Scully:
could you please explain to me:
I can make some educated guesses, but not much more than that.
Scully:
when I've downloaded every file,
It is possible that one or more files simply didn't get downloaded. This could be due to insufficient file or folder permissions, or something simply went astray during the download. Unless you did a file comparision this would be quite easy to miss.
Scully:
done text searches for the old site name using three different text editors,
I'm not even going to take a guess at this one. However, when seeking for particular text that could be found in any one of a number of files, a text editor wouldn't be my 1st tool of choice. I'd be using something like 'find' (on *nix). Offhand I don't know what the equivilent program would be for Windows, or Mac, or any other operating system.
For your benefit though, the way I 'solved' your problem was to look to see where the similar text was defined on my own system, and the tool I used for this was the Developers Toolkit, which is a part of the ZenCart installation. It is a very handy tool for this kind of thing. It doesn't allow you to edit the files it finds, but it does a great job at searching through the files and even the database to help locate where things can be found.
Well worth spending a few minutes having a 'play'. The fact that you can't edit files with this tool also means you can't accidently modify (and therefore, break) anything either.
Scully:
found (I thought) every instance of the old site name, re-upoaded all the files (the entire cart, not just a few files here or there), still had the same error, repeated the entire process two more times,
If the file that needed to be changed didn't get d/loaded due to file permissions, then it also wouldn't have been replaced when you re-uploaded, so the same 'old' definitions would still exist.
FWIW, this is a 'trick' that some hackers do when they compromise a site. They'll set the permissions of thier 'back door' programs so they can't be downloaded or modified, so that when the victim tries to recover, unless they explicity remove these files by some other means, they'll still be in place even after the site has been restored from a backup.
Scully:
then manually reviewed EVERY SINGLE screen in the Admin section multiple times...
Although neither of us knew what the cause or the solution was at the time, it turns out that since the issue had nothing to do with anything in the admin section then it stands to reason that no matter how many times you checked and reviewed this, there was nothing to be found amiss anyway.
Scully:
yes, I was pretty darned sure I'd checked everything.
I am also sure that you were sure. There is no disputing this. However, it doesn't change the fact that regardless of the cause or the reasons, this one relevent file escaped your attention.
If I was as sure that you really had checked everything I wouldn't have even bothered looking into where I thought you should be looking. As such you should be thankful that I tend to be very cynical when people make these claims :smile:
Scully:
/includes/languages/english/meta_tags.php was exactly what I was looking for,
I do advise that now that you have identified this as the relevent file that you should make a copy of it and place it into your 'custom' folder before making changes. This way you won't need to re-edit it when you next do a zencart update.
Where possible, all changes of this nature should be placed into your custom folder(s). It is always well worth the effort (although, until you are familiar with the way zencart deals with these folders it can be a little confusing as to why you'll have two near identical files, with the same name, in different folders).
Scully:
and now the problem (which I've been fighting for two days--I don't ask for help until I've exhausted every other thing I can think of, because I hate looking like an idiot! LOL)
This is where I often have a great advantage of many others... It doesn't bother me if I do or say something that makes me look like an idiot. :D. I consider it just another way of getting to learn something I didn't know before.
Besides, hasn't it often been said that the only foolish question is the one that isn't asked? Same thing really. :)
Scully:
is finally resolved.
At the end of the day, this is all that really matters. If you, I, or someone else can learn something from the experience then so much the better.
Scully:
THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!
You're welcome. I appreciate the extra experience it has given me, so we both 'win' :)
Scully:
And I'd really like to know why it happened, so that I know how to get around it next time...assuming there is a next time, which I fervently hope there is not!!
WHY it happened is still not really known. I've merely presented a few of the possibilities.
To solve similar issues in the future, the Developer Toolkit is your friend.
To avoid having to search for it in the future (eg, after a zencart update) make use of the override system (the custom/template folders).
Cheers
Rod
ps. It is a pleasure discussing this kind of thing with people such as yourself that is not only after a solution, but willing to understand & learn the reasons behind them. It saddens me deeply when people are only interested in the solution itself and have no wish to actually learn anything from the experience. Thanks.
