I’ve been using Prestashop for MacMusicGuy.com for several months, and though I’d jot down some views. I was looking for an ecommerce solution that easily allowed downloadable products – this particular shop doesn’t sell physical products – at least for the forseeable future!.

I looked at several different possibilities – Magento, etc – even looked at using WordPress, which could be theoretically doable – but settled on Prestashop because the base store is free, and it comes with a plethora of features. It is easily extensible with add-in modules (similar to the WordPress Widgets and Plugins) – many are free, and there is an active paid developer community as well.

Other attractive features are the options for multiple languages, multiple currencies, multiple shipping partners (which I don’t need for this particular store), and the template design setup.

The shop has been up and running for some time – I am still loading product into the store at odd times, so it will be some time before there are more than a few products available.

Overall, I am pleased with the software. The only two “gotchas” I had to wrestle with were the PHP upload settings on the server – fortunately my host provider (MidGaHosting.com) allows me to change the settings to allow larger file uploads), and needing to unblock some ports on the hosting firewall, which took a bit of trial and error.

 

Prestashop is available at Prestashop.com. Tell them the MaconMacGuy sent you!

I have been researching several shopping carts as I setup a new online store (MacMusicGuy.com, which will sell downloadable music, sheet music, etc.). It has been interesting looking at the tons of open-source options, as well as the commercial software options.

Some observations:

1. OScommerce has been around a long while, and has a tremendous community built up around it. My impression is that the look is dated, and debugging/configuring  the install will take quite a while.
2. Xcart is something I’ve had some peripheral experience with through a former client. It is commercial software, and is quite capable. I’ve decided for budget reasons to not go commercial, however.
3. OSCommRes is an option available in my MidGaHosting.com host account. There is little info on the web about it, though, and I really do not want to start up a new online store with dead software.
4. Zencart looked interesting – it looks like a more modern version of OScommerce. Several posters commented that it was a better choice than OScommerce, but it would still require significant tweaking.
5. Magento also looked promising. It is an opensource/commercial hybrid – the so called “freemium” model. Unfortunately for me the “Community” edition was missing some features that I need in this store.
6. PrestaShop is what I decided to try. It looks like it will do what I need it to do, and the setup seems to be fairly straightforward. I am still in the midst of configuing the backend, and then will start loading product into the store. At that point I’ll make the shop active.

The short list of my requirements:

1. mysql/php based
2. Easily add downloadable products
3. Some carts can do “multiple stores” inside one install. That might be useful later should this store branch out into shippable products.
4. Backup capability inside the admin panel
5. multiple admin users – I’m going to need some help later!
6. Ability to add free products to the mix.
7. Builtin RSS feed
8. Multiple currency capable
9. Builtin hooks to Paypal and Google Checkout

More later as I continue this journey!

 

I will be teaching 2 sets of computer courses Summer 2011 at the Georgia College Macon Campus.  These are 2 “sets” of classes designed to help you make your computer work better, and to help you see the possibilities of using the tools better.

Small Biz Tech

You are a small business owner and know you really need to get your technology more integrated into your workflow- or you need a basic introduction to websites in plain English, including why you would want to have one, how to go about getting one inexpensively and the pluses and minuses of all those decisions you have to make . Or, you’d like to know more about Microsoft Office, or even if you HAVE to have it! These classes in “plain English” will help you get up to speed. Bring your questions, ideas and vague notions-we’ll try to get them all covered!

Day 1 – Websites: Why and How? Most business owners know they “need” a website but many don’t have a megabuck budget to get one created. And then there’s the question of what to do with it after it’s completed? This class takes a look at some easy online solutions and offers suggestions for how to create a website, what to do with it, what it should have and how and why to keep it up to date.

Day 2 – Practical Online Marketing There’s a ton of hype on information “out there” telling you all the things you should be doing online. The problem is that the only way you can get all of it done is to ignore both your business AND your life! We’ll explore several options and discuss how to best spend your time marketing your business, including websites, blogs, all of that social media stuff like Facebook and Twitter, and perhaps even touch on online advertising.

Day 3 – Small Biz Tech I: Working Your Machine Not really sure how to work your machine? Let’s take a look (and practice!) at all the “basics” of using a computer – things like Windows, your mouse, printing, saving documents, applications (finding, installing and uninstalling), the internet, email, downloading files, installing new software, finding quality free or inexpensive software, dealing with file formats (what’s a PNG anyway?”), etc. Bring your questions – we’ll try get them all answered!

Day 4 – Small Biz Tech 2: So You Have a Computer What do you do with it? Let’s take a look at what you are doing and come up with additional possibilities for using this tool better and perhaps using it in more ways! We’ll take a NON-TECHNICAL look at things like networking, printing, sharing files, Internet searches (how do you quit wasting time looking for information online?) and even look at free software that might be useful! Do you really NEED Microsoft Office? Do you NEED to use Windows? Maybe, or maybe not!

