Developer Extensions

Developer toolbar:

http://www.magentocommerce.com/extension/2271/developer-toolbar

Blueprint Theme:

http://www.magentocommerce.com/extension/2245

Free Magento Extensions

Product Image lightbox:

http://www.magentocommerce.com/extension/1487/magento-easy-lightbox

Product Detail tabbing:

http://www.magentocommerce.com/extension/1725/magento-easytabs

Teaser Box:

http://www.magentocommerce.com/extension/1778/teaserbox

Free Magento Themes

Absolute Magento Theme

http://www.magentocommerce.com/extension/2031/magento-absolute-theme

Paid Magento Extensions

Abandoned Cart Alerts

http://adjustware.com/shop/magentomods_abandoned_carts_alerts.html

Quickview

http://www.magentocommerce.com/extension/574/quickview-1.1

Valentines Day Fonts

Valentines Day Graphics (vector)

Valentines Day Wallpapers

The Good

All around, Magento beats the competition. Here are just a few highlights if you’re not familiar with Magento:

• Magento is Object Oriented
• Magento is secure and scalable
• Magento has a large community that is rapidly growing
• Magento can be extended very easily
• Magento allows for multiple stores and store fronts

The Bad

Magento has a few things that I’m not too excited about:

• Magento is HUGE and bulky
• Magento lacks a WYSIWIG and CMS
• Magento uses a lot of JavaScript in a bad way

Some Useful Code

I’ll feed you baby birds..

Add a CMS Static Block to a page:
Within Magento:

{{block type="cms/block" block_id="identifier"}}

With PHP:

getLayout()->createBlock('cms/block')->setBlockId('identifier')->toHtml() ?>

Check with User Group a customer belongs to (based upon Group ID)

getCustomerGroupId(); ?>

Check if user is logged in:

helper('customer')->isLoggedIn(); ?>

Display products from a specific category on the page:
Many people ask how to display products on the home page.. this is the easiest and most universal solution. Replace category ID with whatever category you want to display

{{block type="catalog/product_list" template="catalog/product/list.phtml" catagory_id="0"}}

Shortcuts:
Store URL within Magento:

{{store url=""}}

Define a new CMS Page Layout

Depending on what version of Magento you’re running, this may be different, but in the 1.3x series, this is how you’d define a new page layout. We’ll define a layout called home for this example:

/app/code/core/Mage/Page/etc/config.xml

        <page>
            <layouts>
                <empty module="page" translate="label">
                    <label>Empty</label>
                    <template>page/one-column.phtml</template>
                    <layout_handle>page_empty</layout_handle>
                </empty>
                <one_column module="page" translate="label">
                    <label>1 column</label>
                    <template>page/1column.phtml</template>
                    <layout_handle>page_one_column</layout_handle>
                </one_column>
                <two_columns_left module="page" translate="label">
                    <label>2 columns with left bar</label>
                    <template>page/2columns-left.phtml</template>
                    <layout_handle>page_two_columns_left</layout_handle>
                </two_columns_left>
                <two_columns_right module="page" translate="label">
                    <label>2 columns with right bar</label>
                    <template>page/2columns-right.phtml</template>
                    <layout_handle>page_two_columns_right</layout_handle>
                </two_columns_right>
                <three_columns module="page" translate="label">
                    <label>3 columns</label>
                    <template>page/3columns.phtml</template>
                    <layout_handle>page_three_columns</layout_handle>
                </three_columns>
                <home>
                	<label>Home</label>
                	<template>page/home.phtml</template>
                	<layout_handle>page_home</layout_handle>
                </home>
            </layouts>
        </page>

Please understand that this is editing the core and will not be protected in an upgrade/update. To properly define this to be compatible with future upgrades, you’ll need to define a simple module to override the core with a local file.

In my last post regarding sIFR, I compared sIFR against a few of the other popular font replacement methods such as Cufon and FLIR. Since there is obviously a great deal of interest in the subject of font replacement, I figured it would be beneficial to show a deeper analysis at sIFR which I believe is the superior out of the three.

A deeper look at pros of sIFR

sIFR is quite different to the many font replacement techniques in the wild. Instead of manually generating each header through an image generator such as FLIR and Cufon do, sIFR is able to load a flash object and replace each element on the fly. The scripted effect works for roughly 95% of world wide web users according to statistics for Flash support and JavaScript support in modern browsers. Note also, that sIFR is by no means required, and degrades gracefully if the user does not have one of these components required. I’m sure some purists would react with contempt, but this method causes no harm to usability and only effects load time if used incorrectly (such as replacing body text rather than headers).

sIFR… what’s not to love?

