User Guide. PDG Commerce

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1 User Guide PDG Commerce

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3 PDG Software, Inc Montreal Circle, Suite B Tucker, Georgia Copyright 2014 PDG Software, Inc.; All rights reserved. PDG Software, Inc. ( PDG Software ) retains all ownership rights to the software programs (referred to herein as Software ) offered by PDG Software and related documentation. Use of the Software and related documentation is governed by the license agreement accompanying the Software and applicable copyright law. THIS DOCUMENTATION IS PROVIDED AS-IS WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND. IN NO EVENT SHALL PDG SOFTWARE BE LIABLE FOR ANY LOSS OF PROFITS, LOSS OF BUSINESS, LOSS OF USE OR DATA, INTERRUPTION OF BUSINESS, OR FOR INDIRECT, SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES OF ANY KIND, ARISING FROM ANY ERROR IN THIS DOCUMENTATION. PDG Software, Inc.

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5 Contents Chapter 1 Welcome to PDG Commerce 21 What's New in PDG Commerce?...21 Site Design...21 Import/Export Utility...22 Administrator Passwords...22 Recurring Billing...22 Search Result Limitation...22 Product Description and Thumbnail Image on Basket...22 Web Store Logo...23 ThankYou Page Font...23 Macintosh OS X...23 Moneris...23 Pricing Category Discounts...23 About this Guide...24 Getting Help...24 Chapter 2 PDG Commerce Basics 25 Storefronts on the Internet...25 What is a Shopping Cart?...26 A Database...26 A Basket...26 A Checkout Counter...26 How do Shopping Carts Work?...27 Browsers, cookies, and AOL...28 Chapter 3 Installation 29 Backing Up...29 System Requirements...29 Chapter 4 Merchant Administrator 31 Reminders...31 Accessing the Merchant Administrator...32

6 Navigation Sidebar...33 Admin Users Section...33 Adding a New User...34 Managing Existing Users...34 Making Live Changes to Your Web Store...35 Backups...36 Replicating and Restoring Master Data...37 Chapter 5 Database Configuration 39 Database Requirements...39 Configuring Database Settings...39 Database Settings for Windows versions...40 Database Settings for UNIX versions...41 Setting Up the Database...42 Chapter 6 Customer Maintenance 45 Customer and Customer Category Configuration...45 Customer Management...46 Number of customers to Display Per Page...46 Searching for Specific Customers...46 Browsing a Customer Category...47 Browsing the Entire Customer List...47 Adding a New Customer...47 Moving All Customers in One Category to Another...47 Deleting All Customers in a Specific Category...48 Customer Display screen...48 Customer Data Management screen...49 Customer Page screen...50 Customer Category Management...51 Category List and Basic Operating Rules...51 Adding a New Category...53 Renaming a Category...53 Changing the Registration Code of a Category...53 Customer Category Pricing Configuration...53 Reset Customer Category Pricing...54 Do Not Change Taxable Price...55 Apply Discount Amount to Both Unit Price Price Discount and Taxable Price Discount...55 Set as Tax Exempt...55 Set Taxable Price Discount Manually...56 Customer Category Pricing per Product Category...56

7 Chapter 7 Commerce Options and Secure Settings 59 Commerce Options...60 Product Configuration...60 Site Design and Display Elements...61 Place your web store s site name here. This value is used in the Merchant Administrator pages and in s as well Site Configuration...65 Secure Settings...68 Complete URL to a SSL Secure PDG Commerce Executable...69 Complete URL to a SSL Secure PDG Commerce Log Executable...70 Alternate SSL Checkout HTML Template...70 Alternate SSL Verify HTML Template...70 SSL Thank You Template File...70 Encryption...71 IP List...71 Chapter 8 Maintaining Products 75 Product Categories...76 Staging Product Category...76 Grouping Product Categories...76 Product Categories Page...76 Start At Category...77 Creating a New Product Category...77 View Products Button...78 Details Button...78 Remove Button...78 Editing User Defined Field Names...78 Display a Specific Product...78 Product Category Details Page...79 Product Category Specific Details...79 Product Category Discounting...81 Products Page...81 Product Position List...81 Creating a New Product...82 Details Button...83 Remove Button...83 Move To Button...83 Product Definition Page...84 Product Settings Section...84 Product Code...85 One-line Description...85 Keywords...85

8 Product Displayed in Searches...86 Unit Price...86 Taxable Price...86 Additional Unit Shipping...87 Minimum Number to Order...87 Maximum Number to Order...87 Weight...87 Unit of Measure Label...88 Frequent Shopper Points...88 Number of Items Per Box...88 Product Dimensions...88 Allow Fraction Quantity?...88 URL of Product Image...89 URL of Thumbnail Image...89 Item Template...90 Specific Product Text...90 Dynamic Pricing...91 Allow Dynamic Pricing for This Product...91 Set Dynamic Taxable Price to Zero...91 Up Sales...91 Cross Sales...92 Softgoods Section...94 Softgood Data to Display on ThankYou / CreditAccept Template...95 Location of Softgood Payload...96 MIME Type of Softgood Payload...96 Maximum Number of Allowed Downloads of Softgood Payload...96 Duration of Download Window (in Minutes) of Softgood Payload...97 Inventory Settings...97 Track Inventory for Product...97 Track Inventory for All Option Variations...98 Discounts Settings...98 Customer Category Settings...98 Product Options...99 Shared Options Creating a New Option Copy Options From Other Products Details Button Remove Button Invalid Option Combinations Default Option Combination User Defined Data Cross-selling With User Defined Fields Option Definition Page...103

