Shopping Cart recommendations

[Solaron]

I have been checking out shopping carts that will take credit cards, paypal and have inventory control plus order tracking, shipping etc. Who has the best? I am leaning towards a product called ASPDOTNETSTORE 3.1 Is there anyone using this and can offer good/negative comments on this product? Also if there are better carts out there than the ASP platform. I see alot of PHP and CGI carts. Which platform might be taking the current shopping carts into the future?

Thanks,

Peter

[Corey Bryant]

I won't get into the PHP / ASP debate. Some developers prefer PHP while some prefer ASP. And then you also bring in .NET :)

It first depends on what you are selling. I have not used the ASP.NET Store myself - we usually use ASP. Most of the carts we build are to our customer's specs.

Make sure that you can change some of the coding on the pre-made carts. Some will not allow you. Another one you might take a look at is www.vpasp.com

[brandblast]

Solaron,

All the features you described are available from osCommerce Shooping Cart, it has thousands of users and huge development community, it is PHP based.

It will take credit cards, paypal and have inventory control plus order tracking, shipping etc.

For more information on osCommerce go to http://brandblast.com/web-hosting/ho...ping-cart.html or http://oscommerce.com

[121merchantaccount]

I like the Miva Shopping cart as it offers multiple payment processing options, multiple tax options, multiple shipping options, multiple categories, sub categories, multiple stores, point and click image uploading, searchable data base, and has a world of modules to add on as your business grows.

(mod edit: no self-promotion, please) just visit Miva.com.

I'm not just hyping this cart. I use it my self.

Good luck.

[Aleppo]

MIVA is an excellent shopping cart

[brandblast]

Miva is indeed a good shopping cart...with a hefty license price attached to it, it's fine when some hosts give it away for free, but there's always a possibility you will eventually get hit with some type of licensing fee, that's the reason why osCommerce is a better choice, it's free and you can move it from host to host so you're not bound to any one service provider. In addition, osCommerce has the same exact features mentioned above as Miva, really a win win situation for anyone looking into e-commerce.

[Marc Bowker]

I'm looking for an easy-to-use, all-in-one ecommerce package for someone with very basic html skills. I checked out oscommerce and, frankly, I felt lost. I need something that can handle 300+ inventory items, works in conjunction with a .csv database, has flexible shipping & payment options, and looks good. Oh yeah, and it can't be too pricey. I'm currently using Microsoft's bcentral shopping cart option. Any suggestions?

[Corey Bryant]

I'm looking for an easy-to-use, all-in-one ecommerce package for someone with very basic html skills. I checked out oscommerce and, frankly, I felt lost. I need something that can handle 300+ inventory items, works in conjunction with a .csv database, has flexible shipping & payment options, and looks good. Oh yeah, and it can't be too pricey. I'm currently using Microsoft's bcentral shopping cart option. Any suggestions?

Are you wanting a hosting solution possibly? You can check out www.linkpointcart.com for one. Or did you want an ASP if you are on a windows server? I do have a basic cart in ASP if you are interested (free).

[Marc Bowker]

Corey,

I'm happy with my current host. I know that I'm going to sound like a complete moron here, but what is ASP? Is it like HTML? Can I use Frontpage or Dreamweaver with it?

[Corey Bryant]

ASP is one language to basically speak with a database, usually MS Access. It is ran on a Windows server. You also have PHP, usually to speak with an MySQL database & usually ran on a Linux server. You might check with your hosting company to see what they can offer if you are not familiar at all with it or consider a hosted solution with an e-commerce company. And when I say this, I mean the shopping cart would only be hosted there not your web site.

[ursulab2]

I just want to throw in my comments about OScommerce. IT'S THE BEST SHOPPING CART I'VE EVER USED!!! Ok... I love oscommerce. I refer it to everyone I know. Not only does it come with many many features, there are literally hundreds of add-ons for it. And who can beat the price? It's FREE. If you haven't used OScommerce before I'd give it a shot. I have used many many shopping carts in my years as a web designer specializing in ecommerce solutions. Nothing really touches OS in my opinion.

Good Luck to you!

[Blooming]

I use candypress and couldn't be happier--Great product and price and the support is handle via a board and responded to within hours. Might be worth a look . . .

[TheWebDoctor(tm)]

(mod edit: no self-promotion, please)

I'm writing a book on shopping carts, due out in September '04. Yes, osCommerce will be discussed. Designers like it because it doesn't take them long to import their simple designs. As for site owners attempting to manage their stores, the system is not recommended by me on my radio show.

Yes, there are many developers that contribute to the osCommerce system, but there is a lack of support. I've only found two sites that actually offer support for the system. osCommerce is a package that many people have put their fingers into and typically, if something isn't working right you have to find the person that developed that piece.

I realize the osCommerce fans will disagree, but I'm not here to argue. Let's just agree to disagree. The person asked for opinions and I gave mine just as you gave yours. Respect that and don't flame.