First and foremost, implementation can be slaughtered. For an inexperienced developer, sIFR can take up to an hour to implement (from what I’ve heard in complaints anyways) and can cause pages to load slowly. From my experience, both are due to an incompetent developer, as sIFR is quite easy to implement if you understand all front-end technologies (which you should be a front-end developer) and only causes slow load time if its used for large blocks of text. Compare sIFR to the first wave of Web 2.0 technologies.. to this day I see wannabe developers implementing 20k+ javascript libraries to do one simple “jiggle” or “ajax” ability, which you can do with a few lines of code if you understand raw JavaScript. We can’t blame the technology for human error.. sIFR is brilliant. It may have a ways to go before it’s perfect, but respecting the principles of semantics, usability, and accessibility.. sIFR by far is winning the race against Cufon and FLIR.

Now to address the purists and their complaint about flash and JS dependency. Plain and simply, if a user falls within the 3-10% that doesn’t have Flash or JavaScript enabled, then BIG DEAL. That’s what good old HTML/CSS are for.. a fall back solution. Should we punish those with modern browsers and technologies for the minority that will get a slightly-less-quality rendering? I don’t punish modern browsers by neglecting the wonders of CSS 3. If Internet Explorer sees a box with square corners instead of rounded.. BIG DEAL. So why should we fight about whether a user has JS or Flash enabled? Heck, you can even use image replacement at that point, if you really want to.

The Big Picture

The real issue is that there aren’t enough fonts supported in Internet Explorer. If we want to point fingers and find something to criticize, there it is. Firefox, Safari, Chrome, Opera.. they’re all supporting more CSS properties such as @font-face. However, due to copyright laws and support from Internet Explorer we are bound to 5-10 fonts that we can reasonably assume the user has installed, and that’s ALL we’ve got. Solutions have been offered and argued but the problems are still much broader.. ranging from font licensing, support and rendering, with no clear solution in sight.

sIFR is one solution of many offered by developers fighting a war for creative freedom. It’s here and now, it’s legal despite the font, and regardless of the few quirks.. it’s usable. If you use it, then I hope you implement it well. If you protest it, then I hope you have valid reasons, and aren’t just complaining because you’re ignorant. Take this post with a grain of salt.. it’s my 2 cents and nothing more.

Read further:

Cufon vs sIFR vs FLIR
Style vs SEO
Fonts and the Law

View Demo or Download

Lansing Web and Technology

If you are a web design or web development firm in Lansing, MI then talk to me personally about an even better version of this application. I’m offering it only to Lansing Web Design Companies because I believe in giving the Lansing Area a competitive advantage when it comes to technology. Feel free to contact me at the email in my header.

Validators

• Total Validator: simple HTML/CSS Validator with browser plugin support
• W3C Validator: the organization that defines markup standards, and validates according to those standards
• Cynthia Says: screen reader which will help you with accessibility in mind

Accessibility

• WebAIM: Introduction to Accessibility
• WCAG: Web Content Accessibility Guidelines
• WCAG Overview: Overview of WCAG Standards
• WCAG Tutorial: A useful educational resource to learn the standards
• Section 508: Federal requirements for web accessibility

Javascript Libraries

• jQuery
• Prototype / Scriptaculous
• MooTools

Firefox Plugins for Developers

• CSS Validator
• CSS Viewer
• Web Developer Toolbar
• Firebug

Tutorials

• W3Schools: Very in-depth, free tutorials on the most commonly used web markup and programming languages
• A List Apart: Articles and tutorials on an extensive list of topics
• QuirksMode: Good articles and test pages concerning javascript and CSS

Download the YUI Compression AppleScript

The AppleScript Source:

on run
	tell application "Finder"
		set this_item to choose file with prompt "Choose CSS or JS file:"
		set dir to the selection as alias
	end tell
	set mypath to posix_path(this_item)
	set dirpath to posix_path(dir)
 
	runCompression(mypath, dirpath)
end run
 
on posix_path(mac_path)
	set mac_path to (mac_path as text)
	set root to (offset of ":" in mac_path)
	set rootdisk to (characters 1 thru (root - 1) of mac_path)
	tell application "Finder"
		if (disk (rootdisk as string) is the startup disk) then
			set unixpath to "/" & (characters (root + 1) thru end of mac_path)
		else
			set unixpath to "/Volumes:" & mac_path
		end if
	end tell
	set chars to every character of unixpath
	repeat with i from 2 to length of chars
		if item i of chars as text is equal to "/" then
			set item i of chars to ":"
		else if item i of chars as text is equal to ":" then
			set item i of chars to "/"
		else if item i of chars as text is equal to "'" then
			set item i of chars to "\\'"
		else if item i of chars as text is equal to "\"" then
			set item i of chars to "\\" & "\""
		else if item i of chars as text is equal to "*" then
			set item i of chars to "\\*"
		else if item i of chars as text is equal to "?" then
			set item i of chars to "\\?"
		else if item i of chars as text is equal to " " then
			set item i of chars to "\\ "
		else if item i of chars as text is equal to "\\" then
			set item i of chars to "\\\\"
		end if
	end repeat
	return every item of chars as string
end posix_path
 
on runCompression(mypath, dirpath)
	tell application "Terminal"
		do shell script "java -jar " & dirpath & "yuicompressor-2.4.2.jar " & mypath & " -o " & mypath & ".min.js"
	end tell
end runCompression