9 Selection Number Available Selection Sku Suffix Price Change if Chosen Taxable Price Change Weight Change if Chosen Custom Text Cost/Letter of Text Taxable Custom Text Price One Time Price Change? Display Selection Name if Chosen Display Option Description Name if Chosen Invalid Option Combinations Default Option Combination Quantity Discounting View All Quantity Discounts Edit Selected Quantity Discount Copy Selected Discount Copy All Discounts Quantity Discount Table Chapter 9 Gift Certificates 115 Adding Gift Certificates Modifying Gift Certificates Viewing Outstanding Gift Certificates Deleting Gift Certificates Viewing Gift Certificate Usage Chapter 10 Tracking Product Inventory 119 Inventory by Option Selection Enabling Inventory Tracking Viewing Product Inventory Position Inventory List Product Code In Stock Do Not Allow Backordering? Do Not Display in Searches If Out Of Stock? Display Inventory By Options Product Code Track Inventory In Stock...123

10 Do Not Allow Backordering? Inventory Status Messages Adding Inventory Implementing Changes to Inventory Settings Rapid Inventory Update Chapter 11 Import/Export 127 CSV File Layout The Discount Record The Option Record The Option Lock Record The Category Record The Product Record Getting Help Locating CSV File Uploading CSV File Removing CSV Files Downloading CSV Files Synchronizing Products with CSV File Append CSV file to Products Update Products with CSV File Importing the File Create PDG Export File Create Froogle Data Feed File Create Yahoo Product Feed File Selecting Products Downloading the CSV File Chapter 12 Payment Methods 151 Payment Methods Setup Rule # Method Description Specifiers Using an Internet Payment Service Authorization vs. Authorization and Capture AVS Payment Methods USA epay USA epay Source Key USA epay Server Name USA epay Authorization Type...157

11 USA epay Operating Mode File to Which USA epay Transactions are Logged VeriSign Necessary VeriSign Files for Payflow Pro Recurring Billing VeriSign Account Type VeriSign Account Login ID VeriSign Account Password VeriSign Partner VeriSign Vendor Name VeriSign Authorization Type VeriSign Host VeriSign Port File to which VeriSign Transactions are Logged Send the Maximum Amount of Data when Using Pfpro Allow "Show Confirm" PayFlow Link page Payflow Fraud Protection Service Settings Payflow Link Settings in the Merchant Administrator Payflow Link Settings in the VeriSign Manager SurePay Your SurePay Merchant ID SurePay Account Password SurePay Server Name SurePay Authorization Type File to which SurePay Transactions are Logged PayPal PayPal Account PayPal Server Name PayPal IPN Notify URL PayPal Redirect Template Page to Display When Returning to Your Site from PayPal After a Payment has been Completed Page to Display When Returning to Your Site from PayPal After a Payment has been Canceled PayPal Temporary Directory Maximum Size File to Which PayPal Transactions Are Logged Send items ordered to PayPal Log Pending PayPal transactions to log files Configure PayPal Manager WorldPay WorldPay Account Installation ID WorldPay Preferred Account WorldPay Server Name...170

12 Transaction Language WorldPay Authorization Type WorldPay Transaction Mode WorldPay template for redirect back to site Template for Post to WorldPay WorldPay secret password for md5 signature WorldPay callback password WorldPay temporary directory maximum size WorldPay connection type (buyit action only) File to which WorldPay Transactions are Logged WorldPay Administrator Settings LinkPoint LinkPoint API Version LinkPoint Store Name PEM File Name LinkPoint Server Name Port Number LinkPoint Authorization Type File to which LinkPoint Transactions are Logged AIM Gateway Protocol AIM Version AIM Account Login ID AIM Account Password AIM Transaction Key AIM Gateway URL AIM Authorization Type AIM MD5 Hash File to which AIM Transactions are Logged CyberCash CyberCash Merchant ID (CYBERCASH_ID) URL of CyberCash CashRegister (CPPS_HOST) SSL URL of CyberCash CashRegister (CPPS_SSL_HOST) CyberCash Merchant Key (MERCHANT_KEY) Merchant's Authorization Type File to which CyberCash Transactions are Logged EFTSecure EFTSecure Account Login ID EFTSecure Account password EFTSecure Gateway Server Name File to which EFTSecure transactions are logged Moneris Moneris Store ID Moneris Gateway...182