I hope this helps site owners determine what they want to use and not get led into a system where support is lacking.

[Lee Dev of PSC e-c for m2]

Lee Roberts
Has the date of adding more info into your book closed?
I would like the opportunity to talk to about the next generations of shopping carts that allows via web service to do automatic bids in portals for not only catalog parts but also made to specification parts. I have the stand alone for m2specs available today with details at www.psc4.biz. I will be soon be release the portal with web services at www.quotes4.biz .

[shersleather]

Try http://www.AgoraCart.com. It's Free!

Sher

[attitudenz]

Given his response I am not sure how carefully the WebDoctor has looked at osCommerce. True to his prediction I will disagree - I think this may be useful for someone seriously looking at osCommerce.

Originally Posted by TheWebDoctor(tm)

Designers like it because it doesn't take them long to import their simple designs. As for site owners attempting to manage their stores, the system is not recommended by me on my radio show.

In relation to modifying how the cart looks I would say designers don't like it. Since PHP and HTML markup are side by side in the main application files, a developer without knowledge of PHP will get lost pretty quick. A template driven system would be more useful for someone like this. This is supposedly on the way with osCommerce 2.2MS3. If you or your developer are comfortable with PHP you should have no problems changing how the site looks. Just be prepared for a decent amount of time if the design you are implementing is complicated.

Originally Posted by TheWebDoctor(tm)

Yes, there are many developers that contribute to the osCommerce system, but there is a lack of support. I've only found two sites that actually offer support for the system. osCommerce is a package that many people have put their fingers into and typically, if something isn't working right you have to find the person that developed that piece.

This is partly innacurate. One of the complaints about osCommerce is how the small group of core developers regulate changes to the code - some say it is not an open enough open source project. "If something isn't working right" typically the bug will be identified quickly and fixed. In my opinion the Milestone releases of osCommerce are stable and have been tested and reliably used on a huge numbers of sites.

If you are installing contributions/modifications, this is a potential problem as there are not the same testing of code and bug tracking that is in place with the core code.

The support issue, is not as serious as the documentation issue. Free support is available in the osCommerce forums. Getting a good response there relies on a clearly stating your problem and showing you have done some research first. Paid support is a google search or forum post away. As a siteowner you often have to prepared to dig to find out what a particular configuration setting does, as the documentation and FAQ's out there don't always explain everything in a simple way.

[brucet]

Your choice should be guided not just by the features you need, but also by your level of technical expertise, your budget and how you want to pay, and how much control you want to retain.

OSCommerce is free and very flexible, but it takes a lot of technical knowledge to set up. Being open source, if you need any support you are reliant on the goodwill of other users who read and post on their forum. Miva is also good, and the entry cost is low; the down side is that you are tied to them for the life of your store, you pay a montly rental, and it has to be hosted on one of their servers.

If you buy a packaged desktop solution, the up-front cost will be higher, but the ongoing costs will be lower. You should be able host it whereever you choose, and easily relocate it you have any problems with the hosting. It will also be fully supported.

If this is the kind of approach you are looking for, you have a number of options. If you search on Google for 'ecommerce software', I'm sure you will find something that will do what you want.

[barneyp]

Hi Solaron,

Just to throw another software into the mix. I have been using EROL for the last two years and I have found it the most flexible piece of software I ever laid my fingers on.

You build your store offline (it is fully functional offline as well as online) and then the job of publishing to the web and managing your orders is all done by EROL. It doesn't use PHP or ASP, just good HTML, very search engine friendly and easy to host.

The web address for these guys is www.erolonline.co.uk.

Barney

[Corey Bryant]

Actually for LinkPoint cart, you do not change your hosts. Another place, check out www.mals-e.com. They are based in Europe. I do not know if that might pose a problem for you.

[dark one]

Originally Posted by Solaron

I have been checking out shopping carts that will take credit cards, paypal and have inventory control plus order tracking, shipping etc. Who has the best? I am leaning towards a product called ASPDOTNETSTORE 3.1 Is there anyone using this and can offer good/negative comments on this product? Also if there are better carts out there than the ASP platform. I see alot of PHP and CGI carts. Which platform might be taking the current shopping carts into the future?

Thanks,

Peter

i consider php is most of now and the future. every day i see it becoming more popular.
i've built several ecommerce project with http://x-cart.com/ . every time it was a success. and they have even more than you need.
not objective am i? yes. it's a goot addition in your "to look at" list anyway.

have a look and tell me what you think.

[tabletpcs.net]

Hello,
I’m looking for an e-commerce solution for B2B. Something like a regular store but it should be easier to place large orders. Instead showing the items with the pictures I want just a list of products and only if you want the client could go to a more detailed page of that product.
It should also support user accounts and different level of discounts for different type of customers that in our case are other businesses reselling our products.
Is anything like that out there?

Thank you

[Corey Bryant]

What language are you looking for PHP or ASP? You might check out osCommerce & its contributions out if it is PHP. For ASP, it would be pretty easy to customize a cart for you.