Magento Development Starting Point

Recently we were contracted to redesign a Magento site that had been set up in a way that was not fitting to the site owners.  I’m actually taking a a break from it right now and will have more to post on it in the next few days.

The first post on this program usage will be a bit weak of us.  We’re going to restate the innstalation guide and make video of it over the next few days.  This way we can add some to the mix.  We’re also going to attempt to engage the assistance of Lynda.com to see if they are interested in a cooperated effort on a full tutorial.  Since they don’t have one yet, this should prove an interesting attempt.

Anyway, here is the install text for Magento with more to come on the initial design specs.

Magento content management system is an open source eCommerce application, perfect for online stores. It is a powerful software characterized by great flexibility and full control over the look, content and functionality of your online shop. Magento CMS was created not so long ago but proved itself to be an excellent solution for web store owners. Find more information regarding Magento CMS on Magento site.

As our resource is aimed towards bringing quality tutorials on how to start business online, this time we would like to offer you a tutorial on how to create and customize online store run on Magento CMS and based on Magento template. You will get detailed instructions regarding Magento engine and Magento template installation procedure.

Magento engine installation procedure

From the very beginning you need to download the latest Magento package. At the moment Magento version 1.3.2.1 is available now.  This release solves an issue for users running Magento with PHP 5.2.0, and changes to index.php to support the new Compiler Module.

First of all go to http://www.magentocommerce.com/download/noregister and download the Downloader as zip (not the Full release). Then extract the files. And after that upload them to server through FTP. Pay attention that you follow all server requirements. You may also do it through cPannel -> File Manager.

Set file permissions: navigate to the directory with your FTP client. Then locate the function “Change Permissions” or “Change Mode” in your FTP client and select it. Change mode to writable.

You may do the same via cPannel: login to the cPanel for your domain and click on the File Manager icon under the Files Selection. Make sure that a Show Hidden file is selected. Then check the checkboxes next to files and folders to set the permissions.

If you still feel that you don’t have enough knowledge or time to go though the whole customization process, you may take the opportunity of Template Tuning services. Here you can order the template customization at an affordable price. Their web developers will easily and skillfully do all the necessary changes for you.

Again, this was copied from the Magento install instructions from both their homepage and the webdesign.org site.  There will be more to add, but we’ll have to add those post as we complete this site.  We look forward to sharing this experience with our readers, our clients, and those who are just curious.  Thank you and have a good night.