13 Moneris Authorization Type Moneris Test Mode Include Items Ordered with Transaction Details File to which Moneris transactions are logged Moneris Gateway Settings Metacharge MCPE Installation ID MCPE Account ID Gateway Authorization Type File to which metacharge transactions are logged Test mode Chapter 13 VeriSign Recurring Billing 187 Introduction Configuring a Product Number of Payments Amount to be Charged per Payment Frequency of Payments When Billing Begins Customizing Templates Chapter 14 Configuring Shipping 193 Charging for Shipping Product setup Shipping Method setup Shipping Charges setup Shipping Methods Rule # Description Additional Cost Requires Shipping Info Add Subtotal Rules? Add Weight Rules? Add Quantity Rules? Do Not Display on Checkout Page Real Time Shipping Settings Discount Shipping? Adding Shipment Rules Modifiying Shipment Rules Deleting Shipment Rules...199

14 UPS Configuration Allowing Package Tracking for your Customers Tracking Results Template TRACK_RESULTS (Required) Shipping with United States Postal Service Shipping Charges by Subtotal Shipping Charges by Weight Shipping Charges by Quantity Establishing Rules for Shipping Charges Under More Than One Method Chapter 15 Working with UPS OnLine Tools 207 UPS Options Registration UPS Details Pick Up Selections Notification Options Address Verification For Customer Checkout UPS Tracking Shipping Methods Schedule Shipment Validate an Address View UPS 1Z (tracking) Numbers and Shipped Invoices Void a Scheduled Shipment (within 24 hours of scheduling) Manage/View Ship Labels Show Labels for Printing All Show Labels for Individual Printing Schedule All New Orders Create a Shipment Chapter 16 HTML Template Files 223 Template Directory Location Template Header and Footer Settings Row Color Settings Standard HTML Templates Basket HTML Template Basket Empty HTML Template Add Item HTML Template Inventory Option Template Item HTML Template Checkout HTML Template Verify HTML Template...227

15 Alternate SSL Checkout HTML Template Alternate SSL Verify HTML Template Thank You HTML Template Template to Display if Authorization Fails Template to Display if Authorization Succeeds SSL Thank You Template Search Results HTML Template Advanced Search HTML Template Search Results Empty HTML Template Category Template File Multiple Add Template File Error Template Verify Inventory Error Template Shipping Rate Compare Template UPS Tracking Result Template File UPS Tracking Request HTML Template UPS Address Validation Template File Top Navigation HTML Template Left Navigation HTML Template Right Navigation HTML Template Bottom Navigation HTML Template About Us HTML Template Contact HTML Template Home HTML Template User 1 HTML Template User 2 HTML Template User 3 HTML Template User HTML Templates User Login Template File Successful Login Template File Login Failed Template File Checkout Select Template File Guest Template File Register New User Template File Registration Successful Template File User Update Template File Unauthorized Action Template File Anonymous Check-out HTML Template File Alternate Anonymous SSL Check-out HTML Template File Multiple Shipment Templates Multiple Shipment Check-out Template Multiple Shipment SSL Check-out Template Multiple Shipment Verify Template...235

16 Multiple Shipment SSL Verify Template Multiple Shipment Thank You Template Multiple Shipment SSL Thank You Template Multiple Shipment Credit Accept Template Chapter 17 Sales Tax Configuration 237 Sales Tax Rules Chapter 18 Multiple Ship To Options 239 Adding Multiple Recipients to Customer Account Choosing Multiple Recipients for an Order Adding Shipping Addresses Modifying Multiple Recipient Addresses Deleting Multiple Recipients Multiship Templates Chapter 19 Custom Buttons and Frames 245 Custom Buttons Settings Frames Settings Name of Frame Containing Cart Contents Name of Main Window Frame Name of Checkout Window Frame Chapter 20 Settings 249 Settings Do Not Include Credit Card Data Customer Notifications To Template File for Customer Notifications Vendor Notifications To Template File for Vendor Notifications Program Sendmail Client Program Location Server Full Name From Which s Are Sent QMAILUSER Environment Variable From Address for Sent s HTML s...253

17 Chapter 21 Template Files 255 Call Tags in the Template <!---ORDER---> Tag <!---SHIPTO---> Tag <!---BILLTO---> Tag <invoicenumber> Tag <contactname> Tag <billtext> Tag <!---PASSTHROUGH---> Tag <sitename> Tag <!---SOFTGOOD_LINKS---> Tag Chapter 22 Order Settings and Logging 259 Order Logging/Retrieval Do Not Include Credit Card Data Log Orders to Database Order Log File Order Log CSV File Order Log XML File CSV Text Delimiter CSV Delimiter Invoice Number Prefix Invoice Header File Create Relational-Ready CSV File? Create One-line CSV File Add One-Line Product Description to CSV File Order Log Reports Select Data Source Select Date Range Show Order Invoices / Sales Reports Chapter 23 Configuring Product Search Results 267 Search Result Style Display Price for Thumbnail Searches Search Product Description Number of Results Per Page Number of Results Per Row Order of Search Results Maximum Number of Search Results Use Product Category Templates for Category Search Results Display Search Display Optimization...271

