Daniel wrote:
OpenCart is not beta and not really for end users.
It is a developers tool. Its a starting point for web companies who want a system they can modify to their clients requirments.
I am puzzled by this. To be sure, I think this cart is especially great for developers like myself, because the code is small and clear enough that I was able to learn how to make modifications reasonably fast. It was a great relief to find this after having tried the supposedly wonderful ZenCart, which I found too huge and difficult to modify, terribly slow, with an admin way too complex to use by me let alone an end user and last but not least: Just no fun to work with (as OpenCart is).
But is seems to me that OpenCart is close to being a great product for end users as well. With a few more configuration options in the admin (don't overdo it, keep it clear and clean) and as more store front templates become available as it becomes more popular, I think this will also be an excellent product for end users. Easy to install, great easy clean admin, robust, fast, and again close to having enough features and configuration options to make a great store to satisfy many low-budget end users. If you want real customisation for specific wishes an end user would still have to hire a developer, but that is the case with any cart.
In short: OpenCart is great both as a finished directly usable product for nonprogrammers AND for developers looking for something they can easily customise for a client. I think OpenCart is the best choice for anybody, both developer and end user. With many thanks to Daniel and other core developers.
By the way, as to the many versions coming out, I can see this is a problem for people trying to keep modules, contributions and language packs up to date. And there is a case to me made to have an improved release system, or perhaps work with patches, and with better change logs for nonprogrammers. But I also agree with Qphoria that one should not feel obsessed about always having the latest version. I just finished an OpenCart store for a client, based on version 1.1.8, with custom modifications geared to the particilar client, and I am not likely to update that for years or even forever. When the customer wants a new feature it is typically easier to build that into the old version than to upgrade to the version and re-incorporate all the custom modifications for a particular client. That is always my strategy. Install the latest version of whatever it is you are installing. Then modify it to your customer's needs. And in most cases, never upgrade. And if bugs appear I will simply fix them myself within the version I have.
And for a next client I will again download the latest version, and start from there. I may then also try to incorporate some of my own modifications from the previous version (I try to add clear comments to the code where I make changes, so I can find those pieces of code again later, and possibly incorporate them in a later version).
Of course if you have not added a bunch of your own modifications, upgrading to newer versions of OpenCart will be much easier. But then still, why not decide to upgrade only say once a year, or perhaps only when the first version figure changes, as when 2.x comes out?
Henry