osCommerce Tips

In my last post I had discovered Magento ecommerce.

In the months since then I have become more and more enamoured with it.

It is now my opinion that osCommerce is dead in the water, even if v3 does ever get released.

That means my focus will be switching.

I have already started skinning my own Magento themes, one of which is on show here. Bear in mind it is still work in progress.

It is quite a departure from the default Magento theme, with cleaner lines and the clutter eliminated.

Magento is scheduled to be released within the next few days (before 31st March), and I for one can’t wait.

Earlier this week I discovered Magento.

And I have to say, I wish I had discovered it sooner.

Magento is an open source e-commerce platform that aims to become the new standard for online shops.

Although still in Beta, version 1.0 is due out in the next few months (March 2008). It has already had over 100,000 downloads and the Magento community is growing fast.

Continue reading ‘Magento is coming. Is it time for osCommerce to retire?’

Are you an osCommerce template designer or developer? Just completed an amazing store design from a client? Then publicise it and yourself right here!

There are many talented osCommerce designers out there, and OSCT wants to hear from you.

Simply post the details or your work in the comments section below, and let others marvel.

Whether you have designed hundreds of osCommerce stores, or only one, it doesn’t matter.

So bring on the awesome graphics and jaw-dropping designs I know you’re dying to show off.

One of the biggest mistakes online shops make is not displaying a telephone number, or hiding it away on the contact page.

If you plan to make more sales and jump ahead of the competition, make one simple change today.

Continue reading ‘Why A Telephone Number Might Be Damaging Your Store’s Potential’

If you have read my previous posts about Leapfrog, you will know that I am quite keen on Flex.

Flex is a new programming language by Adobe, developed to convince the world that Flash is not just about cartoons and animation.

It’s aimed at serious developers who want to harness the ubiquitous nature of the Flash Player, installed on over 98% of internet enabled desktops in mature markets (Abobe.com, 2006), and create powerful internet applications with beautiful interfaces.

This article ponders about the idea of creating an osCommerce store in Flex.

Continue reading ‘Musing About Flex and osCommerce - A Step Backwards or Leap Forwards?’

Whilst working on my Power Pack, I discovered two limitations of the osCommerce install process.

The default osCommerce package comes complete with a SQL file containing all the tables and sample data needed to populate a database. This file can be found at catalog/includes/install/oscommerce.sql.

I wanted to add extra SQL commands that were needed by my contributions into this file, so the installation process would do everthing.

This way anyone installing my osCommerce Power Pack would not need to perform additional tasks having been through the default install process (great for new users who aren’t all that technically savvy).

Having added my commands to the end of oscommerce.sql, I proceeded through the default install process only to find some of my commands were not being executed.

Hmm…

Continue reading ‘2 Caveats To Be Aware of When Creating Your Own osCommerce Package’

You know you’ve been using osCommerce too long when:

1. You have the osCommerce support forum as your home page
2. You’re thinking chmod 777 when trying to unlock your front door
3. You know how to say ‘Welcome Guest! Would you like to log yourself in?’ in English, German and Spanish
4. Any mention of SSL sends shivers down your spine
5. You have nightmares about padlock symbols
6. You never want to see ‘There’s Something About Mary’ or ‘A Bug’s Life’ every again
7. You can relate to all of the above!

And seven of my favourites from the osCommerce forums:

1. You begin signing your name prefixed with tep_ (by custodian)
2. You feel a sense of urgency when you have difficulty accessing forums.oscommerce.com (by custodian)
3. Your osCommerce store can do more things than eBay, even though you only have 10 things in your entire product listings (by custodian)
4. You download every contribution just in case you might need it one day (by Java Roasters)
5. You refer to your day planner as configure.php and your spouse as application_top (on a good day) (by GraphicsGuy)
6. Your children are “includes” (by GraphicsGuy)
7. You have a dog named footer.php (by GraphicsGuy)

Got some more? Submit your own in the comments section.

What’s a sure-fire way to improve your osCommerce store and generate more sales?

There are over 3,800 contributions listed on the offical osCommerce site, every single one designed to enhanced your store’s functionality and features. Imagine how much more successful your business could be if you installed only a handful of these.

But you’re busy. You don’t have the time to trawl through and decided which ones are good, and which ones are just plain bad. What you need is a no-nonsense list of must have contributions. Contributions that no savvy store owner would be caught dead without.

So, here are 3 top contributions you really should install if you are serious about selling online and generating more sales.

Continue reading ‘3 Contributions Every osCommerce Store Owner Should Install’

Why are there over 125,000 members on the official osCommerce forum?

Chances are if you’re reading this you want to start selling online. But which software solution should you chose?

Over the years thousands of people have realised that osCommerce is the correct e-commerce solution for them, and successfully make money with their stores.

So here’s all the information you need to decide whether osCommerce is the software that will make your online business dreams a reality.

Continue reading ‘Everything You Ought to Know About osCommerce as an E-Commerce Solution’