Switching your products to a grid layout is easily accomplished using a mod called Column Layout Grid for Product Listings.

Installing this mod will change your product listings from this:

to this:

This mod is pretty easy to use.

First, upload the following files to your web host:

• Into the /includes/modules/ folder upload product_listing.php
• Into the /includes/templates/template_default/templates folder upload tpl_modules_product_listing.php

IMPORTANT: These files will overwrite the exisiting files. If this is a fresh (or new) install of ZenCart, you have nothing to worry about and can safely overwrite. If you have previously made changes to these files, you will want to compare them before overwriting them to avoid losing anything.

Second, login to your ZenCart admin area. Click on “Install SQL Patches” under “Tools” in the menu.

Upload the column_layout_grid.sql file.

Now, in the admin area, click on “Product Listing” under “Configuration”

You will need to edit TWO settings in this section.

Product Listing – Layout Styles

Change from rows to columns. Click on update.

Product Listing – Columns Per Row

Enter the number of coulmns you wish to have. The default is 3. Click on update.

That’s it! Your products should now display in a grid layout.

Related posts:

1. Hiding product descriptions on category pages
2. How to remove columns in ZenCart
3. How to edit the ZenCart header image

You want to allow customers to pay for BOOKS with PayPal and credit cards. But you only want customers to pay for eBOOKS with PayPal.

Is this possible with ZenCart?

The answer is yes, however some editing of code is required.

First thing: Please make a backup of your files BEFORE editing them. This way, if you make a mistake, you can simply upload the original to restore order quickly.

Using Notepad or WordPad, open the payment file you wish to restrict. Using my example above, we want to restrict credit card payments, so we need to edit the cc.php file.

These files are located here:

yoursite/zencart/includes/modules/payment

Once opened, locate the following line of  code:

*It only appears once in the file.

Directly after this code, add the following:

if (IS_ADMIN_FLAG == false) {
// disable if category 27 items are in the cart
if ($_SESSION['cart']->in_cart_check('master_categories_id','27') > 0) {
$this->enabled = false;
}
}

The file should now show like this:

IMPORTANT: Make sure you edit the category before saving and uploading. In my example above, I edited category 27. You need to replace BOTH instances with the category you wish to restrict payments for.

Alternatively, you can restrict payment by actual product instead of entire categories. To do this, you would use the following code instead of the code above:

if (IS_ADMIN_FLAG == false) {
// disable if products_id 27 is in the cart
if ($_SESSION['cart']->in_cart_check('products_id','27') > 0) {
$this->enabled = false;
}
}

Again, replacing the product number with your own.

Related posts:

1. Moving attributes in ZenCart
2. How to create a grid layout in ZenCart
3. Installing new templates in ZenCart

This tutorial will show you how to update the status of orders and add new order status options in ZenCart.

You can update the status of orders placed in your admin area. Status options include processing, shipped etc

To update an order status, first login to your ZenCart admin area. Now click on “Orders” under the “Customers” menu:

Locate the order you want to edit it. First click on the order, and then click on “Edit” to the right:

Once the order opens, you can scroll down near the bottom to update the status.

In addition to updating the status, you can add comments along with the status.

For example:

After order is received
Status: Processing
Comments: Order in process

When order is shipped
Status: Shipped
Comments: Tracking #

etc

When you update the status, you can choose to send a notification to the customer. The cart will automatically email them with the update.

By default, the cart includes the following order status options:

Pending

Processing

Delivered

Update

To add/edit these statuses, click on “Order Status” under “Localization” in the menu:

From there you can edit the current status options and add new ones that fit your needs.

Related posts:

1. Restricting payment types in ZenCart
2. Zen Cart
3. How to create a grid layout in ZenCart

This is *usually* caused by one of two problems:

1. The file has not be uploaded to your /download/ folder
2. The permissions for the file are not correct

I checked her settings the permissions were not set. After changing the permissions to 777, we placed a test order and the download link appeared.

I realize now that I left this step out of my tutorial on how to setup ebooks in ZenCart.

To edit the permissions, you can either use your FTP program or most hosting control panels allow you to edit permissions as well. For cPanel users, here is a quick overview.

