quick and easy ecommerce

[Scientifik]

Hey guys, I'm in the process of starting an ecommerce site, just traditional people buy something over the web and we box it and ship it to them so it doesn't have to support downloads or anything.
A few requirements:

• I'm trying to to keep my cost down, so anything pretty cheap or open source would be great.
• A pretty customizable front end interface that way it at least it doesn't look like I just installed some software.
• Support paypal web payments pro (not a must but would make it easier for me to add it manually)
• A strong admin panel helps keep me organized and able to process orders efficiently.

Any input helps a ton.

[bootNumlock]

i like candypress for cheap and easy ($50 i think)
- 1 file to mod for the look of the entire store
- paypal support (not sure about pro however)
- latest version has a nice admin panel
- support for metatags per custom created page (through the admin)
- one click reports for common tasks
- asp MSSQL solution

for $50, you really can't come close to it with anything else in my opinion.

[soky]

I'll have to agree with bootNumlock. I have some experience with version 2.5 and found it to be quite flexible. (It's completely ASP so if you're not familiar with it, modifications will be difficult.) They have a very active online community as well.

The current version is 3.4.1.12 - I have just downloaded it but am having a heck of a time finding my license. Which reminds me, I used the app prior to the sale of CandyPress.

If you are familiar with ASP and MSSql then this is an affordable pick. A really cool benefit to this application is the fact the front end is "free" and you can take a look under the hood before buying the back end (US$ 59.99).

I was approached just yesterday about an eCommerce site and CandyPress came to mind.

[generic]

be careful, the current verson has a few bugs, read tyhe forums first. I am not upgrading from 3.3 to the latest verison quite yet.

Apparently they forgot about a few variables and there are a few mispellings in the code....

and then there is always osCommerce which is free. and just about equal to candy press but it would be for a unix account.

[generic]

Originally Posted by soky

am having a heck of a time finding my license.

I dont think they have put in any license check. Last I knew you could just use another number you had used before or even just make one up (until you find your current one of course).

[Silverbug]

ohhh theres a new version? i should really sign up to the mailing list

[stanj]

Originally Posted by generic

and then there is always osCommerce which is free. and just about equal to candy press but it would be for a unix account.

It works fine on Windows accounts also, at least the way Vortech equips their servers. We are running oSCommerce and it works well, with a very fast support network. The biggest problem is that custom layouts are more involved and difficult to get it looking the way you want. There are a lot of low cost or free theme packages however.
Additionally, there are many hundreds of mods available.
$59 for Candypress should not be an impediment for anyone actually selling anything, that is a lot of program for the cost of the profits from 1 or 2 sales of whatever you are selling. They would sell more packages if they changed the name I am willing to bet.
Nothing out there will exactly what you want so there will be some tinkering time, for me it was creating a pdf ticket generator for events. Would Candypress do that? I would switch if it could and it was solid. I am more comfortable with PhP than ASP however.
Stan
Where we are having a balmy winter in St Petersburg Russia

[Silverbug]

Would Candypress do that? I would switch if it could and it was solid.

Im sure something could be made to do it, currently thought it doesnt.

[generic]

Yea, I really like candy press, although they make so many changes, by the time I finish customizing one site, im on a new version again so I rarely get to use any of my custom stuff more than once.

If you can do asp, you can do almost anyting the client wants in candy press, all the code is visible.

I just finished doing a language switch mod like ocSommerce's with the flags rather than the dropdown.

Also tossed in a "logout button", WHich candypress forgot to do on the main cart pages.

Version 3 is real nice though, adding in custom pages is a snap from the admin section now. Also has an excel spreadsheet inport tool, have not used it yet, still do that manually on my computer and then upload database.

Works seamlessly with authorize.net too.

[TonyK]

If you want to use osCommerce get the osCMax v2.0 is actually osCommerce MS2 but with many other add-ons, it is easier to activate an add-on then install one, check this site for more info :http://oscdox.com/name-News-article-sid-18.html

[Scientifik]

candypress seems interesting, does anyone know if candypress or osCommerce supports different versions of the same product? For example: itemx comes in Red, Blue, and Black with different prices for each. Anyone ever done something like that with either of these?

Also I'm a bit torn on candypress running asp classic as opposed to .NET vs. osCommerce just running straight php4

[bootNumlock]

we use candypress on http://www.mydaddyscheesecake.com. they have 6 inch and 9 inch versions of their cheesecakes, each with a different price.

Works just fine -- products with options logic.

[Silverbug]

Hmm actually i have a client who uses their cart and has had some trouble with the options. we had to write a quick hack one day to fit their situation.
http://www.trelisecooperstore.com/store/

Basically what was happening was that they sell t-shirts and each design has a range of colours and sizes. the options however dont allow you to turn off a particular colour and size combination, if they go out of stock for example. So all they could do is turn off the entire colour or entire size for a given design. was a real pain really.

Also my other gripe with CP is that they (same client) are just about to put another range of products up on the site and each size option has a different sku. Which CP doesnt handle.

Otherwise it works great. Ive written many sites using it and have never really had any trouble adding mods for it

Nice site btw Boot.

[bootNumlock]

there is a mod for custom option quantity issues... we use it at www.chicagorush.com for their t-shirts.

silverbug -- thanks man... we just did a crazy ipod promo for them that ended just before christmas.. it got picked up by a sweepstakes site and POW -- hits were up in the 1,000s per day and some of those people actually converted to orders -- it was unbelievable

[Silverbug]

thats pretty neat.

you dont remeber where to get that mod from do you?