some basic oscommerce questions...

[teamVar]

Hi all,

 

Im looking to setup an ecommerce solution for a clients website, and have looked into different options such as all in ones ecommerce solutions, and different combinations of packages from different specialists.

 

However, im quite interested in setting one up on my own rather than buying a pre-packaged solution. On my searches i came across OSCommerce, but am just a little confused as to exactly what il need to get it all working.

 

Only requirement money wise is that it needs to be able to take credit card AND paypal payments. Features wise i can already see it has whats needed. What do i need to be able to take paypal/credit card payments securely with OSCommerce?

 

Already have:

 

1. Functioning Website.

 

2. Virtual Dedicated Server.

 

What i already know i need ...

 

1. Secure Certificate (Was thinking 1 year SSL123 Certificates from thawte = $99?)

 

2. OSCommerce Download

 

3. What else is there? Considering the payment requirements i gave above?

 

And how does it all work together? Is it easy to setup?

 

Im not a professional programmer/web designer by any means, but have just finished my second year of a computing degree and am on my third website for a client so am not a noob either :huh: :)

 

Thanks to any and all who take the time to respond!! B).

[PD_Steve]

Those payment systems are already included in the installation. You just switch them on from the administrator modules section when ready (and enter the relevant information).

 

With OsCommerce, anything you think you may need is usually easily installed as an additional contribution. I cannot think of anything I have really wanted that I have failed to find.

 

If your planning to make the site look less like the stock install and give it a unique design, then you will need to know about stylesheets, php and html tables as well as the obvious various graphic design packages.

 

There is a relatively steep learning curve from day one, but after you have found out what everything is and what code is controlling what item, it does not take long to get a nice site running.

 

Hope that helped

 

Steve

[PD_Steve]

Oh, you dont actually need to have SSL installed to run OsCommerce. Its advisable of course, but not mandatory.

 

I get my certificates from Geotrust QuickSSL for $79 a year (giving up to 256bit).

 

Technical aspects. So long as your server has the relevant MySQL and PHP versions, there is not much else you need. Some contribs require GD library or Imagemagick installation (autothumbnails) and others use cURL, but apart from that I have not had to install anything else to keep my site running as I want it.

 

Steve

[teamVar]

Thanks so much for your replies guys!! And awesome that i dont need anything else B) .

 

Guess i should get to work then :)