Relating product id's to product components and choices

[giles.thurston]

Hi,

I am currently working on my first Actinic Catalog site and am after some advice.

My client has extracted their data from their stock control system. Unfortunately it contains a line for each derivative of an individual item including size, colour and optional extras. Each of these derivatives also has its own unique product code! Some of these properties are embedded in the product name and can only be identified from there, to make matters worse there isn't a standard pattern in the name to split it back out.

I had planned to do a hierarchal import to reflect the custom properties, however due to the random embedding of these in the product name this is not really going to be possible. I'm happy that I can replicate the product in Actinic by manually creating a product with a base price and then a series of components with choices to reflect the different options with any additional costs involved. My client is also happy that they will have to be created by hand because of the poor quality of the export.

My question (finally) is, is there any way of associating a product code with specific components and choices? I am hoping that if my client wishes to do an import at a later date to update prices he can update the product code and new price and it will update both the product and underlying components and choices.

After routing around the help files I'm not sure this is possible so thought I would check here where the experts are. Any advice would be gratefully received.

Thanks in advance

Giles

[cdicken]

My question (finally) is, is there any way of associating a product code with specific components and choices? I am hoping that if my client wishes to do an import at a later date to update prices he can update the product code and new price and it will update both the product and underlying components and choices.

You can set up a permutation (in the 'Permutations' tab of a component) to 'Use Associated Product Prices'. This will use whatever price is set for the product line - the things that you get from your customer with the product codes. As long as a customer keeps the same product code for the product when they update the prices, the permutation will still just use the associated price, so it will be updated.

[NormanRouxel]

Giles,

If you tell us the name of the Stock Control System, there may be others here who have experience of importing or linking from it. A new thread "Importing from XXXStock" might get noticed by more people.