Progress Towards 1.5.0

Can't wait.... I have been begging for a loyalty program feature for a long time. Great job Daniel.

Any chance we get also get something like buy one get one free or at a discount?

Thanks

I'm new and maybe don't have a lot of credibility built up yet, but my $0.03:

1) I run a huge community forum and have learned the hard way it is impossible to please all people all the time. A project will die or thrive based on the decisions and choices made by the leaders of the project concerning who to listen to and when, and which features to implement and which to say, "thanks for the idea, but maybe that's better as a mod"

2) I discussed my move to opencart and am still super impressed (as discussed here: http://forum.opencart.com/viewtopic.php ... 318#p81318) My only concern is about potential security. Nobody likes to be hacked or have security problems, but I think we can all agree that most are probably even more sensitive about this when it comes to shopping cart scripts. You can have all the cool features in the world, but once you are known for having a script that is, can be hacked... you'll have a hard time building back lost credibility and trust.

3) There are a ton of features I'm sure we'd all like to have and see. Two that I think are most important:
a) Easy upgrades and updates. Wordpress is now my favorite CMS because they do a fantastic job at making upgrades easy peasy.
b) Notifications in the admin panel (as suggested earlier) saying: You're running version xxx.yyy. There is a new version xxx.xxx. Please update here <link>.

4) Keep the community here engaged and sticky. One of the main reasons I installed and love this script is because of Qphoria's tonality, demeanor, and participation in this forum. If Qphoria bailed it would be a blow to this community (eggs in one basket). If this script and community had a bunch of other support members / contributors like Qphoria, it would blow every other e-commerce script out of the water within a year. Trust me, I know what makes for a robust and growing community.

Keep up the good work everybody!

Is there a particular security problem that you are worried about? As of 1.4.8 I do not know of any even remotely possible security vulnerabilities. Well that's not true there's the one where if you ignore the warning that you need to delete your install folder someone can deface your site, but that will be addressed in the next version and is a non issue if people simply follow instructions.

Fortunately, no security issues that I'm aware of, and I'm hoping it will always be that way sinceI'm gong full stock into this script!

I really want this script to succeed for 3 reasons:

1) I want to keep using it
2) I've told all my friends to check it out and want to be a hero
3) I want to keep using it and not have to sweat about anything

OutSourcedMyLife.com wrote:(...)

3) There are a ton of features I'm sure we'd all like to have and see. Two that I think are most important:
a) Easy upgrades and updates. Wordpress is now my favorite CMS because they do a fantastic job at making upgrades easy peasy.
b) Notifications in the admin panel (as suggested earlier) saying: You're running version xxx.yyy. There is a new version xxx.xxx. Please update here <link>.

Keep up the good work everybody!

Totally agree!
I'm running v. 1.4.7 from the beginnig and, although v.1.4.8b is out, I didn't have the 'courage' to perform the upgrade because I don't feel confortable with the process yet. And I sure I'm not the only one.
My 1.4.7 store is stable, I put quite a lot of work to put everything as I liked; I did a complete translation to my main language (portuguese), etc... So, as I'm not an expert when it comes to databases, php language and so one and everything I know (which is little) I learned by myself, I rather stick to 1.4.7 for the time being, at least until I feel more comfortable.

Well the process from 1.4.7 to 1.4.8 is extremely simplified. My upgrade script works better than I thought in its infancy and with the exception of the minor weight_class for multiple languages issue.. there are no issues with it.

That's not to say there isn't tons of work that needs to be done to make the process easier. I agree an automatic upgrade process from within the backend is needed. And my own discussions and ideas on the topic as far as methods to support mod install and file edits have been bounced around and fallen to the back burner. It is pretty much up to me I guess to blaze the trail so I will have to get back in gear. I've taken a much needed break since the release of 1.4.8b but its time to get back on track and working full steam again on some of the important usability features.

I fall into the category (as I'm sure many do... especially those that have modded their scripts) of: "If it ain't broke, don't fix it!"

