Larry Jaques wrote:
On Sat, 11 Jun 2011 16:05:19 -0700,
wrote:

One of my pals put together a web store using Google's
'checkout store gadget':
http://groups.google.com/group/check...t/topics?gvc=2

The store is fairly user-unfriendly because:
* Product images take much too long to update

Did she use Photoshop to deflate her unwieldy 2MB pics down to 80KB
(or much smaller, depending upon pixel size needed) pics, with very
little loss of clarity? I've been doing that for years. It's called
optimization. This can make a slovenly store into a nice experience
all by itself.

Dunno. The thumbnails are *tiny* yet take forever to load.
'View Large Image' is instantaneous, so I guess that she
does not have separate files for thumbnails and large images.


* The code does not support 'global search' across multiple
categories.

Use a different search module or store software.

That's the idear.


* The code does not use screen space well.

See above.


How does she create a store that has the functionality and
user-friendliness of the 'gold standard' mcmaster.com
quickly, economically and with high quality without
a steep 'learning curve'.

Simple. She buys a custom, ready-to-use store from an integrator, at
great cost. McMaster probably has $100k invested in their store, with
several years of testing and massaging to get it to where it is today.

After looking at Zen Cart, I can see that she doesn't really need to
spend on a 'McMaster' scale to radically improve her site.

Thanks!

--Winston