Here's why you should not run OpenCart in Joomla

While OpenCart is getting more popular, many have been trying to integrate OpenCart into Joomla as they're much more familiar with Joomla. However, here's a few reasons why you shouldn't:

1. Running OpenCart independently would definitely be much faster and look better
2. If you run OpenCart within Joomla, you do not get as much support from the community
3. Extensions you get for your OpenCart store would usually not work right out of the box without modifications
4. Extension developers might not give you support priority when you run heavily modified OpenCart within Joomla
5. You pay more for a software to put OpenCart within Joomla, while OpenCart is free by itself
6. You usually don't use Joomla's features after putting OpenCart in
7. It's much easier to customise OpenCart itself, than having it within Joomla. It's like having a container in a container

So for those that are thinking of having OpenCart in Joomla, think twice Don't get an AceShop, JooCart, or MijoShop out of impulse or because you know Joomla more. Try running OpenCart independently, enjoy!

Extension developers should also start considering charging more for supporting extensions within MijoShop etc. Thoughts?

Perfect summary.
Nothing else to say.

8. Joomla is a turd with weird extensions and an ever-shrinking userbase (writing is on the wall).

And i agree about devs charging more for mods installed into non-standard OC realms. Purchase a mod and if you want it to work with any PortedNoobyBrokenShop you can pay the starting dev rate $80/hr USD to integrate.

So should developers start charging more for supporting OpenCart in Joomla?

MarketInSG wrote:So should developers start charging more for supporting OpenCart in Joomla?

Not really, only if MijoShop (or one of the other desrivates like AceShop, etc.) is used.

That's what we're hoping for. Charge an additional cost for supporting extensions within MijoShop / Aceshop / Joocart etc.

However, just looking at how many developers are on for this move before we proceed.

Then I would say: let's get back to Virtuemart.
As a designer I'd like to work with a major open source ecommerce solution like OpenCart. But that just it an ecommerce solution where as Joomla is a major CMS with a lot of options to extend it. That is what I need at the moment.
Now I'm also not entirely satisfied with Mijoshop, AceShop or what else. But for most people it is sufficient.

Virtuemart on the other hand is a native Joomla component. So maybe it is best to stick with that if you want an ecommerce solution in Joomla.

I have been struggling with getting an implementation of OpenCart running properly within a Joomla install using JooCart. And no, it's not working properly, apparently the thing can't see/find the image directories. And yes, all the advice I hear of MY GOD STOP YOU FOOL DON'T DO IT...

But I have the situation I have with my clients. Unless someone has some insights on getting the bastard to work. I have recommended that they run OpenCart and Joomla in separate directories, and just link between the two. So how might I run them in parallel and have users easily navigate from the main site to the e-commerce section in as seamless a manner as possible? Ideally, we should be able to let users access their shopping cart from links in the main site. What my clients want is users should feel they aren't kicked from the site to a separate site (when they are) when they should want to buy something.

Any and all advice is appreciated.

IMHO - you should use a platform for it's intended use. If you want to use Joomla along side OpenCart have a programmer integrate the themes.

Here is an example of a website that I integrated the OpenCart theme directly into Wordpress:

Here is the OpenCart Site: https://www.westcoasthgs.com/
And here is the Wordpress Site: https://www.westcoasthgs.com/education/

Notice how the Wordpress header and footer retains the OpenCart header and footer (including a fully functioning cart).

I'll eventually release the code on how to Integrate Opencart -> Wordpress. I won't release it as a plugin since it requires a few steps to install (And supporting it would be a headache). - instead I'm going to write an installation blog (if I ever get my website done!). If you're interested in right away just PM me or contact me corey (at) wishmedia.ca

All in all, my point being - you don't need to only have 1 CMS. There are other alternatives if you think outside of the box .