18 Load Minimum Product Information Load All Product Information Allow Searches of User Defined Fields Chapter 24 Exporting the Order Log 273 Standard CSV Order Log Relational CSV Delimiters Records The A Record The F Record The B Record The P Record The X Record The S Record The I Record The T Record The D Record One-Line CSV Order Log PDG Accounting Accelerator Preparation Installation Setting Up QuickBooks for PDG Accounting Accelerator Importing Orders Customizing Invoice Display Importing PDG Orders Into UPS Worldship Overview of Importing Process Overview of Setting Up the Import Process Setting up the Data Source Name Installing the Worldship Mapping file Importing the Order CSV Importing the Shipments into Worldship Chapter 25 Configuring Order Discounting 297 Pricing Category Discounting Order Subtotal Discounting Edit Discount Table Remove Discount Table Copy All Discounts Copy Selected Discount Subtotal Discount Table...300

19 Chapter 26 International Settings 303 Currency Accepted Secondary Currency Secondary Currency Conversion Factor Percentage of Final Total Added to Order to Cover Currency Fluctuations Default Country selected when entering customer information Countries Selection Configuration Chapter 27 Working with Zones 307 Zone Options Zone Actions Editing Zones Chapter 28 Affiliate Tracking 313 Implementing Affiliate Tracking Third-Party Affiliate Tracking Chapter 29 Embedding PDG Commerce 317 Calling PDG Commerce with HTML Forms Calling PDG Commerce with Hypertext References PDG Commerce Storebuilder PDG Commerce Actions PreAdd Action MultiPreAdd Action Add Action Display Action Checkout Action Embedding PDG Commerce's Search Function Embedding a Soft Search Embedding a Hard Search with Form Tags Embedding a Hard Search with Images or Text Links PDG Commerce Actions for Logging In and Registering Login Action Register Action Update User Action...329

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21 Chapter 1 Welcome to PDG Commerce An introduction to PDG Commerce and Internet commerce W hether you are a retailer or a wholesaler, a global company or a small shop, PDG Commerce is the commerce solution for marketing your products on the World Wide Web. Developed with the merchant in mind, PDG Commerce integrated into your Web store allows your customers to log in, easily browse the available products, choose a product to buy, specify a desired attribute (size, color etc.), select payment and shipment options, submit the order and then sit back and anticipate delivery from you. What's New in PDG Commerce? As Internet commerce continues to evolve, so do the demands placed on our e-commerce software packages. In response to customer input and market trends, our development team has spent countless hours installing new features and capabilities that have made PDG Commerce a premier Internet commerce tool. Already one of the most robust shopping carts and database-oriented Internet catalog software packages, these new features will help set your Web store apart from the competition, allowing you to maximize sales. Site Design PDG Commerce now offers the Site Design feature, allowing you to configure the entire look and feel of your web site and Commerce templates directly through your Commerce Administrator. You can apply a pre-defined skin to your templates, which automatically sets button images, template layouts, font attributes, and web site colors for all Commerce generated pages. You may also choose different attributes from several different skins to install, or PDG Commerce -- User Guide 21

22 1 -- Welcome to PDG Commerce configure your own custom site design. You may even save multiple custom skins and change between them with ease. PDG Commerce also allows you to define your own templates to be used with your Commerce, so even your static web pages can be displayed using the Site Design features. This new option allows you to specify your home page, contact information page, store information page, UPS tracking request page, and advanced searching page. There are also three available user defined templates that may be used for any purpose. Import/Export Utility New in PDG Commerce is the ability to import and export product CSV (comma delimited) files within the Commerce Administrator. These files may be edited within a spreadsheet application. Import new product lists to your Commerce database, add to your existing lists, and update existing products by simply importing a new CSV file. You may also quickly and easily download backup files of any or all current product categories. Finally, the Import/Export utility allows you to export your product lists in Froogle or Yahoo sales formats for direct import into these applications. Administrator Passwords PDG Commerce now offers the ability to create several users for the Commerce Administrator. The Admin user may create additional user accounts with separate usernames and passwords. The Admin user will determine which sections of the Commerce Administrator are accessible to each user, and restrict access as necessary. User accounts may be created, modified, or deleted at any time by the Admin user. Recurring Billing VeriSign Payflow Pro users now have the ability to configure recurring billing products. You may set your products to charge specific initial payments, as well as determine how much each additional payment will cost, how often they will be charged, how many payments will be required. Search Result Limitation When a customer attempts a search that returns more than your set maximum number of search results, the maximum number of available search results will be displayed. An error message will appear indicating that not all of the search results were returned, so the customer will need to refine the searching criteria. 22 PDG Commerce -- User Guide

