As I was in the office last week Sebastian showed me the new download section he was working on. With some mouse clicks you can customize yourself a download package with SilverCart and depending modules. You do not have to worry any longer how to rename module directories or where to put them because the package just has to be copied to your server or working directory. In the past, many problems were caused by wrong directories or missing modules or wrong module versions. Today I learned by browsing silvercart.org that this feature is online for a better user experience. Under all the project workload in the office Sebastian still finds the time to think about such problems and finding a solution for them.

Today we published our new documentation under "doc.silvercart.org", providing a much better experience for users and developers in search for information on SilverCart.

With the announcement of SilverStripe 3 and the first preview versions, we found ourselves trapped in a deadlock. We knew that we had to modify the administration area to enable new features, but have been hesitating to do so and trying to stall for time. Since the architecture of the admin area in SilverStripe 3 is subject to heavy modification, we were afraid we will have to do it all over again once SilverStripe 3 is out.

GroupViews are a very powerful concept in SilverCart. By optimizing how a bunch of product groups or products are displayed, you can greatly affect the conversion rate of your online store. A higher conversion rate means more turnover and more turnover means more profit. This is why you should take the time to master SilverCart GroupViews.

Disclaimer: This post is in no way meant to feed a flamewar. Even though I am obviously biased when it comes to SilverStripe, the german version of this very site - silvercart.de - was powered by WordPress with a commercial template for almost 10 months. There were valid reasons for this decision and I would do it again without hesitating.

This is for those of you who just can't wait to get your hands on our new module for product variations: upon request we will send you the current beta release.

I just recorded a new screencast showing the installation process of SilverCart 1.2. The good news is: You do not have to touch the source code any more. The installation with the help of a web form which you already know if you ever installed SilverStripe.

Yesterday I have been to an online store and I tried to buy something. I put a product into the cart and went to the checkout. I got as far as the login screen. As I realized that that a registration was required I quit. I did not want to register, because I had no confidence that the registration process would be easy.

I am very happy to see our E-Commerce Module for SilverStripe being adopted and used by other SilverStripe developers and accepted by customers other than ours. Especially remarkable is the fact that the first productive non-pixeltricks SilverCart installation is based in the UK.