@wishmedia
While viewing on Android tablet, I got this:

Notice: Undefined variable: detect in /home/wchgs/public_html/education/wp-content/themes/westcoasthydroponicgardenshop/opencart.php on line 131

Warning: Cannot modify header information - headers already sent by (output started at /home/wchgs/public_html/education/wp-content/themes/westcoasthydroponicgardenshop/opencart.php:131) in /home/wchgs/public_html/education/wp-content/themes/westcoasthydroponicgardenshop/opencart.php on line 142

Warning: Cannot modify header information - headers already sent by (output started at /home/wchgs/public_html/education/wp-content/themes/westcoasthydroponicgardenshop/opencart.php:131) in /home/wchgs/public_html/system/library/currency.php on line 45
=====================
I've created dozens of Joomlas, WPs and OCs over the past years. I wouldn't recommend running two apps together, personally. Update headaches, Single sign on, etc...
Especially if you just need a blog with your shop, there are good native OC solutions for this already and the rest is just waiting to be written

artcore wrote:@wishmedia
While viewing on Android tablet, I got this:

Notice: Undefined variable: detect in /home/wchgs/public_html/education/wp-content/themes/westcoasthydroponicgardenshop/opencart.php on line 131

Warning: Cannot modify header information - headers already sent by (output started at /home/wchgs/public_html/education/wp-content/themes/westcoasthydroponicgardenshop/opencart.php:131) in /home/wchgs/public_html/education/wp-content/themes/westcoasthydroponicgardenshop/opencart.php on line 142

Warning: Cannot modify header information - headers already sent by (output started at /home/wchgs/public_html/education/wp-content/themes/westcoasthydroponicgardenshop/opencart.php:131) in /home/wchgs/public_html/system/library/currency.php on line 45
=====================
I've created dozens of Joomlas, WPs and OCs over the past years. I wouldn't recommend running two apps together, personally. Update headaches, Single sign on, etc...
Especially if you just need a blog with your shop, there are good native OC solutions for this already and the rest is just waiting to be written

Good catch - I never noticed that before, it should be fixed now (It seemed to only appear on a mobile device if you went to the blog BEFORE the home page).

Honestly, the only downside I see to having two systems is having the two logins. No OC solution will offer the same power as a tailored Wordpress website - what about customizing the wysiwyg editor so it looks exactly like the front-end? Easy enough to do in a Wordpress theme.

Also, the point about "updates" is really a null factor, All this does is initialize OpenCart and call the header / footer controller. The index.php file has not really changed at all between 1.x and 2.x

Anyways - I guess it's personal preference. From my experience trying to use a platform for something other than what it's built for typically has its own problems & headaches.

The error is gone! Maybe a bit of padding for the content, the text and buttons are hitting the screen edges. At least on Firefox Android

I've done a few mixed apps, mostly WordPress + WHMCS and not just footer/header. It works well, but ...it's just not elegant.
I much prefer a native app or using an API to cross the realms.

I do agree with WP being very powerful. And everything you ever needed has been made in some form already. In OC I find myself writing apps that are already available and very mature in WP, but I'm stubborn

I know this topic is old... however I thought I'd add something.
After developing hundreds of sites in Joomla and Mijoshop over the past 10 years... I think I'm now ready to make the split.
Here's why.
I'm no longer developing for commercial clients... rather I'm now developing sites in house for an online retailer/manufacturer and hence I can now have full control.
This is where Joomla/Mijoshop has always had the advantage... blogging, selling stuff, menu structure etc. OpenCart only does one thing well... and that's sell stuff.
The thing that is moving me towards having a shop.yourdomain.com situation where I will just have an OpenCart install... is the trouble I'm having using OC mods in MijoShop. When MijoShop first started (AceShop)... it was simply a bridge... and OC remained unchanged... this has become less and less as the MS dev has moved to creating his own ecommerce platform (nothing wrong with that).
My frustration comes as the lack of support from the OC developers when it comes to MijoShop.

However... here's what makes me a little scared.

SEF URL's seem to be completely flawed in OC... there does not appear to be any consideration to canonical requests... where a product displayed from a module on the home-page (featured for example), then ends up with a URL that does not represent the true path... this does not happen in Joomla or MijoShop, so I'd love some thoughts on this.