23 1 -- Welcom to PDG Commerce Product Description and Thumbnail Image on Basket PDG Commerce now offers the option of displaying additional information on your default Basket page. You may now specify that you want the thumbnail of each product to be displayed in the customer's basket. You may also choose to display the product descriptions in the cart as HTML links that open each product's details page. Web Store Logo In the Commerce Administrator, you may specify the location of your web store's logo image. This image will be displayed on the default templates, and you may specify its use on any custom templates. ThankYou Page Font You may now choose not to use the mono space font on the default ThankYou template. Disabling the mono space font will cause the ThankYou template to display in the same font used on the rest of the default Commerce templates. Macintosh OS X PDG Commerce is now available for use on Macintosh OS X Servers. Many companies that host graphics-intensive web sites prefer to offer Macintosh OS X Servers, and now they may integrate these sites with PDG Commerce. Moneris The Moneris payment gateway has been added as an integrated payment service for use in PDG Commerce. Moneris offers the ability to send additional customer and vendor s, and you may choose to send these s in your Commerce Administrator.. Pricing Category Discounts PDG Commerce now allows separate discount customer categories to be configured with a discount code. Merchants may send s to their preferred customers with a link containing the appropriate code. Accessing the web site in this manner will temporarily move the customer to the discount category. After an order is placed, customers will be returned to their original customer categories. This new option allows you to provide temporary discounts and sales to existing customers. PDG Commerce -- User Guide 23

24 1 -- Welcome to PDG Commerce About this Guide This book is the general user's guide for PDG Commerce. It provides an overview of the installation, and an explanation of the configuration and administration of PDG Commerce. Conventions used in this guide: Convention Monospaced font Bold monospaced font [bracketed monospaced font] ;monospaced font Explanation this typeface is used for any excerpts from configuration or data files boldface type indicates items that should appear in the file exactly as it appears here bracketed text indicates text should be replaced with what it represents lines preceded by a semicolon indicate text that is a comment line - these lines are not processed, they are added for readability A companion manual entitled Installation Guide accompanies this user guide and details the actual installation of PDG Commerce. Getting Help Technical support is available at our web site at Additionally, there is a message forum available for PDG Commerce users, at 24 PDG Commerce -- User Guide

25 Chapter 2 PDG Commerce Basics An overview of Web stores and how shopping carts facilitate Internet commerce U ntil the advent of the World Wide Web, selling goods and services has traditionally meant securing physical space or creating a mail order catalog, hiring salespeople and managers, investing in point-of-sale equipment and supplies and, of course, advertising all to operate just ONE location for twelve or so hours a day. Storefronts on the Internet With Internet access to the World Wide Web, all of this has changed. Large and small companies alike have seized the opportunity created by the Web and developed what are known as Web stores sites where products and services are available to be bought and sold worldwide, 24 hours a day. Getting started requires very little capital investment, virtually no physical space requirements and minimal human intervention. Indeed, a level playing field for companies of all sizes has been established. While it may seem simple, creating a Web store presents its own set of unique challenges. First, the site itself has to be created. From there, a Webmaster must continuously maintain the site, inputting changes and updates. Further, the product offering needs to be kept current (statistics, pricing, information on availability) and orders need to be fulfilled. And finally create it and they will come? Not exactly. You must get the word out. Advertising is still necessary, even with a Web store. But, for this discussion, let's say you have created a magnificent site complete with nice graphics and text touting your company's products. You've registered with all of the necessary search engines and have even done some advertising external to the Web. Once visitors land on your site, how do they tell you, Hey, I want to buy that nice blue gadget, so here's my credit card PDG Commerce -- User Guide 25

26 2 -- PDG Commerce Basics number and here's where to ship it? This is where a shopping cart completes the picture. What is a Shopping Cart? In general terms, an Internet shopping cart (sometimes referred to as a virtual shopping cart) is a software program that, when integrated into your Web store, enables customers to choose one or more items from the Web store, specify particular options that might be available and then purchase those items collectively in just a few steps all online. A Database Of course, if you are already familiar with the general operation of a virtual shopping cart you might consider the aforementioned an overly simplified explanation. The shopping cart needs to be able to obtain product descriptions and inventories, and store and retrieve orders and customer information. PDG Commerce stores all of this information in a third party commercial database. The database is specifically designed to hold large amounts of data efficiently and allow it to be stored and retrieved quickly. PDG Commerce takes advantage of this by connecting to popular database packages. A Basket Just as you might choose grocery items from several different aisles at your local supermarket, a visitor to your Web site can navigate through your site, choosing items which may appear on different pages from one another. Continuing this analogy, as you walk down different aisles in a supermarket, items are placed in a shopping cart, which serves as a holding basket for those items until you are ready to check out. Similarly, shopping cart software keeps track of the chosen items as a customer navigates through your Web store. A Checkout Counter Once the customer is finished shopping, the shopping cart summarizes the items and facilitates the checkout process allowing him to pay for all items at once just like the checkout counter at your favorite supermarket. It totals the items placed in the basket, applies any necessary discounts and sales taxes, and adds shipping costs according to the shipment method specified by the customer (i.e.: US Mail, Next Day Air, UPS Ground, etc.). Fields are provided to input ship to addresses and credit card numbers if the customer is paying by credit card. PDG Commerce can be configured to communicate directly with Internet payment services such as USA epay or Verisign or others to provide real-time authorization of credit cards or checks during the checkout process. 26 PDG Commerce -- User Guide

