Free Software Linux

Magento 1.1 was released last week.  Magento is an open source ecommerce platform (shopping cart).  Several weeks ago, I discussed some of the expected features in Magento 1.1.  Be sure to check out the original announcement for more details on Magento 1.1. Advertisement: read more

Creating a successful e-commerce experience can be tricky. Making it engaging can be downright challenging. Keeping up with the evolving web skills and demands of online customers often means upgrading technology and making sites more interactive -- but at what cost? And who's time? And for what? Having a better understanding of how to execute a strategic approach to an engaging e-commerce experience is the key.

Kentico has released a new version of it's web content management system. This new 3.1 version combines the power of e-commerce directly with content management. Something very few CMS vendors consider doing... or do they?

The new version of Kentico CMS enables rapid development of on-line stores. It comes with new E-commerce starter site and step-by-step guide for ASP.NET developers. The revamped E-commerce module now supports:

• Product and inventory management
• Shopping cart
• Customizable checkout process
• PayPal, Authorize.NET and custom payment gateways
• Product options and configuration (e.g. t-shirt sizes and colors)
• Wish list
• Configurable taxes, shipping and discounts
• Multiple currencies
• Easy integration into web site through built-in web parts
• Sales reports

 ... and other great features. Download a free trial at http://www.kentico.com/ecommerce.aspx  Advertisement: read more

Roy Rubin over at Magento discussed what we can expect in the upcoming Magento 1.1.  On top of that list are performance improvements with as much as a 40% improvement in the catalog and sales modules.  Enhancements and new to Magento 1.1 will also include:

The release of Ubercart 1.0 was announced earlier today.  Ubercart is an open source e-commerce package (shopping cart) that fully integrates your online store with the open source CMS, Drupal.  We've been watching Ubercart for some time and like some of the look-and-feel it borrows from osCommerce. Some of the features in Ubercart 1.0 as reported by their shopping cart's Website include:

If you're running a company that depends on eCommerce, you're probably familiar with the hassles of working in a commodity dependent businesses where margins are tight, prices volatile, and product supply unpredictable. UK software developer Intoscape has come to the rescue with Total Commerce Management (TCM), a system that will help UK retailers manage their supply chain, monitor competitors, automate pricing and content and optimize procurement and data exchange.

Webdistortion, a web design studio in Northern Ireland, recently reviewed nine different e-commerce platforms. All nine platforms reviewed were open source software packages. With e-commerce webdesign really starting to take off, its never been more important to choose a platform which suits you as a developer (i.e. one that you can support) and one that will provide your clients with the features that they need to run a successful online shop. There are a number of ways of getting a shop online, and we’ve focused primarily on open source e-commerce platforms here.

Selling Online with Drupal e-Commerce is a new book from Packt which will help users to sell online using the award-winning open-source Drupal web application. Written by Michael Peacock, this book provides the essentials of getting an e-commerce website up and running with Drupal. Drupal is a free and open-source modular web application framework and content management system (CMS) written in PHP that can run in many environments; including Windows, Mac OS X, Linux, and FreeBSD. Drupal e-Commerce is a free, open-source, feature-rich, flexible package of modules that seamlessly adds full e-Store capabilities to Drupal. read more

Last week marked the official release of Magento 1.0, an open source ecommerce platform. Magento has been on my radar scope for some time thanks to those who have left comments about it here. Since, I likely will have need of a good shopping cart this year for a planned project, I've decided to put some focus on Magento. I will be removing Mambo from my top 30 "CMS Focus" list to make room for Magento. My apologies to Mambo fans.