For example: I'd venture to say that most users, especially with modifications, wouldn't upgrade to a new version unless:

1) It has a KILLER feature that they absolutely MUST have
2) It has a significant security bug that has been fixed

Another scenario that I ran into last week: I downloaded a mod for opencart that I was REALLY excited to try out. After opening the install instructions I saw a ton of code tweaks and db changes. My response: "FORGET IT!" The last thing I want to do is start hacking stuff to find out that when I try to install an upgrade to the core that it fails miserably.

I've had the above experience with my forum software: "Hey, this is a cool mod, I'll add it". Then after 10 mods a new "critical bug fix" release is announced to the core, and guess what: the upgrade script doesn't work. So there I sit for 10 hours dinking around trying to get my forum software to the point that I can upgrade... what a pain!

So, since I'm not a programmer, I don't know the answer. Some systems have "plugins" that you can install / uninstall with a click <cough>wordpress<cough> but from what I understand, all the hooks, etc. are a lot of work. All in all, it just means that the users make tradeoff decisions. For me, I've decided to keep opencart almost 100% "out of the box"... even with the theme, because I want my life to be easy as the "critical upgrades" are released.

Xsecrets wrote:Well that's not true there's the one where if you ignore the warning that you need to delete your install folder someone can deface your site, but that will be addressed in the next version and is a non issue if people simply follow instructions.

In this case there's another one security issue I know... where is the warning not to set "123456" as database pass?

Qphoria wrote:Stable and 1.5.0 are not words that go together. 1.4.9 will be the "stable" build and then 1.5.0 will be a mess of redesign and new features. It probably won't be stable till around 1.5.2ish Go with 1.4.8b and 1.4.9 will be only bug fixes on top of that.

In my opinion the most important thing is the stability. I agree with Twiggy and Skipper. At least 1 of 3 releases should be the version with no extra features just bugs fixed. The most important question for me for now is when can we expect 1.4.9?

PS.
Thank you Daniel and Qphoria for really good job.

Maaris wrote:

Xsecrets wrote:Well that's not true there's the one where if you ignore the warning that you need to delete your install folder someone can deface your site, but that will be addressed in the next version and is a non issue if people simply follow instructions.

In this case there's another one security issue I know... where is the warning not to set "123456" as database pass?

well now that wouldn't be an OpenCart issue. That would be a message your host would need to put in their database creation process

Rob wrote:

Qphoria wrote:Stable and 1.5.0 are not words that go together. 1.4.9 will be the "stable" build and then 1.5.0 will be a mess of redesign and new features. It probably won't be stable till around 1.5.2ish Go with 1.4.8b and 1.4.9 will be only bug fixes on top of that.

In my opinion the most important thing is the stability. I agree with Twiggy and Skipper. At least 1 of 3 releases should be the version with no extra features just bugs fixed..

That is what we try to do, but it is a very "ideal" way. On paper, yes, no new big features should be added, and that is what I am trying to do with 1.4.9. 99% bug fixes. The only "new features" are going to be tiny things like adding a new setting for the default state of the "subtract stock" setting so that you don't need to change it for each product if you never plan on subtracting or always plan on subtracting.

i2Paq wrote:Redmine looks good, never heard of it before but seeing what features they have it could be useful.
That is, if "we" all commit on using it.
So no 2 or more places to report Bugs etc.

Would you consider using talented coders from our own community?

Funny, when I suggested this concept of voting on features (numerous times), I was shot down by every man and his dog.

Skipper wrote:Who needs new bugs every 2-3 months? My customers would fire me right away.

Simple: Only upgrade your stores annually. Let OpenCart be developed/improved as quickly as possible in the meantime.

Qphoria wrote:The only "new features" are going to be tiny things like adding a new setting for the default state of the "subtract stock" setting so that you don't need to change it for each product if you never plan on subtracting or always plan on subtracting.

