FAQs

Frequently asked questions are provided in this section to answer your queries/doubts about the software. We have tried our best to answer all FAQs, but even if after referring this section your doubts are not cleared, please feel free to contact us.

Answers

1. What is LiteCommerce ?

LiteCommerce is a PHP4+MySQL-based ecommerce software which is created to make running ecommerce store as easy as surfing the web. LiteCommerce is created taking into account our experience with our previous ecommerce software products: F-Cart and X-Cart. LiteCommerce has two primary interfaces: customer interface (shopping cart plus integrated product catalog) and admin interface (web-based control center). You can learn more by viewing LiteCommerce feature list, exploring LiteCommerce demo.

2. What is X-Cart ?

X-Cart is a shopping cart software which is also offered by our company.

3. What is the difference between X-Cart (www.x-cart.com) and LiteCommerce ? Which one is better ?

The primary difference between them is that LiteCommerce (unlike X-Cart shopping software) is object-oriented and module based. There are a lot of other differences between the carts please refer to the comparison chart which highlights the major differences between the two products.
In fact, LiteCommerce and X-Cart are based on 100% different shopping cart engines (though both carts are developed by the same software company). Both products are optimized for needs of ecommerce customers, but they target slightly different audience. By now, X-Cart has much more features than LiteCommerce and costs more. However, LiteCommerce is expandable using modules and is much easier to use than X-Cart. LiteCommerce also uses more user-friendly template system, which allows LiteCommerce users to modify look & feel of the cart by using WYSIWYG HTML editors. If in doubt, please contact our sales manager, they'll advise which solution will better suit your very needs.

4. Does LiteCommerce support PayPal ?

Yes, LiteCommerce does support PayPal.

5. Does LiteCommerce support Authorize.NET ?

Yes, LiteCommerce does support Authorize.NET.

6. Does LiteCommerce support 2Checkout ?

Yes, LiteCommerce does support 2Checkout.

7. My credit card processing gateway is not present in the gateway lists above. What can I do to make LiteCommerce support my CC processing gateway ?

Contact us and we will handle the integration for you.

8. Can I purchase installation and/or customization services AFTER ordering LiteCommerce products ?

If you have purchased LiteCommerce products without ordering additional services, you can always purchase the services later.

9. Do I need to be an experienced developer in order to install LiteCommerce myself ? Do I need HTML knowledge ? Do I need PHP knowledge ?

LiteCommerce is shipped with Windows-based installer. All you need is to run the installer and follow onscreen instructions. Installer will upload LiteCommerce to your web server and configure it. TarBall version of the distribution is avalable for UNIX and MacOS users. You don't have to know HTML and PHP. PHP knowledge is only required if you want to modify the source code of the cart.And HTML knowledge is required if you want to modify the look of the cart without using WYSIWYG web editors like MS FrontPage and Macromedia Dreamweaver.

10. I already have a merchant account. Is it possible to use it with LiteCommerce ?

Yes, it is possible.

11. Can I incorporate this software into my existing website ?

Yes, you can. LiteCommerce can be easily integrated with any look and layout by modifying the cart templates. You can modify templates using WYSIWYG web editors (MS FrontPage, Macromedia Dreamweaver and others), you can modify HTML code of the templates by hand or you can order our design integration services. Contact us if you need more details.

12. If I purchase one LiteCommerce license, can I set it up at more than one website ?

No, this is not possible. You will need to purchase a license for each site you build with LiteCommerce. You'll get a significant discount on all LiteCommerce licenses purchased after the first one.

13. What service package would I need from Authorize.NET to use their credit card processing services in LiteCommerce ?

LiteCommerce is integrated with Authorize.net using AIM (Advanced Integration Method).

14. After issuing payment, how soon will I get LiteCommerce products ?

You' ll get the code in 1 business day after ordering. If you also order service and your server is compatible with LiteCommerce system requirements, you get LiteCommerce installed in 24 hours after ordering the software and sending us the server information. If you order the customized package, exact delivery deadline depends on the amount of requested custom changes.

