Preview of Cartweaver 4 - Cartweaver Community Forums

Loading...

Cartweaver Community Forums

Recent Topics
All Forums
- Search All
- Tags
- Author
- Advanced Search
Search
New Topic

Cartweaver and eCommerce - General Topics

cartweaver Team Cartweaver

Preview of Cartweaver 4

in Cartweaver and eCommerce - General Topics • 3 months ago

Hello Cartweaver users,

The rumors are true, Cartweaver 4 is on its way! We are very pleased that we can now begin to share the details of what we have been up to, and what Cartweaver 4 is all about!

First, we have listened to your requests for features in the next version of Cartweaver, and we are excited to share what we have done in response to your feedback. We are also very pleased to say that Cartweaver 4 takes advantage of modern web standards and capabilities, with full support of CSS layout and formatting, and dynamic UI features made possible by the jQuery framework. Cartweaver 4 is not just an update to Cartweaver 3 – It is a complete rewrite from the database up!

Cartweaver 4 will be available in PHP and ColdFusion. The ColdFusion version also supports Railo, the open source CFML server.

For Adobe Dreamweaver users, we have completely rewritten the Dreamweaver extension. The installation of Cartweaver 4 into your Dreamweaver site is now easier than ANY other shopping cart solution… period!

For code developers using text based editors or standalone IDEs, Cartweaver 4 is amazingly easy to add to your site manually, in a matter of minutes. Cartweaver 4 is not tied to Dreamweaver or the Dreamweaver Extension. You can work directly with the Cartweaver code, which has been completely reworked and simplified into a reusable library of functions and components.

We are looking forward to sharing much more information with you in coming days, and are confident that you’ll love what we have done with Cartweaver 4. Not only is version 4 the best Cartweaver there has ever been, but we are sure it will raise the bar for ALL shopping cart applications. You will find you can have it both ways - easy and powerful tools for both designers and developers can and do exist in the same package!

The new Cartweaver.com website and a presales event will be available very soon. If you would like to take a look at some of the new features, you will find live demos of a basic store installation, the free Cartweaver 4 template, and the online administration area at http://www.YourCartweaverStore.com

For more demonstrations and a look at some of the new features in Cartweaver 4,
visit our YouTube channel: http://www.YouTube.com/CartweaverTV
(We already have a lot of videos there now, with more on the way!)

If you have any questions, please join the discussion on the
Cartweaver user forums http://forums.cartweaver.com or on our
Facebook page http://www.Facebook.com/Cartweaver

We look forward to sharing more with you very soon!

Thank you,
Cartweaver Development Team

Replies(24)

Re: Preview of Cartweaver 4

3 months ago

Will there still be a Mura Plugin?

Michael Evangelista

Michael E.. Team Cartweaver

Re: Preview of Cartweaver 4

3 months ago

The Mura plugin is in the works. Drop me a line, michael at cartweaver dot com, for more info.

Michael Evangelista
Cartweaver ColdFusion Lead Developer
--
ColdFusion Reseller Hosting
http://www.GoWestHosting.com

Re: Preview of Cartweaver 4

3 months ago

Michael,

I am also very interested in the Mura Plugin. I have a number of clients that are using Mura and would LOVE to be able to drop Cartweaver in as a plugin. Any info in this regard would be greatly appreciated.

Off that topic, and possibly answered elsewhere, what, if any framework did you use to craft the new version? Just curious.

Thanks again!

Byron Shank

byron at gotobig dot com

Re: Preview of Cartweaver 4

3 months ago

Cant wait to check this out!! Have a store ready to upgrade;)

Michael Evangelista

Michael E.. Team Cartweaver

Re: Preview of Cartweaver 4

3 months ago

We also have a script available to migrate customers, orders, and all product data including categories, options, etc from CW3 to CW4, for easy no-fuss data transfers. I've used it a few times already myself :)

Michael Evangelista
Cartweaver ColdFusion Lead Developer
--
ColdFusion Reseller Hosting
http://www.GoWestHosting.com

Sharon

Re: Preview of Cartweaver 4

3 months ago

How about using Gift Certificates?

Lawrence Cramer

Lawrence .. Team Cartweaver

Re: Preview of Cartweaver 4

3 months ago

Hi Sharon,

The discount system in Cartweaver 4 is about 200% more than CW3, but gift certificates is not part of the default system. But fear not - you see, in Cartweaver 3 adding a gift certificate system would have been a REAL undertaking because the code it would have touched was all over the place. With Cartweaver 4 data - function - and presentation have all been completely separated, this framework, and the fact that Cartweaver 4 already allows for partial payments, will allow us to add a gift certificate application!

So this is a long answer to simply say, not yet, but we will!

Lawrence Cramer
Cartweaver.com
Stay updated:
http://www.facebook.com/Cartweaver
http://www.twitter.com/Cartweaver
http://blog.cartweaver.com

Re: Preview of Cartweaver 4

3 months ago

I've been stoked for this for a while now, and have a great use for it on a new client's site! Pretty excited about the migration from CW3 to CW4 as well, I have an old client who might like the new features and their database is too big to move manually.

