Need to build an osCommerce website but having hosting problems?

Question

i recently attempted to start up an osCommerce website so i can start an online store, my dad made one and if works well www.vinylmusic.co.uk (this is his one, as an example of what i want) he said that it is a good way to do it, it is hard to set-up with scripting (witch i tried and yes it is). so i tried making one and downloaded the latest os commerce but got stuck at phpMyAdmin, it turns out that my host (1&1uk) does not support it with the package that i am using (beginner). i am experienced in making websites, as i have made some in the past: www.djcoleyb.co.uk <-- that is my current dj'ing website. so does anyone know of any alternative to osCommerce that i can use with my current hosting package? i need it to be Professional as i am using this as a Business. i have access to dreamweaver and i am familiar with it so if the alternative includes that i will be fine.

thanks very much
-Leif

Answer 1

If 1&1uk Offers plans which include MySQL databases, and you are planning to run an application which requires at least one MySQL Database, then you should have gotten the minimum plan that supports your needs.



Before you consider whether you need a different solution, consider whether you have what it takes to run a business. If 1 pound 50 pence per month can keep you from having the bare essentials - you may not be able to afford this business.



Consider also your other recurring expenses. You'll need your own SSL certificate. This need not be expensive to begin with - but when even using Paypal or another hosted payment page you will need to secure account creation and history pages, as well as Admin pages. This can increase your sales conversions by 50% or more. Not sure how pricing works out in the UK - but in our US based market we sell these for as little as $14.



This might require you to pay a bit extra for your own dedicated IP Address. This is not like a dedicated server, but if you have one, you won't show up as just another listing on a shared server. This reduces your exposure to hacking and the risk of your mail being confused with the porn sites on the server (if any) and blocked by blacklisting services.



Password managers can be had for free - KeePass is a good one. This will help you change passwords on a regular basis. Do this for at least your FTP and control panel accounts - and the billing system if it is different.



These are the basics of web commerce. Don't even think of starting without them.



Alternatives to osCommerce? There are quite a few. Magento, Zen Cart, CRE Loaded, Prestashop are good places to start looking. They all require a good database server, just like osCommerce.



If your dad already has experience with osCommerce - use it! I routinely load data on thousands of products into osCommerce or osCommerce based stores and deploy at least one page per product in under a second each.



If you can do that with Dreamweaver, contact me. I've got a job for you.

Answer 2

You can build a website on your own desktop using web service engines like Apache and IIS. From there you can share it across a private network of other computers you're directly connected to. You can also share it by IP by going to sites that tell you your IP. Depending on your ISP, you will have either a static or dynamic IP address. Even static IP addresses can change usually though. Dedicated web hosting companies such as ixwebhosting will be able to provide an easily accessible server (another computer), hosting software, and even a domain name (which you will have to pay for no matter how you do it). The internet believe it or not is a not a single entity, it's a series of privately owned servers by anybody and everybody in the world, connected through various ways. Chances are the computer in your basement will not make a very good web server as your ISP and will only allow so much bandwidth and it is subject to power outages, and IP address changes. Easiest solution is to google "web host providers" look for the best deal, and lease out a web server and a domain name. From there you can upload whatever content you want onto a server with the domain name you want.

Answer 3

You can still use a shared plan for hosting magento, you just need to upgrade from the real bottom of the barrel services as this are oversold on old slow servers and are just going to loose you customers by using them. A decent shared plan is the way to go first as this will have no problem serving multiple sites. This would be what to try before going for a VPS or dedicated server. The company i use gives you free support and free migration from your old account to a new one plus are available to answer questions 24/7



A shared server is basically a server for hosting websites but it is shared between many users, some companies offer shared web hosting very cheap but you will be sharing a slow server with sometimes hundreds of other users. This is not ideal as it will impact you with slow load times on a website and will loose you business so its always better to pay a couple of dollars more and



However, not all hosting companies servers are the same, some over charge and some do not offer any type of support. Some offer support that is completely worthless and will not help fix simple issues, others will take 2-4 days before replying to emails and ticket and basically be un-contactable.



I would recommend a company called simple link here http://the-seo-advisor.co.uk/hosting who offer the best shared servers i have ever used but more than that it is their support team who really make this company the best and worthwhile, they have never taken more than a couple of hours to get back to me with solutions, advice and fixes which is more than i can say about godaddy, bluehost, justhost and hostgator.



They are currently have these offers which you can use :

jwoffer = 10% off first order on any package or purchase

jjoff = completely free first month on any shared hosting plan.

Answer 4

oscommerce requires MYSQL, PHP, hosting. GoDaddy hosting provides ZenCart as an installer, but they allow SSH access and mysqladmin, you can then install osCommerce..



Sound like you need a different provider..



In terms of Commerce package osCommerce is the better of the open sourced products i've used over the years.

Answer 5

With a free account on freehostia.com, you get this thing called Elephante. What Elephante does is magically set up various types of web site software for you. If you want a blog, you just click Wordpress in Elephante, and it does everything for you. There is also an osCommerce option. I tried it once, and it worked flawlessly. The hard part is inputting all of your product names, prices, and pictures.

Answer 6

Refer to:

http://www.threehosts.com/simplescripts/oscommerce.html



Best web host supporting osCommerce.



Hope this helps.

Answer 7

Yes I agree with what's been said