Tag / beginners guide

I've always found quick reference guides or cheat sheets extremely useful, so I thought I'd put a few together for Magento.  The first in this series of 'Quick Ref Guides/Cheat Sheets' is the backoffice Admin Menu system. Let me know if you find these useful.  Next on the agenda will be a quick ref guide that looks at the configuration settings for Magento.

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Magento Commerce developers and designers will find this tip very useful.   By enabling "Template Path Hints" and "Block Name Hints" you can see exactly which file a particular area of the page is created from.  Template Path Hints and Block Name Hints are extremely useful and can save you lots of time. Once enabled you'll see something like the following on your front end: The following video tutorial will show you how to enable and disable this feature within your Magento Commerce Admin area. To enable Template Path Hints: * Login to your Admin panel * Navigate...

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This screencast continues the "Installing Magento" series and builds on my previous post/screencasts, 4 ways to create a MySQL Database and User for Magento.  Installing Magento Commerce is fairly straight forward.  I've created a step-by-step video tutorial that should guide you through the process.  The video tutorial is detailed so I had to split it over 3 parts.  I've also documented the procedure below. Installing Magento 1.4 using the full release package - Part 1 Installing Magento 1.4 using the full release package - Part 2 Installing Magento 1.4 using the full release package...

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Following on from the previous screencast where I showed you how to verify your web server requirements for Magento, this screencast focuses on the next step which is to create a MySQL Database and Database User which can be used for your Magento installation. Think Security! Before we can install Magento we must first create a database, a database user, and assign that user to the Magento database.  For security purposes, the user we create must have access to this and only this database.  If you have a single database user that has access to your forums and blog, for example, if that...

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Amazon.co.uk Widgets There's nothing like sitting down in an evening and reading a book is there.  Here's the top 8 Magento books you'll need in your library. Magento 1.3: PHP Developer's Guide Authored by Jamie Huskisson, this is the most recent (at the time of writing) Magento Book on this list.  Jamie has been working with Magento for the past two years since the very early Beta versions. His development client list features names such as the NHS, Volkswagen, and Nike building everything from web applications to e-commerce stores and small business sites. He also...

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In todays eCommerce world, everyone realises the importance of keeping their personal details secure.  In this post I'll discuss how you can secure the connection between your web server and your customers using SSL Certificates. Before you buy an SSL you must ensure that your website has a Static IP Address.  SSL's cannot be issued for shared IP addresses.  Depending on your hosting package, static IP's are typically additional features which you'll need to purchase.  You will need to speak with your hosting provider to find out how to obtain a Static IP Address.  As the static IP is unique...

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Choosing a web hosting provider and solution for your eBusiness can be a daunting experience.  There are so many providers out there it's difficult to know where to begin.  The factors that determine which provider and package is right for you is based on the application(s) you are going to be using and the size, and predicted growth, of your customer base. Magento Commerce Community Edition Requirements According to the Magento System Requirements page, these are the current requirements for version 1.3 and 1.4: Supported Operating Systems: Linux x86, x86-64 Supported...

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If you read my previous article about "Choosing your domain" you should have now established a list of 10-20+ domains. The next step in the process is to check if a domain on your list is available or not.  This is where we use the WHOIS services.  There's lots of these around.  Simply enter "whois" in to your favourite search engine.  WHOIS services allows you to query WHOIS databases for domain registration information.  Not every WHOIS service scans all the domain registrars so you may need to use a few different services to get a true picture.  By performing a simple WHOIS search you can discover...

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Selecting the right domain name for your eCommerce website is key.  Your domain name is much more than just a name, it's your brand and gateway for your customers.  It can be difficult to obtain your preferred choice domain, especially in a popular niche, due to the fact that there's billions of registered domains.  Ideally you''ll need to generate a list of 10-20 domains to avoid disappointment. Here's some hints and tips to keep in mind when choosing your domain name. Brainstorm keywords Try to create a list of about 5 keywords that you can use within your domain name.  In the most...

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Following on from my previous article "What is Magento", you're probably eager to get going.  Before you commence your online journey there's a checklist you'll need to go through before you can open your doors to the public. By this point in your process of joining the eCommerce world you should have already chosen your business niche, confirmed what products you'll be selling, decided on your business model, and finalised your business name and branding.  If you haven't, don't worry as there's still time and things will undoubtedly change as you go through the development phase. Here's...

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