OpenCart: display stock levels in storefront, as numbers or colour icons

As I mentioned here, a military, police and adventure gear store has hired me to set up their online presence and an e-commerce platform for them (not 100%  ready yet, but soon!). I had a tough time finding the adequate solution for their needs, because even though OsCommerce is the typical script used by similar stores in the country, I agree with critics regarding its security issues, complex code architecture and too long delays when releasing updates. So I tested other scripts (Zen Cart, Magento, Prestashop, etc.) but definetly, the one which gave me the best overall impression is OpenCart: fast, simple yet powerful and highly customizable, and above all, very well rated by its reviewers. So that was my choice for the project.

Two weeks ago, I had no idea OpenCart existed; but today I am pleased to post my first humble contribution as new OpenCart’er: a tutorial on how to customise storefront appearance!

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The day CafePress ceased to be appealing

Yesterday was a very sad day. For some, a tragedy. Millions of CafePress shopkeepers were shocked when they read an e-mail from CafePress announcing imminent changes in their policies, mainly concerning the markup scheme of items on sale. I am one of them as well.

Basically, the deal is that shopkeepers – starting June 1st – will no longer have the right to set their own markups on their designs: they must resign themselves to obtain a mere 10% of the sale price in the Marketplace (fixed by CafePress, of course).

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Your own business in the net with CafePress

It is widely known (and understandable) that when someone is receiving dozens of spam e-mails on a daily basis with headers such as “make cash quick”, “win money easily”, etc. and realizes all of them are scams or frauds, in the end he ceases to believe that there are any real opportunities to make money online. The good news are, those real ways exist and are at the grasp of many of us!

Have you ever thought about running your own small business online? Probably not, because this very often involves spending large sums of money for starting it. What if I tell you that for most of us it is possible to run our own legal and legitimate business without spending any money at all, but still making profit? It is just a matter of knowing what, where and how.

Sounds too good to be true? No, I am not telling you a lie. I am not trying to scam you either. Curious? Read on to know what am I talking about.

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