27 2 -- PDG Commerce Basics Of course, the analogy above assumes that the customer can rely on the shopping cart's permanence that is, once items are placed in the cart, they remain there as the customer navigates from page to page until he is ready to check out. What's more, if the customer leaves the Web store without checking out, the items remain in the cart and are still there upon his return. PDG Commerce operates on this very notion of permanence. As is the case with real life shopping carts, virtual shopping carts exist in many different varieties. Some are very sophisticated technically, and have a professional appearance about them, while others are very easy to use. Unfortunately, these attributes do not always co-exist within the same product. PDG Commerce has the flexibility to meet the needs of virtually every type of Internet storefront. It is customizable from the template pages right down to the type of navigational buttons you choose to use. This helps create a seamless connection between the main body of your Web site and the e-commerce software itself. How do Shopping Carts Work? Just as there are many different types of virtual shopping carts on the market today, the ways in which these carts function also differ. Some work by using simple data collection forms and passing the information through the URL of the Web store. Others work by storing the customer's shopping cart in a database on the Web store's server. Further still, many work by using cookies small pieces of information sent by a Web store's server to a customer s Web browser so that it can be read back from that browser. Each method in and of itself has its advantages and disadvantages. While relatively easy to implement, passing the information through the URL of the Web store involves using form variables in the URL and a listening CGI component on the Web store side. This method by itself can be messy, as URLs can get cluttered and unorganized. Storing the customer's shopping cart in a database on the server allows Web store owners to see the existing shopping carts at any time, before or after purchase. This information can be valuable, allowing Web store administrators to gauge future product needs based on the contents of shopping carts belonging to customers who, for whatever reason, did not complete the checkout process on their last visit, but may intend to complete the process at a later date. By using cookies, a virtual shopping cart can be stored in the customer's Web browser, instead of the server eliminating any database maintenance that would normally be necessary, and thus any potential functionality issues. PDG Commerce uses a combination of these methods, capitalizing on the strengths of each in order to deliver a robust, flexible Internet commerce solution. As for cookies, PDG Commerce uses them only to implement its cart technology. PDG Commerce -- User Guide 27

28 2 -- PDG Commerce Basics Browsers, cookies, and AOL You must have cookies enabled on your browser in order to use PDG Commerce. If you or your customers attempt to use the webstore without cookies enabled, it will not function properly. Most likely, your customers will be unable to check out if they are not using a cookie-enabled browser. To use the Merchant Administrator, your browser will also need Javascript enabled. Certain administrator functions rely on Javascript to preload data form fields. AOL Browsers have several difficulties, particularly with a framed environment. If you are having difficulties with your Web site and your site is designed using frames, try navigating through your site with the frames disabled. You may also want to try removing the target names from the Frames Settings in the Merchant Administrator. If these steps solve your problem, your browser is probably at fault. 28 PDG Commerce -- User Guide

29 Chapter 3 Installation This section provides an overview of the installation process, which is covered in depth in this guide's companion piece, 'Installation Guide. B efore you begin the installation and setup process for PDG Commerce, you should verify that the system which will be running the software meets certain requirements. Likewise, just as software is written one way for Windows computers and another way for Unix based systems, PDG Commerce is available for a variety of platforms. Be sure that the copy you are installing is compatible with your Web server s platform. Backing Up If you are upgrading from a previous version of PDG Commerce or PDG Shopping Cart, the importance of backing up your entire Web store cannot be stressed enough. If you encounter difficulties with the installation, or should you accidentally overwrite your product database file, a backup copy can be utilized to quickly restore your Web store s functionality. It is recommended that you duplicate all of your Web store s files regularly. Optimally, this should be done in a directory that is not on your Web server. If this is not possible, then back up your files in a directory other than your Web store s root directory. The files that need to be duplicated are located in the PDG_Commerce directory. System Requirements Generally, the following requirements should be met in order for PDG Commerce to function properly on your Web server: A Web server that is Common Gateway Interface (CGI) compliant (most major Web servers, including Netscape, Apache, IIS 4.0, NCSA, Cern, etc.) PDG Commerce -- User Guide 29

30 3 -- Installation The CGI directory on your web server must be able to execute compiled binary scripts in the web browser. A database product compatible with PDG Commerce: For Windows based machines, this is an ODBC compliant database, like Access and Microsoft SQL Server. For UNIX, this will be mysql. At least 6 Mb of hard drive space available in the CGI directory Ability for the Web server to access and write to the PDG_Commerce directory and subdirectories for retaining logs, invoice numbers, and using other temporary data files. A Web server that is SSL (secure socket layer) compatible to be able to view order information through the Merchant Administrator PDG Commerce is capable of sending s itself, without the use of sendmail, blat, or any other 3rd party program. As for your customers, they will need to use a Web browser that supports client-side cookies and tables in order for PDG Commerce to display and function properly while visiting your Web store. For the vast majority of your customers today, this will not be an issue as Netscape Communicator, Navigator and Microsoft Internet Explorer are table and cookie capable. The installation of PDG Shopping Cart follows these general steps: 1. Install PDG Commerce onto your Web server 2. Verify that PDG Commerce has installed its license, or manually install the PDG Commerce license if necessary 3. Setup database, and configure PDG Commerce to access this database. 4. Configure PDG Commerce using the Merchant Administrator (this includes defining store settings, products, shipping options and payment methods) 5. Embed PDG Commerce calls into your current HTML pages 6. Create custom HTML template pages for your Web store (optional) 7. Test your Web store At this point, we recommend that you refer to this guide's companion piece Installation Guide for more detailed instructions on the PDG Commerce installation procedures. 30 PDG Commerce -- User Guide

