Google Base (FROOGLE) Changes, why they wont accept automatically actinic bulk sites

[mattc]

Ok, im fairly new here and this might not make me popular, but i'm not sure this is a bad thing.

IMO, the lack of single page per product is my biggest disappointment in actinic. sure, you can achieve it with some thought and modifications, or a TP plugin, but ultimately, its web 2.0 ecomerce good practice and a flaw which many of us would like resolved.

Google, is after consumer satisfaction. If i search for a product on google, i want to be taken straight to a page about my product. Its efficient and informative. Clicking a link to a product and being greeted by a a list of similar items might be simpler for web design, but i think its poor usability. Google are in a great position to ensure that ecomerce packages like actinic, pull all the stops out to create a consumer-centric internet shopping experience.

[leehack]

Matthew your post has amazed me and not much does that. I can think of 4 ways we can currently provide an SPP setup using just standard actinic facilities. What on earth are you on about?

No thought, no modifications and no plugins are required, just the standard facilities in front of you is all you need. There is even 2 methods detailed in the AUG explaining what to do.

[mattc]

then whats the problem?

[leehack]

I'm obviously living on Mars is the problem, you are knocking the software for something it cannot do, yet it can actually do it in at least 4 different ways. I'm confused.

[RuralWeb]

IMO there are too many ways of creating spps within actinic and that can lead to some confusion but i suppose it gives people the choice of how to generate the pages. Much on the problems come from people who had sites in v7 and below where multi product pages were the norm but over the last two years spps have become a must have and they need to convert sites. Of course this is hard work and there are plugins to help but it can be done within actinic. Certainly anyone who builds a site with multi product pages in v9 is asking for trouble.

[mattc]

section - product list - extended info seems to be the general layout when creating an actinic product.

i'm not saying its rubbish, im saying it could be better.

Also. i checked the AUG (so it must be an advanced feature at the very least) but i cant see this anywhere. Could you point it out please.

[leehack]

You are not saying it's rubbish, right OK, i'll take your word on that, that's not how i read it at least. Maybe you have an old AUG, download the latest one, you'd have to be called Mr Wonder to miss them, they're listed together just after each other. It's towards the start of it from memory, read the index.

The strange anchoring system you have on your site is far more taxing to do than SPPs, i actually have no idea what you have done to achieve that. So do not be put off by it being in an advanced guide, it's incredibly easy.

[RuralWeb]

oh I forgot to mention that I would never use the ext info method for all the obvious reasons. But we have been here before many many times over the last three years and I want to keep my post count down a bit.

[leehack]

But we have been here before many many times over the last three years and I want to keep my post count down a bit.

LOL Mal have you lost it now too?

[mattc]

thanks leehack, my AUG was out of date. Even so, not easy to find.
For future reference, people should look for "Creating a Listing Page which Links Through to Full Details Pages".

The new AUG has some great stuff in; lots of it will be very useful me. If the froogle export will point to the extended info pages then this is a good solution. Actinic should make the AUG option 1, a standard feature.

[Jan]

I'd like to see a product count on the section details, so if you wanted 1 product per page, you would still enter your products as a logical list in the section then were in but then if you set your section product count to 1 (or 3 or 10 or whatever you wanted), Actinic would then automatically generate pages with the appropriate amount of products. Doing it this way would be easier to use and would also stop the bloat caused in the database by having to define extra sections for each product (if you choose to do it that way). A wish list thing I think though.

Regards,

[Ginnys Attic]

I'd like to see a product count on the section details, so if you wanted 1 product per page, you would still enter your products as a logical list in the section then were in but then if you set your section product count to 1 (or 3 or 10 or whatever you wanted), Actinic would then automatically generate pages with the appropriate amount of products. Doing it this way would be easier to use and would also stop the bloat caused in the database by having to define extra sections for each product (if you choose to do it that way). A wish list thing I think though.

Regards,

Add my vote for the wish list on this

I wouldn't have thought it would be that hard either for Actinic to add this simple and common place ecommerce functionality and thats what i don't understand. Surely all they would need to add to the product details would be an option for Page Title, Section Text, Meta Description and Meta Keywords and then the software could create the pages as required.

Not only is the bloat of sections an issue but also the time it takes to create the damn things, a site with say 2000 products woud require 2000 sections to be created and 2000 products to added which to me seems to be at least double the work and time it should be.

[Darren B]

Valid point Jan, it would make it easier, I use the simplest method of section and product, i have used section links with add to basket that also click through to the SPP's but what ever way you do it you have to create it twice.

having actinic create the product in its unique section/page would be a good idea

D

[RuralWeb]

I agree jan. That the way some other systtems do it or you can enter the product details which creates the spp and then you select from a dropdown which subsections you want it to show in where it generates a cut down product which links through to the main product.

Lee I may be going mad yes but the other week someone took the mickey out of my post count andnot having a life outside this form so now the summers here and my noddy car is fixed I will not be on here much

[Darren B]

i want to be taken straight to a page about my product. Its efficient and informative. Clicking a link to a product and being greeted by a a list of similar items might be simpler for web design

I understand this Matt, but when you have items like this http://www.casupply.co.uk/acatalog/2..._Sheeting.html then spp's are not the best option, the customer buying products like these normally needs most of the information about sizes on the screen at once. People use our site to plan there projects, the can adjust them to suit the sizes avaliable. Having an SPP would make it harder work for the consumer.

Im not saying no to SPP's i use them 100% on a couple of sites beacuse it suits the product. But it is not always the best way just MO

D