15. Do I need to have root access to server in order to install LiteCommerce ?

Root access is not required.

16. Is it possible to remove LiteCommerce logo from my shopping cart pages ?

Yes, feel free to do this. LiteCommerce's built-in template editor allows you to alter the look of the shopping cart in any way you want.

17. I see that the demo site uses a list of U.S states. We are located outside the U.S., how easy is it to change the list of states to match our provinces/regions ?

You can easily change the list of states/provinces by using the Admin Interface. There are also pre-defined states/provinces for US, the UK and Canada.

18. There are so many hosting services over the Internet so I find it difficult to choose which one to use. Can you recommend some hosting services that are fully compatible with LiteCommerce?

Please have a look at the list of Recommended Webhosting Companies.

19. I have several different domain names pointing to the same site. Do I need to purchase several licenses ?

If you have several different domain names pointing to the same site with the same content, 1 license will be enough.

20. What is PHP ?

PHP (http://www.php.net) is a popular server-side scripting language distributed for free. PHP is de-facto standard for dynamic site development and is supported by virtually all web hosting services. You can contact your web hosting service provider in order to make sure they support PHP. LiteCommerce products are written in PHP, this makes them highly portable and customizable.

21. What is MySQL ?

MySQL (http://www.mysql.com) is an open-source robust SQL database engine. LiteCommerce products use it to store product information. Most of web hosting service providers support MySQL. You can contact your web hosting in order to make sure that they have support for MySQL databases.

22. Is it possible to make LiteCommerce forward users to secure (HTTPS/SSL) URL when they come to the checkout page ?

Yes, this can be easily done with LiteCommerce.

23. Is it possible to change the currency/weight symbol ?

Yes, you can define currency/weight symbols using the Admin interface.

24. Does LiteCommerce support configurable language files ?

The basic version of LiteCommerce can be translated into any language however can not support multiple languages. LiteCommerce can support only one language in default functionality. If you need a multi-language store please use X-Cart.

25. Once I decide to purchase LiteCommerce products, how will I get them ?

You will receive access to our customer support helpdesk and file download area. You will be able to download LiteCommerce there. Please note that we manually check all credit card orders to protect credit card holders from fraud. LiteCommerce downloads will be available in 1 business day after ordering the software.

26. What are the server requirements for LiteCommerce ?

LiteCommerce is tested on FreeBSD, Linux, Win2000/NT and MacOS X servers running Apache and IIS web servers. For more details please see System requirements.

27. Is it possible to add options to my products (ie. sizes ,colors, etc. other) ?

Yes, you can add an unlimited number of product options to any of your products. Supported product option types are drop-down options and text area options. Drop-down options can be assigned a price modifier (flat-fee or percent of original product cost).Text area options can be used to allow your customers to add text information with their order. For example, they can add a text they want to be engraved on their gift. Product Options feature is available as add-on module.

28. Does LiteCommerce allow sale of e-goods? In other words software that is sold for download only (no shipping) ?

Yes, you can sell e-goods, PIN codes, shareware registration and other electronic content with the help of EGoods add-on for LiteCommerce.

29. Does LiteCommerce support sub-categories ?

Yes, it does support an unlimited number of sub-categories, sub-sub-categories and so on.

30. Can I use Microsoft FrontPage / Macromedia Dreamweaver to edit my LiteCommerce pages ?

Yes, the template system of LiteCommerce products is specially produced to make editing its pages with FrontPage, Dreamweaver and other WYSIWYG web editors easy.

31. If I buy LiteCommerce products now, how many updates can I have for free in the future?

You will gain free access to all service packs for your version of LiteCommerce. You will also get discounts on all future versions of LiteCommerce.

32. I will be developing my site at one URL then moving it to another when we go live Can I assume that we will be able to change the URL under the same license?

Yes, this is possible. You will need to inform our support team about a new URL and remove the software from your old URL.