31 Chapter 4 Merchant Administrator Learning your way around your Web store's central office T he Merchant Administrator for PDG Commerce is your Web store's central office. It is here that you will perform store manager duties such as inputting or deleting products, updating product prices, configuring shipping options, tracking inventory, setting the operational parameters of PDG Commerce and much more. Since it is a Web-based administrator, the PDG Commerce Merchant Administrator is easily accessed through your favorite Web browser such as Netscape Navigator or Microsoft Internet Explorer. If you are using a browser other than Navigator or Explorer, make sure that it is capable of displaying forms and tables, as the configurable settings in the Merchant Administrator are embedded in HTML forms. In order to take advantage of all of the Merchant Administrator s functions, using a JavaScript enabled browser is also recommended. Reminders Check with your ISP and verify the operating system (OS) used on their servers. PDG Software supports the following platforms: Windows NT, Linux, BSDi, FreeBSD, Solaris, Digital Unix and IRIX. Make sure you are using the correct PDG Commerce version for that OS, e.g. if your ISP is using Microsoft Windows 2000 on their host server, you must download the Microsoft Windows version of PDG Commerce. The name of the PDG Commerce executable (in your CGI directory) should be commerce.exe on Microsoft Windows NT systems. The PDG Commerce executable (in your CGI directory) should be commerce or commerce.cgi on the various UNIX systems. Note that you can rename these executables to PDG Commerce -- User Guide 31

32 4 -- Merchant Administrator suit your website. You may need to check with your Web host to verify which extension your executables require. Note: Once you have explored the introduction provided on your commerce.html page, it is suggested that you remove that page from your Web server. You may also rename it on your Web server and continue to use it. If you do remove the commerce.html page, you may access your Merchant Administrator by directing your browser to the following address: If you suspect that there may be some corruption in your configuration files, DO NOT MAKE CHANGES LIVE! Doing so may make it impossible to recover the old settings without contacting your system administrator for a backup copy. See the section on Backups later in this chapter for more details. Accessing the Merchant Administrator To enter the Merchant Administrator, point your Web browser to the /CommConfig directory of the server where your Web store resides. For example, if your Web store's address is then the Merchant Administrator is accessed by pointing your browser to This will load the login page for the PDG Commerce Merchant Administrator. Login Screen At this point, if the login page for the Merchant Administrator does not load, revisit the installation procedures and make sure that you copied all of the files from the archive s Your_document_directory subdirectory into your Web server s primary document directory. Also, your Web server should be configured to use the filename index.html as the default document for directories. Otherwise, PDG Commerce Merchant Administrator may not function properly. If you are using a 3 rd party ISP to host your Web store, check with them to verify this setting 32 PDG Commerce -- User Guide

33 4 -- Merchant Administrator Once the login screen appears, type your Merchant Administrator account s user name and password and click the Login button. Merchant Administrator Navigation Sidebar When logging in, you have the option enabling the Navigation Bar. This is a frame on the left side of your browser, which allows you to quickly navigate the main sections of the Merchant Administrator. All of the sections are listed in the Navigation Bar, as well as a log out link, and a Make Live link (see below concerning Make Live ). Additionally, product and product category quick-search boxes are added for ease-of-use. For the box labeled SKU enter in the product code or partial sku of the product or product s inventory you wish to view. If you enter a partial sku, PDG Commerce will list the best matches (up to 50 maximum). You can then choose which product to view. The functionality is similar for product categories, except PDG Commerce uses the product category code. Admin Users Section Within the PDG Commerce Administrator you may create several users with varying access capabilities. The Admin user will determine which sections of the Commerce Administrator are accessible to each user as accounts are created, and restrict access as necessary. User accounts may be created, modified, or deleted at any time by the Admin user. You may access the Admin Users section of the Commerce Administrator by clicking the 'Users' link from the Main Menu. Note: All changes made in the Admin Users section are live as soon as the appropriate button is clicked to input the information. You do not need to "Make Changes Live" to update user information. PDG Commerce -- User Guide 33

34 4 -- Merchant Administrator Adding a New User New users are created in this section. Enter the new user's name in the "User Name" field, the password in the "Password" field, and enter the password again for accuracy in the "Confirm Password" field. Next click the 'Add New User' button to create the user account. Add New User section User names may only contain alphanumeric characters. Only the following characters are allowed: abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ Passwords may contain any characters. Each password must contain at least eight characters, one of which must be either a digit ( ) or a special character (non-alphanumeric character). When created, new users do not have access to any sections of the Commerce Administrator. Please see the following section entitled "Configuring User Access" for further information on these settings Managing Existing Users The Admin user password, user passwords, and user settings may be configured in the Current Users section of the Admin Users page. You may also delete existing users in this section. Current Users section 34 PDG Commerce -- User Guide