I think this concept should be applied across the board via a "Product defaults" page with every product option on it. That would save loads of time when adding new products, especially if there was ever a mass product upload feature implemented.

Additionally the "Product defaults" page could include checkboxes to determine which fields are mandatory (some fields, of course, would not be configurable).

furiousweebee wrote:

Qphoria wrote:The only "new features" are going to be tiny things like adding a new setting for the default state of the "subtract stock" setting so that you don't need to change it for each product if you never plan on subtracting or always plan on subtracting.

I think this concept should be applied across the board via a "Product defaults" page with every product option on it. That would save loads of time when adding new products, especially if there was ever a mass product upload feature implemented.

Additionally the "Product defaults" page could include checkboxes to determine which fields are mandatory (some fields, of course, would not be configurable).

You took the thoughts right out of my head. I too thought about having a "defaults" tab in the settings.. but really don't want to have to match 90% of the fields and then each time we add a new field to the product page, I have to add a "default" to the system settings page.

So then I thouht maybe a checkbox at the end that defines it as the "default" for future products. Then its all in one place. It should likely be in a new table called "product_defaults" or maybe just "system_defaults" so that product settings, download settings, etc can all have their defaults in one table.

So its good to see we are thinking alike... i think

Sounds like a great idea to me

Qphoria wrote:You took the thoughts right out of my head. I too thought about having a "defaults" tab in the settings.. but really don't want to have to match 90% of the fields and then each time we add a new field to the product page, I have to add a "default" to the system settings page.

So then I thouht maybe a checkbox at the end that defines it as the "default" for future products. Then its all in one place. It should likely be in a new table called "product_defaults" or maybe just "system_defaults" so that product settings, download settings, etc can all have their defaults in one table.

What if the "Defaults" page was populated by the product fields already stored in the database? i.e. add an extra column to each current product setting called "default" and then save the value in there? Then the "Defaults" page would simply extract the default value of that field?

I don't think the above will make sense to anyone but me, but I gave it a shot

Skipper wrote:Seriously, I have been very excited when I discovered OC, but the release frequency really cooled me down. That is too say, for my taste there are far too many releases. One release per year with reliable fixes is what my typical customer needs. The business side is adventure enough, why add software adventure?
Back to X-Cart. Cheers!

Bye and don't forget to shut the door on your way out.
I don't recall being told that Thou "must" upgrade
I am still on 0.7.9 and I have no complaints about the many releases since.
It's very easy, just don't upgrade rather than complaining that others are getting new things.

peteVA wrote:Multi-store may have been one of them, who is actually using it?

I use multi-store but I had to write it myself for version 0.7.9
The beauty of multi-store is one admin, one set of code files, sharing one database
I have a stand alone site and it's a pain going from one site's admin to another.

Besides, having multi-store in OpenCart hasn't hurt anyone has it ?
Just don't use it. How hard is that.
Or do what I do, I go through the code and throw out what I don't want like languages and currencies. They annoy me but that doesn't mean I complain that they shouldn't be included. I simply throw out the language files and delete all the countries

Documentation is totally lacking.

then offer to help write it or learn to read code. The documentation is in the code
you've obviously never had to write a manual so you don't appreciate how long it takes to write documentation. I prefer the guys to spend their time writing features rather than writing volumes of books on how to use

Oh Snap! jty is back

Yer Q. I'm back looking for a more powerful search. I'm losing sales because my customers can't spell
I read somewhere that it's on your road map. I'll upgrade then.

Good to see you on the team and the others who are now helping.
I am most impressed to see Daniel has created an "oscommerce with boobs"

Qphoria wrote:And really? x-cart? Is this 1999? I'd rather use oscommerce.. at least its ugly and free instead of ugly and commercial.

Yer, what he said. Opencart has balls AND boobs. X-Cart has neither. Ner, ner, ner
Am I allowed to tell him to go away and don't come back. LOL.

See you again in 1.51 or thereabouts