people who KNOW what the more info is already to just add to cart.
If someone wants to "buy" all freebies in the free samples section, they have to go to individual product pages, add to cart, go back and do the next thing. As a customer, I know, this is HIGHLY annoying. Even more annoying is when I, as the store owner, need to get 10 orders by one person, all freebies, because they found it easier to do that than go back in the first place.
Please someone have pity on me and tell me if this is possible.
Thanks! :)

It is possible, but not by default, some coding will involve.

My husband can do most code jobs...can you point us in the right direction, or lay it out for us?
Thanks so much!

HOORAY!!!!!!!!!!!! thanks - i needed this!!! off to try it.

it worked for what i needed!!! thanks again!!!

ok i spoke too soon - details aren't showing up on my product page now! :(

i could really use some help.

I was extremely excited when I found this thread: http://www.zen-cart.com/forum/showthread.php?t=142161 and followed the directions as well as I could, only to find when I clicked on the product page, there was no description any longer, and no way to add the product to the cart on the product page. This is not helpful to me at all, because I am offering people digital scrapbooking supplies, and often they need to read the whole description before purchasing. However I would love to give them the option of just adding a bunch of items on one page at one time, without having to read the description if they don't want.
So what can I do to get the best of both worlds?
Thanks.

still wanting this, if anyone can help.

so i KNOW this is possible...please just point me into the right page so my husband can look at it!

lifescrappers,
Posting elsewhere that it didn't' work for you isn't going to solve anything.
First you posted saying it worked fine.
Then you recanted and said it didn't.
Then you bumped asking for help.
But at no time did you share a URL or add any additional information to help figure out what you did wrong.

It's likely that you've not updated one or more of the files properly, including your override files. But, that's just a guess because you've given nothing to go on.
It may also be a conflict with one or more addons or customizations you've made to your site which are incompatible with these changes.

dr byte,
i promise i was not trying to hijack or be rude at all when i commented on rich's post. i did try what you said and THOUGHT it worked (if you'll check all three of my replies in that thread were made within an hour of each other - so saying i "recanted" something doesn't really fit. i'd thought it worked, because when i was on the listing page, the add to cart area showed up. but when i went to the product page itself, no listings showed up at all, and i was unable to add the product to cart on the page. which kind of defeats the purpose - i want people to be able to add to cart on the listings page AND add to cart on the product page, as well as see all the details about the product (we sell digital scrapbooking kits on our site). there's no way i could have linked to the problem, because i have had not much help over here with things, and can't leave my site like that just waiting around for help that might not come. so i put it back the way it was within an hour of asking for help with no reply.
i am very frustrated that i have been wanting something like this for nearly a year, and still am coming up with nothing. i just looked up my previous posts about it. you can view them to see if you need more to go on.
http://www.zen-cart.com/forum/showthread.php?t=117551
http://www.zen-cart.com/forum/showthread.php?t=117645
http://www.zen-cart.com/forum/showthread.php?p=669937#post669937
http://www.zen-cart.com/forum/showthread.php?t=142997