I have tried twice in the past to install Zen Cart. During yesterday’s install, I remembered why it was unsuccessful in the past. At one point, there are files that need to be made read-only. I know how to do that, but I could never access the UNIX command line to do it. Yesterday, I managed to get into an ugly and clumsy GUI interface that allowed me to do the same thing. Not my preferred way of handling it, but it worked.
Now, I’m faced with the daunting task of setting up the store. It is not intuitive, and there are literally scores of settings. I installed with the demo merchandise, which I soon regretted. It houses a lot of crap, none of which I plan to sell. I managed to clean out all but five items, which I kept to study later.
One task to complete before too long will be creating a pdf version of at least one of my stories so I have something to put into the store. That has a a couple of implications. First, I have to use open office because Word won’t save in pdf. Second, I need cover art, which shouldn’t be an issue other than being time-consuming. I don’t have any graphics software, but I have used Aviary before–an online graphics package that so far has done everything I need. I don’t draw or paint, so my covers will of necessity be photographic. Hopefully they look decent.