If you like this YUI Compression AppleScript please do share that with me, as praise is my sole motivation for producing scripts for others. I’ve only skimmed the surface of applescript, but with so few scripts out there that meet the needs that I have, I’m sure I could quickly make some other web developer tools for Mac as well.

The Four-P’s

If you’ve taken an advertising or marketing class, you’ll know what the Four P’s are already: Product, Price, Placement, and Promotion. These are the four keys to selling a product or service, and will help you change how you market them:

Product

The product (or service) should be the first thing you analyze and possibly get some non-bias feedback on. Answer some simple questions by both your expertise and a few external opinions:

• What is the total cost to make/produce/ship the product?
• What is the quality of the product, and what guarantees/maintenance do you offer?
• How well does your product compete against competition?

Price

Math is one of the most important factors in determining long term success of a product. Start by breaking down the data that you have: price – cost = profit. How well does your product compete on a price level? What is the percentage of profit made, and do the long-term profits exceed the costs of marketing, advertising, promotion, etc?

Placement

Location, location, location! We’ve all heard that phrase, and for good reason. Location really matters. You can sell a pile of junk if it’s in the right location. Analyze location/placement in a hierarchy:

• What city are you located in (analyze demographic and potential number of customers in that city)
• Once you have a rough estimate on that number, consider your store location and how many of those customers see it
• How well do you position you product (physically or mentally) when customers enter your doors (or website even)?

Promotion

Once you’ve figured out all that data, you have the tools necessary to start promoting yourself. If it’s a new product/service/business then jump right into the Promotional Mix. Otherwise start by analyzing how information is distributed and advertised currently and give some thought to the strengths and weaknesses of your current tactics before reading the next bit.

A-Three-PS (The Promotional Mix)

The A-Three-PS model is the biggest key to promoting your product or service. Within each of these points there are other branches and such that are important also, but for the most part, every type of promotion falls within the A 3P S: Advertising, Publicity, Packaging, Personal selling, Sales promotion.

Advertising

Advertising comes in many names and shapes, but put simply, advertising is a form of promotion that explicitly details the product and markets it towards a specific demographic. I’ll go deeper into advertising with another post, but here’s a quick look at the most popular methods of advertising:

• Web Media (pay-per-click advertising, social media, viral marketing)
• Outdoor (vehicles with large ads, billboards, building ads, posters)
• Print Media (business cards, brochures, newspaper)
• Broadcast Media (television, radio, live web feeds)

Publicity

This is one of the most impressive ways to promote your product and usually causes a huge spike, but is not necessarily a steady flow or good model to base your business. Publicity can come in many ways, whether it’s word-of-mouth, a promotional event, news story, or some crazy stunt. Usually it comes at little to no cost (because it pays off whatever costs their may have been), and generally has a greater impact for immediate business, but as I mentioned.. is not a steady source of income. This is a great place to start for a new and emerging business, and is also highly effective when combined with other promotional resources (such as Sales Promotion).

Packaging

It’s so amazing how packaging effects a consumer’s decision to purchase. Packaging is huge, whether it’s a physical product, how you package/sell your product online, etc. This is where you can be creative and stand out from your competitors. Rather than going into too much detail about how creative packaging works, check out some of these links for yourself:

• Highly Creative Product Packaging
• More Creative Product Packaging
• Food and Beverage Product Packaging

Personal Selling

Out of all the forms of promotion, most businesses either nail the others and miss this or nail this and miss the others. Personal Selling is a face-to-face interaction that takes the product from beginning of sale to closing of sale. This is crucial in selling a large product like a car, boat, or expensive service. Generally anything that is selling for over $3000 is going to require personal selling. I have seen many businesses flop because they didn’t promote themselves, meet with clients, or sell on a personal level. If you have any product or service that is near or above $3k, put this on the top of your list of skills to master!!

Sales Promotion or Incentives

You’ll see this form of advertising at almost any retail store. Sales cause hype which becomes a free promotion by word-of-mouth. Sales can be really effective on an older, polished product to draw the user to look at a new product that you are promoting.

