Shopping cart timeout

[AlanQ]

Whilst testing my new installation, I added some items to my (Guest) shopping cart.

 

Some minutes later I clicked on 'Cart Contents' and got

"your shopping cart is empty!".

 

1) Why does it do this?

2) Can I make shopping stay in the cart indefinitely?

 

I've seen this problem before with sites where I was trying to shop.

It annoyed me so much I left and never went back.

I don't want to lose potential customers.

 

Thanks

Al

[abra123cadabra]

It's the length of a session. If you don't click for this length of time the cart empties. You could set another value but if the user leaves the computer without closing the browser, his session is still there and the next person would continue with the filled cart of someone else.

 

abra

[AlanQ]

Thanks abra

 

...if the user leaves the computer without closing the browser, his session is still there and the next person would continue with the filled cart of someone else.

Understood.

 

In December 2003, moonstone wrote:

...the timeout setting should be in catalog/includes/functions/sessions.php.

 

Try searching for the following lines at about lines 13 -16:

 

if (STORE_SESSIONS == 'mysql') {

if (!$SESS_LIFE = get_cfg_var('session.gc_maxlifetime')) {

$SESS_LIFE = 1440;

}

 

Changing the $SESS_LIFE to a larger value should gives you a longer login session.

Is moonstone correct?

Does 1440 give a session length of 24 minutes?

Is it safe and correct to just change this value?

Would you agree that indefinitely long sessions and an empty-cart button would be a better way?

 

Cheers

Al

[abra123cadabra]

Yes, 1440 seconds are 24 minutes and yes, you can change that value to something else.

 

Very good question though... Let's put it that way. A customer is in your shop and browses around, puts stuff in the cart etc. While he keeps clicking, fine. Not sure if this is the original setting. I found some other setting in admin that recreates the session. So maybe that keeps the session alive after the 24 mins? Anyway. As long as the customer is active, no problem. Only when he does nothing at all for 24 mins, the session is gone and the cart is emptied. How often does this happen? He's doing the shopping during his working time and has to pause because he has to do some work he's paid for... Hm. His employer would agree with the sessions being terminated.

 

Honestly, only in cases when the customer interrupts his shopping spree for something else, that's where the session termination kicks in. Either your shop doesn't make him "stick" and finish the purchase or he is too sidetracked anyway. In that case it happens to him with other shops too and he probably got used to it already.

 

I don't think extending the session time is a good thing as it has the afore mentioned risks.

 

abra

[AlanQ]

Yes, 1440 seconds are 24 minutes and yes, you can change that value to something else.

Good.

 

I found some other setting in admin that recreates the session. So maybe that keeps the session alive after the 24 mins?

Think that might be admin>configuration>sessions>recreate session.

According to some, it's not compatible with users on AOL.

So for most sites it's pretty much redundant.

 

Honestly, only in cases when the customer interrupts his shopping spree for something else, that's where the session termination kicks in. Either your shop doesn't make him "stick" and finish the purchase or he is too sidetracked anyway. In that case it happens to him with other shops too and he probably got used to it already.

It's happened to me many times. And I never get used to it! It just p****s me off!

Most new customers, and even returning customers, will fill a guest cart _before_ creating an account or logging on.

 

I don't think extending the session time is a good thing as it has the afore mentioned risks.

I'm not convinced that the issues you mention are actually risks.

I don't care if someone sees the content of my cart.

Session times of 24hrs plus an empty-guest-cart button would, I think, solve the whole problem.

 

Thanks for your replies, abra. At least now I understand what's going on and why.

Until there's a better way, I guess I'll just have to put a warning on the front page.

 

Cheers

Al

[Gil_e_n]

Perhaps I'm missing something obvious, but why don't you just change $SESS_LIFE = 1440; to $SESS_LIFE = 86400; That's 24 hours and certainly long enough to give anyone time to come back to their cart.

[abra123cadabra]

Sure, extending the session time helps. Not sure if new customers who accidentally take over someone elses session (ie internet cafe) like it. I had this experience yesterday when I did a bit of research and followed a link from a search engine to find the cart filled with goods worth 500 something euro... I don't want to empty it. I would prefer an empty one.

 

And yes, it happens to me a lot too but as I said, I got used to it and if I really pay attention to what I'm doing, I don't loose the session.

 

abra

[AlanQ]

A tangible-world example may help:

 

Scenario 1:

You enter a store, take an empty cart, and fill it with goods.

It takes you half an hour searching and choosing.

Then you meet someone you haven't seen for a long time.

You stand chatting.

24 minutes after last touching your cart, one of the staff in the shop empties it.

You finish your conversation and turn around to find half an hour's effort has been wasted.

To say that you would be a little irritated would, I think, be putting it mildly.

 

Scenario 2:

You enter a store.

Unusually, the only cart available is one that contains goods and has been abandoned.

But it has a magic button which, when pushed, empties the cart.

You go about your shopping secure in the knowledge that, however long you take, no-one will interfere with it.

 

Assuming all else to be equal, one of these stores will be the more successful.

Discuss.

 

Al :)

[abra123cadabra]

Nice way to put it. But I think it only works well in a real shop where you see first thing that your cart is full...

 

In my shop I reduced the shopping cart box to only show the number of items, the shipping weight and the current subtotal. It's visible but certainly not the first focus point for the customer.

 

Let's assume he doesn't realise the cart is filled already. He starts to shop, putting the first item in the cart and gets redirected to see his shopping cart and lo and behold, there are already 15 different items in it. And because my shopping cart has only magic buttons to remove each item seperately he has to click 15 times to get rid of the prefilled unwanted things. I don't want to have a button to unload the whole cart. You don't want your customer in the supermarket at the corner to turn over his full basket and dump all that is in there, do you?

 

So I ask my customer to click 15 times before he can continue with his shopping? What if he doesn't realise immediately that the cart is filled. He continues to put things in the cart and in the end he maybe doesn't remember which he put in and which where there already....

 

Any way you choose is going to annoy your customer. The one who likes to chat and the one who wants to do his shopping as fast as possible. As I mentioned earlier, it put me off the time it happened to me.

 

abra