35 4 -- Merchant Administrator Changing the Administrator Password The Adminstrator of the accounts will always maintain a user name of Admin. When logged in as the Admin user, you may change the password in the Admin Users section of the Commerce Administrator. If you have forgotten the Admin user password and cannot log in, it may be reset by modifying the ConfigPW file located within the PDG_Commerce folder. It is strongly suggested that you change the password immediately upon gaining access to the Commerce Administrator so the Admin password will once again be encrypted. Enter the new password in the "Password" field. Enter it again for accuracy in the "Confirm Password" field. Click the 'Update Password' button to change the password. The Admin user password may contain any characters. Each password must contain at least eight characters, one of which must be either a digit ( ) or a special character (non-alphanumeric character). Changing User Passwords User passwords may be changed in the individual user's section on the Admin Users page. Only the Admin may change users' passwords. Enter the new password in the "Password" field for the appropriate user. Enter it again for accuracy in the "Confirm Password" field. Click the 'Update Password' button to change the password. Configuring User Access After creating a new user, the Admin will choose which sections of the Commerce Administrator may be accessed by that user. Check the boxes next to the appropriate Administrator sections to grant access, then click the 'Update User' button to set the access. The Users section of the Commerce Administrator does not appear in this list, as the Admin is the only user allowed to make changes to user accounts. Removing a User To remove an existing user, click the 'Remove User' button in the appropriate user's settings on the Admin Users page. Making Live Changes to Your Web Store As you navigate through the various pages of the Merchant Administrator making changes or updating items, you should notice a Status message on the top left-hand side of each page. This message indicates whether or not certain settings within the Merchant Administrator are live on your Web site. This is a global status message which means that a change to any indi- PDG Commerce -- User Guide 35

36 4 -- Merchant Administrator vidual setting will cause a not live status message to be displayed, regardless of which page you happen to be on within the Merchant Administrator. Certain changes in your Merchant Administrator take effect immediately, and do not need to be made live. In general, these are settings that are stored in your database and are not staged. Things that you can change, that take affect without making changes live, include: Customer information (including any address information) Customer Categories Order Discounting (by subtotal) Product Inventory Product Categories For example, let's say that you access the Merchant Administrator and make a change to a sales tax rule. Then, before clicking the Make Changes Live link on the main menu, you go to the Shipping Rules page to review your settings. The status message on the top of the Shipping Rules page indicates that the settings are not live, even though you have not made any changes to the shipping settings. This is because the sales tax change you made earlier has not yet been made live or implemented. Product definitions are different in regards to making changes live. When a product is added to the database, it is initially not live, although it is stored in the database. Clicking Make Live will then make the product available for your customer base. Products added to the database can also be made live by moving them temporarily to the Staging Product Category, and then moving them to their proper product category. The not live message will remain until you click the Make Changes Live link on the Merchant Administrator s main menu, then the message will read These settings are live. Of course, if you make any number of changes and then decide to discard them; you can do so by clicking Discard Changes on the main menu. This action will produce a confirmation screen. Once you have confirmed that you want to discard the changes, the Administrator clears all changes since the last time you clicked Make Changes Live you do not have the ability to pick and choose which changes to discard. Warning: Use of the Back button on your browser may cause the improper status message to be displayed. It is recommended to avoid the use of your browser s Back button when at all possible. Instead, use the links within the Administrator s pages to navigate through your Merchant Administrator. Backups You should back up your PDG Commerce files often. In the event of a server crash or an accidental deletion of a file, backup files can be used to restore 36 PDG Commerce -- User Guide

37 4 -- Merchant Administrator your fully functioning PDG Commerce. There are several files you should back up. All are under your PDG_Commerce directory located in your Web server s CGI directory. The following files, in particular, should be backed up. shopper.conf shipping.conf All of your Template files Generally, it is a good idea to backup your entire PDG_Commerce subdirectory, if you have the space. Such a backup can be performed inside many popular FTP programs, and several HTML editors. If you need more help with this topic, please contact your Web host for your required method to access/copy these files. Replicating and Restoring Master Data PDG Commerce has the ability to replicate your Web store s master data files with a single click. From the Merchant Administrator s main menu, the Maintenance link will lead you to a page with two links that control this feature: Replicate Master Data and Restore Master Data. Clicking Replicate Master Data will make a duplicate copy of many of the files located in the PDG_Commerce directory, including the following files: shopper.conf shipping.conf countries.txt currency.txt configpw shopper.txt cartconfig.txt Templates folder (if located in the PDG_Commerce directory) Note: If you are using Site Design or if your PDGCommTemplates or Templates folder is not located in your PDG_Commerce directory, your template files will not be copied by replicating master data. ProdText folder Templates folder All zone files in use Warning: The Replicate and Restore function DOES NOT back up or restore your database. If you wish to backup and/or restore you database, you will need to do so through the database itself. (In the case of Microsoft Access databases, you can just make a copy of the.mdb file.) Note: The Replicate and Restore features will not be available to users testing locally on Windows 95 or Windows 98. If you are using a Windows 95/98 machine to test your Web store s settings, the Replicate and Restore actions will have to be done live on your Web server. PDG Commerce -- User Guide 37