First, login to your cpanel. Click on the File Manager icon in the Files box.

A little box will pop up asking which files you want to work. Choose the domain where your ZenCart files are located.

Find and open the folder “download”

Check the box next to the file you wish to edit permissions for. Now click on “Change Permissions” up top.

A small box will open. Check all of the little boxes utntil 777 is diplayed. Click to save the new permissions.

That’s it!

If you run into any troubles, please let me know below.

Related posts:

1. How to edit folder permissions in cPanel
2. How to sell ebooks using ZenCart
3. How to install ZenCart: Part II

Before we begin, I am assuming you have already added an ebook as a regular product. If you have not yet done so, do this first. Just create a new product as normal.

You first need to login to the admin area for your ZenCart shopping cart.

Click on Catalog -> Option Name Manager

Type in “Download” into the Option Name box and choose “Download” as the Option Type. (see below)

Click on the button “insert” to add.

Next, click on Catalog -> Option Value Manager

Select “Download” as the Option Name. In the Option Value box, you will need to type in your desired file format. For example: PDF, Zip, MS Word, etc. Once entered, click on the “insert” button to add. (see below)

NOTE: If you will be offering your ebooks in multiple formats, you will need to insert them individually before continuing. (Example: PDF, Word, ZIP)

Now we need to add the above options to the ebook you have already added to the cart.

Click on Catalog -> Attributes Controller.

You should see a drop down menu containing all product categories. Select the category that contains your ebook.

Directly under “Select a Product to View and Press Display …” you should see your ebook titled listed. Click on it one time, until highlighted in blue, and then click on the “display” button to the right. (see below)

After you hit the “display” button, scroll down to the large tan colored box titled “Adding New Atrributes”

1. First, select “Download” from the Option Name box
2. Second, select the file format you entered previously – example: PDF

Now scroll down a little farther until you see:

In the box labeled “Filename” enter the URL to your file.

For example, if this is a PDF file, the URL would be something like www.yourdomain.com/downloads/yourfile.pdf

NOTE: All download files MUST be uploaded to the /downloads/ folder located in your ZenCart folder.

In the box labeled “Expiry days” enter the number of days you would like to make the ebook available to download after purchased. For example, you can enter the number 4 to allow a customer 4 days to download the file before having to re-purchase the ebook. Alternatively, you can enter 0 to allow customers unlimited time to download the file.

In the box labeled “Maximum download count” enter the maximum number of times a customer may download the file after purchasing it.

Once completed, click on the “insert” button to add the download file to the actual ebook product listing.

To verify the file has been added, check the actual product page for your ebook. You should now see the “Download” option added to the page.

I hope that helps!

If you run into any troubles, let me know below

Related posts:

1. How to create attributes in ZenCart
2. ZenCart ebook downloads and permissions
3. How to add quantity discounts in ZenCart

By default, this page looks like this:

Editing this page is a two-step process.

The first part can be edited in the admin area:

Login to your ZenCart admin area. Click on “Define Pages Editor” under the “Tools” tab:

Now select define_checkout_success.php from the drop down menu:

When the box loads, edit the text to your own liking.

Click on the “save” button to apply your changes.

The other text must be edited using either FTP or by using the File Manager in your web hosting control panel.

Login to your control panel (if you are using cPanel, it’s usually located at www.yourdomain.com/cpanel).

Scroll down until you see the “Files” box, Click on “File Manager” in the “Files” box:

A small box will open in your screen:

1. Click the button next to “Document Root for:”
2. Make sure your domain name is selected in the drop down box
3. Click on the “Go” button

Locate your ZenCart folder on the page (if you named the folder something else like store, shop, etc – look for that folder):

Click on the folder name to open it.

Locate the “includes” folder on the list.

Click on it to open it.

Now find the folder “languages” and click on it to open it.

The last folder to open is “english” so click on it to open it.

Find the file named checkout_success.php on the page:

1. Check the box next to checkout_success.php
2. Click on the “Edit” icon up top

A small box will open asking you if you want to edit the file. Click on the button “Edit” to proceed.

The following will load onto your screen:

Make changes as desired.

