Major Problems with setup Storestacker

[seekertat]

So far, I have setup Storestacker on two websites...
1) http://www.akamotorcycleaccessories.com/store and
2)http://www.engineguardchaps.com/store.

I really don't like the active templates available, but not sure how to edit them.  I do have Dreamweaver as someone suggested using, but there again, what do you edit.  I opened the active templates in a different editor and didn't see anything that I know I can change.

Any suggestions or help?

[Crazeet]

Thanks for the compliment on my site and just to let you know that was based on the round/dark template.

Basically you should first decide how you want your site to look both visually and layout. Draw up a plan first on paper or if your handy with Photoshop lay out your site in that.

Then print out the template token list that comes with SS and with that beside you look at either the rounded or dark template and see how the tokens were placed in them. After a while it starts to make sense.

Placing the template tokens is not much different than adding a hyperlink just different syntax. So in your plan of your site write in the token you want to use where you want it.

Download a localhost server and install it on your PC then install SS in to your localhost so you can see what your site will look like before you upload it.

Once you know what you want your site to look like and how you want it layed out and your happy with all your plans including the categories/subcategories so you can add them alpabetically then dig out dreamweaver an put it together and as your viewing it on your localhost server you can tweek it as your going along.

The end result is your template set that your ready to upload to the templates directory.

[seekertat]

Your site came from the Dark Template.  That is awesome.  Thanks for the input.  I'll see what I can do and if you don't mind, may I ask you questions?

[Crazeet]

By all means ask as many questions as you like. I certainly won't know all the answers as I'm also learning as I go along. But, this is a pretty good helpfully community in this forum and people are prepared to help and You never have to wait long for Omar to get back with answers to questions re the technical and other stuff for SS.

SS is not the finished product yet but it sure as hell has potential and they keep improving and adding to it so it is good to know that what you got is not all of what you get

[Omar]

By all means ask as many questions as you like. I certainly won't know all the answers as I'm also learning as I go along. But, this is a pretty good helpfully community in this forum and people are prepared to help and You never have to wait long for Omar to get back with answers to questions re the technical and other stuff for SS.

SS is not the finished product yet but it sure as hell has potential and they keep improving and adding to it so it is good to know that what you got is not all of what you get

Thanks for the kind words, but i have a comments if i may . SS is a finished product. It does what is supposed to do, in the way that was ment to do. Maybe is not having as many options as some1 may want, but it does not mean is not finished.

Remember the windows 3.0 in the '90s? That was ugly as hell and usability was not more then for browsing files and making simple operations. But it was still a finished product. And that is same for any software you can think of.. initially comes a first version, then a more advanced one, and an even more advanced one, and so on... Features and improvements are added to all (respectable) software that i know, for the life of the software or company.

[Crazeet]

but i have a comments if i may . SS is a finished product.

I appreciate what your saying but what I meant is - it is not a finished product in the sense that nothing else will be added to it or it will never be modified. However, I'm quite happy to stand corrected.

[Omar]

Oh.. then you are very right. MANY other things will be added to it, once i get new ideas, once people suggest useful features, and so on.. Sorry for the confusion.

[Crazeet]

Remember the windows 3.0 in the '90s? That was ugly as hell and usability was not more then for browsing files

True but at least it had DOS which I was pretty handy with.

Then the monster known as MS decided we had too much control and slowly but surely took it away from us with each new generation of windows

[twostep]

I used to be involved with major hassles trying to get budget for software maintenance, meaning bugs as well as new features. The problem of course being that no one wanted to spend the money on something they thought they "already had".

To get their attention I used the analogy that "software wears out". That produced an instant brain freeze. How can software possibly wear out? As Spock might say, the concept "does not compute".

It "wears out" only if it's being used. New requirements are discovered and become features needed. Commonly new capabilities are created when a customer uses it in a new way you hadn't thought of. With a few changes a new major feature might be created. Or a new derivative product.

Great software is rarely static. The challenge always is to keep the product from becoming over-featured. To keep it clean, intuitive, and easy to use.

[Omar]

I surely agree with that, as long as the new way of use is appealing to more then one person. If is just one user that try some new way of use, not based on any facts and just want to experiment, it will be hard to add new features to software based on that. Any new feature needs to have some marketing potential. new features need develompent budget and as you said, not many people are ready to support it, specially if is just experiments.

[artmacc]

Great motorcycle site...I would add something that personalizes the site..is it for harley people, honda people, fast motorcycles..its not catered to any specific niche..here are some top search phrases
[motorcycle parts]
[motorcycle accessories]
[custom motorcycle]
[motorcycle handlebars]
[motorcycle wheels]
[motorcycle saddlebags]
[motorcycle gear]
[motorcycle dealer]
[motorcycle sales]
[used motorcycle]
[custom motorcycle parts]
[motorcycle windshields]
[motorcycle apparel]
[motorcycle rental]
[triumph motorcycle]
[motorcycle seats]
[motorcycle dealers]
[motorcycle part]
[new motorcycle]
[motorcycle service]

[twostep]

I found that when I run CPC on a keyword such as Google Adwords, my site needs to open with a page that is directly on target for the keyword.

Using your site for example, if the user search was "motorcycle helmets", then make your Google Ad point to the url that opens the helmets category. In your site it would be
        http://www.akamotorcycleaccessories.com/store/categories/1/motorcycle-helmets/

Obviously he can walk around the site from there. But unless you give him helmets on the opening page, he feels he got less than what he searched for.

The only drawback (an inconvenience really) is that Google makes me set a separate budget for the keywords in each url that I want to open with.