Any word on an extended gallery option for more pictures per product? It's a much desired feature of some people I know (especially me).

Lawrence Cramer

Lawrence .. Team Cartweaver

Re: Preview of Cartweaver 4

3 months ago

The underpinnings to do this are already there, so for the adventurous you could dive in and add this. Other than that, an advanced image system and digital product delivery system will be our first plug-ins. They are already under development. In fact the digital download system is what we will be selling Cartweaver 4 with on the new Cartweaver site. We are pretty excited about that - imagine selling Cartweaver 4 WITH Cartweaver 4, what a concept!

Lawrence Cramer
Cartweaver.com
Stay updated:
http://www.facebook.com/Cartweaver
http://www.twitter.com/Cartweaver
http://blog.cartweaver.com

Michael Evangelista

Michael E.. Team Cartweaver

Re: Preview of Cartweaver 4

3 months ago

To add more images is actually quite simple. Until we get the advanced images mod out the door, you can modify one table of the database (we'll explain how in a blog post or other format sometime soon), and then copy the default code in the product details page to show your new images. Of course, formatting and any gallery scripts, etc are up to you.

Also, in Cartweaver 4, the images are automatically resized for you, so you can upload a single image and have thumbnail, large image, zoom image, etc created on the server.

I think Lawrence and I are painting a pretty clear picture - not only have we attempted to roll in all the most-requested features wherever practical, but we've gone out of our way to leave lots of hooks and insertion points in the logic, so you can add or change things in any number of ways. I know I speak for the whole team when I say we are looking forward to seeing what you do with our new creation!

Michael Evangelista
Cartweaver ColdFusion Lead Developer
--
ColdFusion Reseller Hosting
http://www.GoWestHosting.com

Michael Evangelista

Michael E.. Team Cartweaver

Re: Preview of Cartweaver 4

3 months ago

@Byron - we didn't use a framework in the conventional MVC "ColdFusion Framework" sense (e.g. CFwheels, Mach ii, FW1, etc).

Rather, I was referring to the way we have restructured the code into reusable functions and modules, freeing the designer from the constraints of the CW results/details pages (you can now show your products, categories, cart and more on _any_ .cfm or .php page of your site) and allowing the developer to easily and quickly make global changes to logic and functionality, in ways that were never possible in previous versions. This is the new "Cartweaver framework".

As for the Mura plugin, that's still in development but already usable (I have built a few sites with it already, works great, just needs some refining and features flushed out). Email me directly, michael at cartweaver dot com for more details.

Michael Evangelista
Cartweaver ColdFusion Lead Developer
--
ColdFusion Reseller Hosting
http://www.GoWestHosting.com

ebdesigns

Re: Preview of Cartweaver 4

3 months ago

What about for the WordPress users?

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
latest work:
http://www.ocmarketingpeople.com/renetaj/

Lawrence Cramer

Lawrence .. Team Cartweaver

Re: Preview of Cartweaver 4

3 months ago

We hear you!!! WordPress is definitely in our sights.

When we set out to develop Cartweaver 4 we started for the most part with a clean slate - every aspect of the application was examined, and mostly completely replaced. We wanted to still support and be even easier for Dreamweaver visual developers/designers to add to their sites with the all new extension, but at the same time we wanted to be able to be an easy and powerful platform for code developers - Something that CW3 was only okay at. Not bragging here, but mission accomplished! This allows CW4 to go places that were very difficult or impossible for CW3.

Cartweaver 4 CF already integrates with Mura, the leading CF CMS and in order to do this a lot on development had to focus on being able to be modular enough and to be able to pass variables into and out of a separate application framework. The PHP version benefited from this.

The php version is now 99.9% caught up with the CF version, so once the core app is tight and released we will zero in on being able to integrate with WordPress. It's all part of the plan!

Lawrence Cramer
Cartweaver.com
Stay updated:
http://www.facebook.com/Cartweaver
http://www.twitter.com/Cartweaver
http://blog.cartweaver.com

Casey

Re: Preview of Cartweaver 4

3 months ago

Is there a Cartweaver 4 php version preview somewhere that I'm not finding?

Will it have the same features and the new streamlined functions I saw in the CF demo?

oli.cartw.. Team Cartweaver

Re: Preview of Cartweaver 4

3 months ago

Hi Casey,

The CF and PHP versions are exactly the same feature wise.

Cheers!
Oli
Cartweaver Support Team

Michael Evangelista

Michael E.. Team Cartweaver

Re: Preview of Cartweaver 4

3 months ago

Re: php/cf demos

Our goal, which I think we've hit pretty squarely, was to create both versions as identical to each other as possible in every way. With the separation of the presentation layer from the logic and code, and the fact that SQL queries are the same in both languages, this was our target from day one. A user should not be able to tell which version they are looking at, either in the admin or on the front end cart, except for the .php or .cfm extension in the url. So in terms of the demo, or anything seen in the browser, there is no perceptible difference between the two versions.