Take a wireless store for example. You’ll often see sales incentives offering you a deal with a new phone. They will often promote a free bluetooth headset, or a discounted price with a 2 year contract. These are sales promotions that seem like a good deal (and often can be), but for the store have large turnover. Either the bluetooth headset is really cheap for the store to give away, and the smart phone that you’re paying $500 for easily covers the cost.. or a free phone with a 2 year contract.. you just buahg the phone for your monthly payment * 24 months!

Sales can be combined in so many ways, that it would be impossible to give all the different examples. The biggest thing to note when promoting a sale or incentive is what your costs are, how much the price outweighs the cost, and how that is presented to the consumer. If you take those three point into consideration, and combine this form of promotion with some form of advertising, it should be a large success.

A comparison of some of the most popular PHP-based Content Management Systems (CMS). The views and opinions expressed are simply that.. my views and opinions.. not so much straight facts. If there are systems mentioned that you would like to contribute input to, do so in the comments. Same goes for any systems that I neglect to mention: feel free to mention it in the comments and a quick pro/con comparison.

Drupal – a blogging and forum CMS

The Good:

Drupal is a great platform if you’re a developer looking to have a very flexible and dynamic blog/forum. Drupal has the functionality and great integration of blogging and forums right in the core of the system. Drupal is also fairly easy to learn and has a large community and professionals using the system. Drupal is also one of the few Content Management Systems that is not dependent on one server technology, since it works on both IIS and Apache.

The Bad:

Backward Compatibility: Drupal is in constant development, and each launch lacks backwards compatibility with the previous version. This makes it extremely frustrating as each year you have to upgrade old sites manually and modify the code to have it working correctly with the new version.

The Ugly:

Usability: Most aspects of Drupal’s administration interface are confusing and intimidating, particularly for new administrators. This makes it difficult to train clients and you usually have to provide documentation and instructions for clients to be able to use it correctly. Drupal may be powerful, but it is also complex. The key is overcoming its steep initial learning curve. Most casual users are willing to sacrifice features for ease of use making Drupal less popular than systems such as WordPress which offer point and click extensibility and great user interface.

Expression Engine – a large multi-functional CMS

The Good

Expression Engine is easily one of the largest and most sophisticated Content Management Systems out there, but the beauty of the system is simplicity. You don’t have to know PHP syntax to understand this system, and for those that do you get an added bonus as future releases will be built on the CodeIgnitor framework. Top it all off with built in modules from blogging to forums and page making, the only thing you won’t get out of the box with this system is a shopping cart.

The Not-so-Bad

While Expression Engine is amazing in many ways, it does come with a price tag. The price is very reasonable, however, and if you were try to match this system with an open source alternative, you wouldn’t get anywhere close without buying premium modules or plugins anyways, so shrug it off and try it out. They do have a free version to get started with!

Frog CMS – a really basic page-based CMS

Overview of Frog CMS

I haven’t used Frog CMS yet, but have heard wonderful things about the system. From what I do know, Frog is based on a very lightweight and simple Ruby on Rails systems called Radiant. Featuring drag-and-drop layout and ordering and amazingly fast setup times, this system has been getting a lot of praise as a great generic page-based CMS. You’ll probably want to play around with it before using it on any client website, but from my research, I’d say this CMS is perfect for really low-budget, really basic websites like a simple photographer or other small business website.

Joomla – a very large, very difficult, but very powerful CMS

The Good

Joomla will blow your mind when you google any question you can think of for the system. Since the system began as a fork of Mambo it has had the time to grow and extend to do just about anything. There are over 4000 plugins for Joomla to date, and the largest community and support group of any CMS. If you’re a master programmer, or a large business, this system is perfect for you.

The Bad

Like all mammoths, large and old systems eventually die out. This system, while powerful and amazing, takes far too much time to learn. If you didn’t grow up with the system or use it in a corporate setting, then don’t both with it now. Joomla is on it’s way out, being replace by slimmer, faster, and easier systems like Expression Engine and Modx.

Modx – content management at it’s finest

Overview of Modx

Modx is the closest you’ll get to an application that looks and behaves like a desktop application, supporting right-clicks to edit properties, drag-and-drop arrangement and functionality, as well as CTRL+S to save pages! This is a medium sized Content Management System, offering a wide range of functions, but mostly specializing in simple page and template management. Modx is easy to learn, easy to work with, and easy to customize. I really believe this is one of the best systems you’ll find and I have yet to find any major drawback to using Modx over other systems, aside from the lack of blogging or forums in its core (though this adds to the value of the system for many as well since it stays lighter without unneeded functionality). Oh, and did I mention that this works on almost ANY major web server and features a web based installer that tells you what works, what doesn’t and how to fix it!?!? Don’t just take my word for it, read more praise about Modx