IMPORTANT: Be VERY careful when making edits. Be sure to leave the ‘ ‘ characters shown before and after text in place. Deleting these will create errors in your cart.

Once you have made your changes, click on the “Save Changes” button in the top right corner:

That’s it!

Your changes will now appear on your website.

To test it out, type in the following URL:

http://www.yourdomain.com/zencartfolder/index.php?main_page=checkout_success

Be sure to edit “yourdomain” and “zencartfolder” with your own details.

Related posts:

1. How to edit the top menu links in ZenCart
2. How to edit SiteMap links in ZenCart
3. How to edit the SiteMap text in ZenCart

Login to your cPanel control panel. Scroll down a ways until you see the Databases box.

Click on phpMyAdmin in the Databases box.

The following screen will appear:

In the top left side, you will see your database name. Click on it.

The following will now appear in the right screen:

Click on the Export tab.

Once the page loads, you will see:

1. Click on “Select All”
2. Check the box next to “Save as file”
3. Check the radio button before “zipped”
4. Click on “Go”

Once clicked, a small box will open:

Choose “Save File” and then click on OK.

Your database has now been saved to your computer.

If you run into any troubles, just let me know.

Related posts:

1. Backing up your WordPress database in cPanel
2. Backing up your ZenCart files in cPanel
3. Backing up your osCommerce files in cPanel

Click on Backup Wizard in the Files box.

The following screen will appear:

Click on the button labeled Backup –>.

The following screen will now appear:

Under “Select Partial Backup” select Home Directory –>

NOTE: I prefer to use phpMyAdmin to backup my database files. You can opt to select Full Backup à to use the wizard to backup both you files and database.

Once the page loads, click on the Home Directory button to download your backup:

Once clicked, a small box will open:

Choose “Save File” and then click on OK.

Your files have now been saved to your computer.

IMPORTANT: Unlike .zip files, Windows has no built-in support for tar archives or gz compressed files. In order to open a tar.gz file you will need to use another application.

Here are some recommendations:

• http://www.tech-pro.net/bitzipper.html
• http://www.gzip.org/
• http://www.stuffit.com/dr/dlx_win.html

If you run into any troubles, just let me know below.

Related posts:

1. Backing up your ZenCart database in cPanel
2. Backing up your osCommerce files in cPanel
3. Backing up your WordPress files in cPanel

Buy 1 candle = $5.99 each
Buy 2 candles = $4.99 each
Buy 3 candles = $3.99 each
Etc.

Setting this up is easy to do!

First, login to your ZenCart admin area. Click on “Products Price Manager” under the “Catalog” tab in the top menu.

Once the page opens, click on the product name you would like to add the quantity discount to. Now click on “display” to the right:

On the bottom of the screen, you will see:

Click on the “edit” button as shown above.

Now click on “add blank discounts” underneath “Add 5 Blank Qty Discounts”

You will now see the following box:

You will need to enter the following information:

1. Discount Type = choose Percentage, Actual Amount, or Amount Off
2. Discount Priced from = choose Price or Special
3. Minimum Qty = enter the minimum required to receive the discount
4. Discount Value = enter the discount amount

So based on my candle example above, I have created a product called Candle and priced it at $5.99. To provide the discount, I would choose:

1. Actual Amount
2. Price

I would then enter the following into the boxes:

Make sure you click on “update” after making changes to apply the discounts.

Clear as mud right? If you run into any troubles, let me know below.

Related posts:

1. How to add quantity discounts in osCommerce
2. How to create attributes in ZenCart
3. How to install ZenCart at GoDaddy

You can instantly change your layout by removing the left, right, or even both side columns.

To do this, login to your ZenCart admin area.

Click on “Layout Settings” under the Configuration tab.

To turn off the left column, click on “Column Left Status – Global”

To the right you will see that the number one 1 has been selected. Change this to 0 and click on update.

The left column has now been removed:

If you prefer to turn the right column off, click on “Column Right Status – Global” and follow the same steps as above, selecting 0 instead of 1.

This will turn the right column off:

You can also turn them both off, which leaves the store layout looking like this:

That’s it, pretty simple!

Related posts:

1. How to create a grid layout in ZenCart
2. Remove product count next to category
3. How to remove product counts in osCommerce