Michael Evangelista
Cartweaver ColdFusion Lead Developer
--
ColdFusion Reseller Hosting
http://www.GoWestHosting.com

Lawrence Cramer

Lawrence .. Team Cartweaver

Re: Preview of Cartweaver 4

3 months ago

Along these lines, we know that folks will want to see a .php on the end of the demo files, just to be sure. We are just going through the last little bit of cleanup and such on the php version. As soon as it is ready I'll be swapping out one of the demos for the php version. This will give you an opportunity to look at both and see that from a viability / user standpoint the only difference is the .php. Everything else is the same for both.

Lawrence Cramer
Cartweaver.com
Stay updated:
http://www.facebook.com/Cartweaver
http://www.twitter.com/Cartweaver
http://blog.cartweaver.com

dsphillips

Re: Preview of Cartweaver 4

3 months ago

Just spent some time in the admin area of the demo.. WOW! Very impressive!

The one big change we have been hoping and praying for is to have the ability to assign discount levels to each individual customer, so they don't have to enter a promotional code each time. I did see the option to toggle between retail/wholesale, but never found an input area to apply pricing to those levels. Is this functionality going to be available out of the box?

Also, what about POS integration?

Looks great guys!! Can't Wait!!

David Phillips
Southern Stain and Seal, LLC
http://www.SouthernStainAndSeal.com

Michael Evangelista

Michael E.. Team Cartweaver

Re: Preview of Cartweaver 4

3 months ago

Hi David,

thanks for the kind words. That type of excitement is just what we're hoping for. (And once you start working with it, and see how much easier it is to put stuff where you want it, how you want it, I think it will only get more exciting.)

>> assign discount levels to each individual customer,

if i understand correctly, you have a few ways to apply discounts to customers automatically.
any discount can be filtered by a list of customer IDs, or by 'customer type'.

So, if you were to put customers in various types (you can make your own easily enough, we just provide wholesale/retail as examples, with all customers 'retail' by default), you could then assign discounts to each type or group of customers.

or, using the customer Ids, you can

a) enter the IDs in the box where you set up the discount criteria

b) write a quick easy query to get all the IDs of the customers you want, and write a quick easy mod into the discount function, to use the dynamic list of IDs rather than the one normally entered in the box.

as for promo codes, if you don't enter a code when creating the discount, no code is required on the front end, and it is automatically applied when the criteria is matched

Michael Evangelista
Cartweaver ColdFusion Lead Developer
--
ColdFusion Reseller Hosting
http://www.GoWestHosting.com

dsphillips

Re: Preview of Cartweaver 4

3 months ago

Ahh Haaa! Just found the "conditions" tab for discounts.
You definitely have some happy and excited customers in our office!

David Phillips
Southern Stain and Seal, LLC
http://www.SouthernStainAndSeal.com

Michael Evangelista

Michael E.. Team Cartweaver

Re: Preview of Cartweaver 4

3 months ago

excellent.

the discount system is a little application unto itself.
Whatever isn't built in, probably has a wire you can tap into pretty easily.

Michael Evangelista
Cartweaver ColdFusion Lead Developer
--
ColdFusion Reseller Hosting
http://www.GoWestHosting.com

Michael Evangelista

Michael E.. Team Cartweaver

Re: Preview of Cartweaver 4

3 months ago

I put up a new thread for feature feedback - this one's getting long to scroll through!

questions and a-ha's welcome:
http://forums.cartweaver.com/#Topic/22226000000962077

Michael Evangelista
Cartweaver ColdFusion Lead Developer
--
ColdFusion Reseller Hosting
http://www.GoWestHosting.com

jalpert

Re: Preview of Cartweaver 4

3 months ago

The demo shows the retail or wholesale indicator for customers now. I had found this field in the database in the past and used it to do some of my own code. Will I be able to control whether taxes are applied to the wholesale customer's orders or not?

Demo looks great! I can't wait!

Jo Ann

Michael Evangelista

Michael E.. Team Cartweaver

Re: Preview of Cartweaver 4

3 months ago

Out of the box, we don't make any distinction between customer types. Those two types are just there as a demo, with all new customers being put into the regular 'retail' group.

However, due to the modular structure of Cartweaver 4, you can make a single adjustment to the 'get tax' function, and change the logic based on customer type with one line of code, which we'll gladly explain further when the time comes.

I wish we could put up a demo of the source code (for obvious reasons, that isn't quite practical). This version of Cartweaver focuses on universal, flexible logic for _every_ operation. There are no SQL queries in the presentation pages, they have been replaced by one line calls to functions that run the queries for you, and return the results.

This not only cleans up the code you actually need to work with, but it allows you to globally modify the way any aspect of your cart operates, in a single location, often by simply passing values into the existing function calls, no need to edit the functions themselves.

Anyway... yes, you can easily turn off taxes for a customer type : )

Michael Evangelista
Cartweaver ColdFusion Lead Developer
--
ColdFusion Reseller Hosting
http://www.GoWestHosting.com

© 2012 ZOHO Corp.
All Rights Reserved.
Privacy
Terms & Conditions
RSS
Powered by