Day 5 – Excel and Spreadsheets Part I: the Basics in Plain English Learn the basics of using a spreadsheet, why it’s a useful tool, what it can be used for, and the concepts for creating a well-designed and easy to use spreadsheet. We’ll practice designing a basic budget during the class, and even see how many days old you are (but we won’t tell!) Questions? We’ll get them answered!

Day 6 – Excel and Spreadsheets Part 2: Sheet, Functions and Being Useful Learn more Excel including dealing with multiple sheets and when that’s needed, built in functions like SUM, MIN, MAX, COUNT and PMT, and tricks to make your spreadsheet useful.

Day 7 – Excel and Spreadsheets Part 3: Charts, Pictures and Stats, Oh My! Learn to create charts, what type to create, how to make them look good and even use those charts in other programs or online.

Day 8 – PowerPoint: Get Beyond the Prefab and Get Your Point Across Almost everyone knows the basics of PowerPoint, but far too many people stop there. We will spend some time playing with the features that you can use to easily customize your presentations. We’ll also look at a process to follow when creating a presentation that can save time, and we’ll discuss some of the design and presentation issues so your project will be far better than average. Bring your questions!

July 12 – August 4, 2011 – Tuesdays and Thursdays from 7:00 PM to 9:00 PM, 8 Sessions

CLICK HERE for more information and to sign up!

This Digital Life: A Beginner’s Guide to Home Computers

This is a series of classes focused on people who are curious about computers, don’t know much about them and want to ask the really simple questions but are too embarrassed to ask, or who are tired of asking their kids for help. These classes have a lot of hands-on plus a lot of “plain English” explanations of how to work computers to get some things done. So bring your “how to” and “why” questions – we’ll get them answered! Optional, but useful – bring a thumb drive to each class (also known as a flash drive.)

Day 1 – How to Work the Blinkin’ Computer Learn to turn your computer on, understand basic technology, print documents and pages, save what you’ve been working on without losing your mind, use a flash/thumb drive, connect new gizmos to your computer, and understand basic networking.

Day 2 – Online, Social and Safe We’ll cover the different ways you can keep up without getting overwhelmed with email, the web and all of that Facebook and Twitter stuff-what they are, how to stay safe online, how to use them and why they can be fun!

Day 3 – Practical Internet: Quit Wasting Time Unless You Want To Have you ever felt like you wasted time searching for something on the Internet or ever wanted an easy way to create a website? Then this is the class for you! Well take a look at these activities and actually practice online.

Day 4 – Digital Pictures So you’ve taken all those pictures with your digital camera. Now what do you do with them? We’ll explore a variety of things from editing software to posting those pictures online. Bring some digital photos with you that you’d like to experiment with, or we’ll have some for you to use.

July 11 – August 1, 2011 – Mondays from 7:00 PM to 9:00 PM, 4 Sessions

Click here for more information and to sign up!

 

FOR MORE INFORMATION:

GCSU Continuing Education

Their Facebook page

I’ve been putting together an Ubuntu system for my parents, who just setup internet access at their house. Sadly they will be using wireless at the house (more on my opinion of wireless in another article), so I had to pickup a PCI wireless card for the machine [the motherboard is an Acer with a P4 1.6Ghz processor & a gig of ram.]

It’s been interesting trolling the ‘net for installation instructions – I’ve seen conflicting reports on the process, and nothing that specifically mentioned Ubuntu 10.10.

So here – for the sake of others and myself – is how I got Ubuntu 10.10 to work with a Netgear WG311 PCI wireless access card:

What you’ll need:

1. A working Ubuntu 10.10 system
2. Admin access (i.e. your admin password)
3. Internet Access – and all the passwords and such to access the home network
4. A Netgear WG311 PCI card already installed into the machine

The Process:

1. Start the machine running. Login. Get to the desktop.
2. Start a console (Applications–>Accessories–>Terminal)
3. Type this:  lspci | grep Marvell
   
