After years of trying to find a shopping cart system that is already running I have come to the conclusion that a custom cart is probally what I need. Some items that I need include the following: SEO friendly url's such as somedoman.com/categoryname/product.html Froogle auto feed Authorize.net payment integration PayPal payment integration Other manual payment options such as COD, Money order and Check Multiple shipping options at bare minimum, more advanced features below Fairly easy to edit design Ability to add extra non shopping cart links Customer support built in Full credit card information saved via ssl admin access, would like this deleted though automatically after a set amount of time. Ability to add non housed items, such as external affiliate products directly into the shopping cart system. So if someone clicks buy they travel via new window to the third party site. A few absolutely necessary items are above, this list however may grow and is only an example of what we need Add ons we would also like include, Multiple pictures per item Possibility of having certain items deleted from multiple versions of the script through one admin section. Gift codes or coupons UPS, USPS shipping integration. Wish List These are only a few of the 'must haves' and wishes we would like to have in the script. If you are a custom programmer at the moment I'm looking for possible contacts. Please PM with details of coding you've done, if at all possible a cart similiar to what I'm requesting. Possibly a rough estimate of the cost for the initial creation and also a rough cost for support and or upgrades down the road.
OS commerce or whatever it's called? Didn't realy like it, I've tried it. Some of the above is only a partial list, I'm going to have to dig up more of my needs If it is based off of osc I wouldn't mind, but still need someone to implement the changes I need. So I guess either full custom coding, or a hack of an already supported product would suffice ---edit not that I didn't like OS commerce at all, just didn't fit my needs out of the box. I have actually sent requests to people offering custom coding of OS commerce and a few other programs, and so far noone has responded to them, making me think the custom coded might be the best solution.
The main problem with revising and customizing an already existing platform is that when that company releases updates that have features you may want, bug fixes, etc. you generally will not be able to simply download and apply the update. Doing so will most likely overwrite custom programming that has been put in place. Keep in mind that after customizing a product to a certain extent that every modification, bug fix, etc. found in the future will have to be handled by a custom programmer as well, and you will no longer be able to apply updates released by the original vendor. You host on a Microsoft server?
Isn't it the same with a custom coded cart? And what if the programmer you have build your custom cart disappears? Do what you want! I just think it's easier to go with something that is widely supported and already tested/proven.
It is definitely the same. Just a point that 90% of my client's do not realize when they hire me to customize existing products, which is why I brought it up. As far as the programmer disappearing, whether he customized an existing solution, or created his own, you're in the same boat as long as you have the source code in your hands. Just time to find another development company.
So make sure that the site is coded using standard languages and that it is also nicely commented/documented.
If you running a small website and dont want to invest a lot of money on buying a shopping cart then download QuickCart here. http://opensolution.org/download/ Easy to Install easy to configure. Multy language suppot. you can add your own language just editing one file. Easy to add plug-in. Easy to add any payment processors like PayPal, StormPay, E-gold etc.
I already bought multiple copies of another cart, I will check out the solution you listed though as I am looking for another ecom option for other sites I own...