Also... the menu/nav system in OC is completely non-existent... I don't mind hand coding... but for goodness sakes it's 2016 already! To think that the only method of creating a menu system would be from the categories... is way too simplistic for me.

My main stumbling block... is have I wasted the past 7 years working on and improving my Opencart/Mijoshop skills... and should I have been working on another platform. Is OC going to survive?

I've always been very impressed with the level of professionalism from many OC mod developers and this is what does give me confidence.

So... I'm one of the most prolific MijoShop developers in Australia and I think I'm just about ready to jump to OC and hence create "split shops"... Joomla for CMS (site content, blogs, contact etc) and OpenCart for the shop.yourdomain

I've built many many many MijoShop sites many of which are hugely successful and running well and making money... I would dispute this comment from the OP "Running OpenCart independently would definitely be much faster and look better"... that's complete nonsense.
Anyway, that's my thoughts.

Yeah, this topic is a bit outdated, but some people might get wrong impression from it. Since I develop extensions for 4 platforms (Joomla, OpenCart, IPS Community Suite and WordPress), I can clarify a couple moments in this topic.

MarketInSG wrote:1. Running OpenCart independently would definitely be much faster and look better

Absolutely not true. Joomla have incomparably better templates and their're thousands of them. Yes, OpenCart has many templates as well, but they mostly just reworked default theme or badly coded. Yet, I agree about speed: Joomla-OpenCart bridge is quite slow.

MarketInSG wrote:3. Extensions you get for your OpenCart store would usually not work right out of the box without modifications

Most extensions will work out of the box. Well, at least they worked for me. Even if they don't, usually the developers of Joomla-OpenCart bridge will help you. A very, very small changes are usually required to make OC extension work in Joomla bridge.

MarketInSG wrote:4. Extension developers might not give you support priority when you run heavily modified OpenCart within Joomla

Extension developers might not give you support priority when you run heavily modified OpenCart. Period.

MarketInSG wrote:6. You usually don't use Joomla's features after putting OpenCart in

This one is quite the opposite. I've been using AceShop/MijoShop for quite a while exactly because Joomla has soooooooooooo much more features like better menu, additional modules and tons of other stuff. You can't even imagine, how many additional options Joomla-OpenCart bridge has.

MarketInSG wrote:7. It's much easier to customise OpenCart itself, than having it within Joomla. It's like having a container in a container

Depends on what exactly you want to customize. VQMod works absolutely he same way, CSS files work the same way. As for the rest, like I said above, you have MORE options in Joomla-OpenCart bridge.

In the end I stopped using Joomla-OpenCart bridges myself because of loading speed. OpenCart itself is indeed much faster, than the bridge and this is a pretty important quality for today. I wouldn't use Joomla-OpenCart bridge myself, but I also wouldn't criticize it in such an unprofessional manner.

Dhaupin wrote:8. Joomla is a turd with weird extensions and an ever-shrinking userbase (writing is on the wall).

Yeah, you definitely a pro Joomla developer. No doubts.

normdouglas wrote:I've built many many many MijoShop sites many of which are hugely successful and running well and making money... I would dispute this comment from the OP "Running OpenCart independently would definitely be much faster and look better"... that's complete nonsense.
Anyway, that's my thoughts.

I absolutely agree about SEF, menus and everything you said positive about Joomla-OpenCart bridge. Yet I personally don't like AceShop/Mijoshop. Both components are badly coded. At least, they were back in the day. Things might have changed since than, but something tells me, that they shouldn't.

MijoSoft was banned from Joomla Extension's Directory for fake reviews - this is also a bad sign. They don't pay developers in time on their MarketPlace - bad again. And most frustrating part, MijoShop is still OpenCart no matter what they say, but with mobile app and tons more additional stuff. I give them a credit for their devotion, but they're extremely obnoxious in my opinion and too possessed with the idea to become One and Only.