4. You should see something like this showup:
   Ethernet controller: Marvell Technology Group Ltd. 88w8835 [Libertas] 802.11b/g Wireless (rev 03)
   (As long as you see something related to “Marvell” you are OK. Your screen will likely look somewhat different)
5. Get the drivers from either
   ftp://downloads.netgear.com/files/wg311v3_1_0.zip or
   http://www.soft32.com/Download/Free/NETGEAR_WG311v3_80211g_Wireless_PCI_Adapter/4-181522-1.html or
   possibly http://www.marvell.com/drivers/upload/MV-S800374-00.zip
6. Open up the “Downloads” folder (Places–>Downloads).
   Doubleclick the zip archive you see there to unpack the archive.
7. Fire up the Synaptic Package Manager (System–>Administration–>Synaptic Package Manager).
   Search for “ndiswrapper”.
   Install ndisgtk, ndiswrapper-utils-1.9 and ndiswrapper-common.
8. Back at the console/terminal, type this:
   ndiswrapper -h.
   If you get a reply with some help text, that means ndiswrapper is indeed installed. If it isn’t, redo Step 6.
9. Switch back to your open downloads folder.
   Open up the folder you extracted back in step 5.
   You’ll see several folders there – find the WinXP folder inside the Driver folder and open it.
10. Set your screen – i.e. move the windows around -  so you can see both the console and the contents of the WinXP folder at the same time.
11. In the console type this:
    sudo ndiswrapper -i
    -make sure you leave a space at the end of the line, and DON’T HIT ENTER YET
12. Switch to the WinXP folder.
    Click and drag the file WG311v3.INF into the console.
    Let go of the mouse button when your pointer reaches the end of the line you typed in step 11.
    The line should end with the full path of the .INF file. Hit enter now.
13. Type ndiswrapper -l.
    The console should reply:
    wg311v3 : driver installed,  device (11AB:1FAA) present
    
14. If that doesn’t work, try typing this: 
    ndiswrapper -a devid wg311v3.
    [Replace "devid" with the PCI ID or the USB ID of your card, in the form XXXX:XXXX.
    To get those numbers, run the command lspci -n or lspci -nn (for PCI cards, the -nn option adds a human readable device name so you can easily identify the device your are targeting) or the command lsusb (for USB devices]
15. Now you have to insert the software module into the system. Type this:
    sudo modprobe ndiswrapper
    
16. Check to see if it worked by typing this command:
    iwconfig
    You should see a reference to “wlan0” in the output. If you do, it’s working!
17. Now add it to the list of things to automatically startup by typing this command:
    sudo ndiswrapper -m
18. …and then type this:
    sudo gedit /etc/modules
    [gedit is a text editor- you could also use pico or any other text editor you have available in your system.]
    Add a line that says ndiswrapper
    Hit CTRL-X to write the file.
    Exit your text editor.

That should do the trick! I suggest shutting down the system and then restarting, just because I like to make sure things are working – and will continue to work after I’ve gone back home!

Sources for more help:

https://help.ubuntu.com/community/WifiDocs/Device/Netgear_WG311_v3

http://madwifi.org/

http://switch2linuxnow.com/home/netgear-wg311-ver-3-wireless-network-cards

http://ubuntuforums.org/archive/index.php/t-5141.html

http://www.linux-wireless.org/Drivers/

http://www.cyberciti.biz/faq/marvell-88w8335-chipset-netgear-wg311-pcicard-driver/

http://www.google.com/cse?cx=partner-pub-9300639326172081%3Ac6lzq8-dhwz&ie=UTF-8&sa=Search&q=NEtgear+WG311+linux+driver&hl=en-+

I teach Powerpoint as part of Mercer University’s CSC125 class, and have studied presenting for a number of years as part of my teaching in various locales and situations.

I find it fascinating how the technology has changed over the years. granted, I’m a bit of a maverick – I selected Astound to use for presenting way back in 1998 because it was cross-platform and way ahead of Powerpoint in terms of animation and video playback. I’ve used one of the tools mentioned below for a couple of years, and am planning on checking out the other soon.

Both use the “freemium” model – accounts are free for basic functionality, and advanced features are available for a subscription.

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Slideshare.net allows you to upload presentation files in several formats – Powerpoint, of course, but also Keynote. Others can easily view them and navigate through the presentation in a web browser. The coolest feature, though, is the “Screencast” – where you upload the presention into Slideshare.net, upload an mp3 file to a web-enabled location, and then use an intuitive interface to link the two together.

Here’s an example of quickie presentation I threw together for my Mercer class – I was out sick, but needed to go ahead and cover the material.

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PREZI.com is something I just found this week. It allows easy creation of ZOOMING presentations, which are visually interesting (as long as they are designed well!).

I’m closing in on completing a site for the Society of Clinical Nursing Specialist Educators, a professional organization dedicated to enhancing the education of Clinical Nursing Specialists.

This is a new organization, and their website needed to be clean, easy to navigate, and yet allow for conference registration…. and not cost a lot to develop.

I created several tie-ins with Paypal in the site, working with the groups treasurer. For a new organization cost containment is obviously a critical issue, and we found that Paypal’s pricing for handling the credit card payments was significantly lower than the SCNSE’s bank.

I also added a feedburner tie-in so that anyone can be notified when news is added to the site.

Behind the scenes I am working with the organization’s board to create a communications structure, including email addresses, contact information, and training a “PR” person on adding news to the site.

“Being online” means more than just having a website. It has to integrate into the business (or in this case, the organization) – and that means having a communications process setup to answer questions and comments, add material to the site, etc.

There is a lot of additional activities and features that could be added to the site, but for now what is there is enough to get a new national organization started.

Check it out for yourself:

Society of Clinical Nursing Specialist Educators

Though this isn’t exactly the primary MaconMacGuy field – I was interviewed for Marketplace Tech last week about using the internet for shopping. I mentioned using GottaDeal.com.

You can take a look and listen to it at http://marketplace.publicradio.org/display/web/2010/11/26/tech-report-technology-to-make-shopping-easier/, assuming you’ve got five minutes to kill!

If you need more advanced hosting for a heavy duty website, MidGaHosting. also offers Virtual Private Servers as well a fully Dedicated Hosting. Watch the video to see an overview, then click for VPS or DEDICATED SERVERS options and pricing.

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Here’s a short video that gives a quick overview on why you should host with MidGaHosting.com [a division of MaconMacGuy.com!]

I had an interesting conversation with a student who wanted to start a website – but he was very confused about domains and website and such.

Domains

A Domain in just a name given to a particular computer/IP address. [IP address = a numeric address that every box connected to the internet has to have]. MaconMacGuy.com, for example, actually behind the scenes gets pointed to a particular IP address and a particular areas of that particular machine.

When you “purchase” a domain you are essentially “renting” that domain so you can use it. That’s why you have to re-up your subscription every so often, and why it’s a per-year charge.

Hosting

Hosting, on the other hand, is renting space on a webserver where your website live – i.e. where the files that make up your site are stashed. The computer is accessible via the Web, so anyone looking for your site can see it on the web.

DNS

The DNS system is essentially a big phone directory that ties the domain and the IP addresses together – MaconMacGuy.com and 66.40.34.135, for example. This way you can type in the easily remembered MaconMacGuy.com instead of 66.40.34.135.

The Domain purchase and the Hosting purchase are really two separate transactions – which means you can purchase the domain from one place and the webhosting from another. I have had several clients go ahead and purchase a domain – so they already “own” it – before they know what they will do with it. Later, they’ll purchase hosting from MidGaHosting.com, and we’ll have to do a bit of extra work to get the two tied together.

It’s usually easier – and better – to go ahead and purchase the domain and the hosting at the same time, from the same company. You’ll have ONE company to deal with, ONE account, ONE place to go and renew your website or domain, ONE user interface, etc.

I – for biased reasons, mind you! – recommend my company MidGaHosting.com for both. The prices are competitive, and the Control panel is easy to navigate through. It really doesn’t take long to figure out how to get something done [as opposed to the one in GoDaddy, which I find incredibly arcane and annoying to navigate. I frankly don't have that kind of time to waste!]

The self-serve hosting option now has some very powerful hosting options unavailable before. The nice thing about this is that it is entirely self-serve. You can surf over to a website and set it all up yourself.

But now we offer hosting options with a semi-dedicated server, virtual private server, and a dedicated server.

“Regular” hosting has dozens if not hundreds of website being served on ONE computer. This is generally not a problem – and is MUCH cheaper for the client. However, if the website has some heavy traffic, or some serious database stuff going on, an upgrade may be in order.

In practical terms the additional options mean that your site will be sharing the hardware with either far fewer sites (in the case of the semi-dedicated and virtual private server options) or with NO ONE else (in the case of the dedicated server).

As usual, our pricing is VERY competitive. Click the links for more info:

Hosting with a Dedicated Server

Hosting with a semi-dedicated server

Hosting with a Virtual Private Server [VPS]

Yet another client story:
I received a phone call from a client who is unabashedly not comfortable with computers. She was getting some weird errors from Firefox and AVG, but couldn’t really describe what they said.

Fortunately it was on may way, so I was able to swing in quickly just to see what was going on. I confirmed the errors, which were the “generic” type of thing you get when the application has a situation it doesn’t know how to handle.

I tried to do a quick online virus scan, to no avail – the machine was running way too slow. Granted, its a slow machine, underpwoered, needs RAM (which the company has not installed yet), and is running Windows 2000 – but even by IT’S standards it was running slow.

After a few minutes I thought the check teh hard drive. That 18gig drive had – wait for it – 20 kilobytes of free space.

{insert dragnet theme here!}

The computer had no working space on teh hard drive – avg had nowhere to stash the virus definitions update file, and Firefox couldn’t update it’s cache.

I deleted several non-used apps, and cleared out the Windows Temp folder…. a simple fix for a major problem. It isn’t a long-term solution, but will keep them running for a while longer.