In the end it all depends on your task. If you want to have all-in-one system with blogging, commenting and shit, then Joomla-OpenCart bridge is the best. It basically has unlimited capabilities. But if you want to unwrap a fully functioning store and do it fast - forget about bridge, install pure OpenCart.

Just a note for anyone else commenting here, MijoShop / MijoSoft / MiwiSoft or however they keep rebranding themselves, there are banned on the OpenCart marketplace as well for purchasing extensions from other developers then selling it as their own.

Putting opencart into joomla (e.g. container into a container) is just going to mess things up in terms of speed if you're going to run a professional online store...unless you have a team ready to perform lots of customisations and optimisations.

MarketInSG wrote:Just a note for anyone else commenting here, MijoShop / MijoSoft / MiwiSoft or however they keep rebranding themselves, there are banned on the OpenCart marketplace as well for purchasing extensions from other developers then selling it as their own.

It looks like they're banned everywhere. Probably, this is why the constantly change their names - to have less association with the previous deeds.

MarketInSG wrote:Putting opencart into joomla (e.g. container into a container) is just going to mess things up in terms of speed if you're going to run a professional online store...unless you have a team ready to perform lots of customisations and optimisations.

Optimization won't help you at all, Joomla itself is not the fastest framework in the world. But not because it's badly coded, not at all. In my opinion it is one of the well-thought frameworks with tons of options. So no matter what you do, Joomla-OpenCart bridge will work slower than pure OpenCart.

Hi. My opinion :

1. Running OpenCart independently would definitely be much faster and look better

A little bit faster, OK, maybe, but it doesn't mean too slow. "Look better", globally, no : you have much more Joomla templates than for Opencart, and the Mijoshop or Joocart use the Joomla style for the modules. It's only the product details that need a few custom CSS, sometimes.

2. If you run OpenCart within Joomla, you do not get as much support from the community

Maybe, for some questions. But you have a much faster and professionnel help from the editor of the Opencart integration in Joomla (previouly mentioned).

3. Extensions you get for your OpenCart store would usually not work right out of the box without modifications

Most of them work on Mijoshop, and all of them on Joocart.

4. Extension developers might not give you support priority when you run heavily modified OpenCart within Joomla

As I said : no heavy modification. I just remember a small modification needed in Mijoshop for a payment plugin (Payzen). The editor, Payzen, made it freely.

5. You pay more for a software to put OpenCart within Joomla, while OpenCart is free by itself

The cost is nothing, compared with the service you have, absolutely necessary for professionnal websites. You can't leave a professionnal site with a problem or closed for several days, or weeks, waiting for an answer in a forum. And several paid Opencart extensions are useless in Joomla, because you use the Joomla extensions (SEO, backup, security, galleries ....).

6. You usually don't use Joomla's features after putting OpenCart in

I know very well Joomla, and I can tell you I use a lot of functions in Joomla with Opencart "inside". There is 10 times more extensions for Joomla for a lot of functions (and much more sofisticated) : slideshows, galleries, blogs, forms (for quotes for ex.), forums, editor (JCE), sheduled backups, SEO, security ... and thousands of other extensions to make your e-commerce website much more interesting, secure, and optimised for Google.

7. It's much easier to customise OpenCart itself, than having it within Joomla. It's like having a container in a container

It's always easier to customise the components you know the best. That's why I use Opencart in Joomla : I have all the possibilities of Joomla (and with all the extensions I already paid) + all Opencart.
If you know better Opencart than Joomla, for e-commerce sites, you're right : for most projects, you should use Opencart, and just install all the extensions you need, if you don't want functions needing Joomla.
Sometimes, there is another reason to use Mijoshop or Joocart : you create a site with Joomla for a client, only to present the company, the services, the products, and a few months or years later, he wants to sell his products in line. As you don't want to re-start another site, and as you can't have the same style and so many and nice functions for the presentation of the company in Opencart, you just add Opencart in the site.

This is not a fight to be for or against Opencart in Joomla. It's just my experience of this subject.