33. Can I integrate my existing database with LiteCommerce ?

You can modify the source code of LiteCommerce to integrate it with any database. However, LiteCommerce is a very complex software which consists of more than 280 PHP files. We recommend you converting your current database to LiteCommerce format. This can be done by using the import feature of LiteCommerce. We can also create a custom conversion tool for your database. This service costs from $50. You can contact us for more details.

34. What is the Installation Service ?

If you order the Installation Service, we will handle LiteCommerce installation process for you. We will setup the software on your web server and will ensure that everything is configured properly. If you provide us with proper permissions to the server, we can also install PHP and MySQL for you. We will also configure HTTPS/SSL if you need it. Please note that if you order installation service with your first license, you will also receive one extra month of technical support for free.

35. I like your demo. Is this how the cart looks before any customization ?

After you install LiteCommerce on your server, it will look exactly as the demo.

36. Which platform do you recommend for installing LiteCommerce (UNIX/Linux/Windows) ?

LiteCommerce supports UNIX/Linux, Windows and Mac OS X servers. We highly recommend you choosing a UNIX/Linux server.

37. My products need to have a larger picture in addition to the thumbnail. Does LiteCommerce support both thumbnails and larger pictures ?

With LiteCommerce, every product can have one thumbnail and unlimited number of additional product images.

38. I want to process orders off-line. Is it possible to have the cart email order information to me ?

Yes, the cart can send order information by e-mail. You can also just log in to the admin area using secure HTTPS/SSL connection and access the order information using your web browser.

39. Is it allowed to setup and test the software on my local computer before uploading to server ?

Actually LiteCommerce license forbids running LiteCommerce at an unregistered URL, but anyway we allow to setup the software on your local computer if the software is not used for commercial purposes and your local website is not available for public visitors.

40. Are LiteCommerce products open source code ?

LiteCommerce consists of more than 280 PHP files. Most of them are open source code and just 6 of them are encypted using IonCube technology (to prevent a software piracy). The encypted files are not related to the functionality, so you can alter the code in any way you want. If you prefer 100% open source code shopping cart, try X-Cart, which is not encrypted.

41. LiteCommerce is 97% open source code, what about the rest 3% why and how part of the source code is concealed?

LiteCommerce products cannot be run without license certificate - a digitally signed document that confirms your rights to the software license. All cryptographic routines and the part of code that checks certificate authenticity are protected with ionCube technology. These routines are on the system level and do not contain any business logic of the software. All necessary files for ionCube support are included in LiteCommerce distribution package, so you do not need to download and install any additional software.

42. I'm not sure if LiteCommerce will work on my host because of ionCube source code protection technology. How can I check if PHP scripts protected with ionCube can be run on my system before purchasing LiteCommerce?

You can download free ionCube loaders for your operation system and PHP version and use Real Time Loader Tester or Loader Install Assistant scripts included in the loaders package to test if ionCube can work at your system. However if you failed that doesn't mean that it is impossible to run LiteCommerce at your host, LiteCommerce has a specially designed loader initialization code which is optimized to run with LiteCommerce software.

43. Does LiteCommerce support inventory tracking ?

There is "Inventory Tracking" add-on that allows to track a number of items left in your stock, automatically mark products as "Temporarily unavailable" if the stock count reaches zero. It is also capable of warning the store owner if the number of items in stock decreases to a particular amount and can track inventory by product options.

44. Does LiteCommerce support PHP5 ?

LiteCommerce v2.2 and higher can work on PHP5-powered servers. Older LiteCommerce versions do not support PHP5.

45. What is the "admin safe mode" in LiteCommerce online demo on your website? Why can't I use some functions in LiteCommerce online demo?

Since the administrator back-end of LiteCommerce online demo is publicly available for demonstration purposes, we limited some LiteCommerce administrator functions using the so-called "safe mode". This mode makes a number of sections and functions of the administrator back-end available only for viewing and does not allow any changes to be submitted. The following limitations are imposed:

• Newsletters and e-mail notifications cannot be sent
• FlyoutCategories does not allow changes in the representation of categories
• Layout schemes cannot be cloned in the Scheme Manager
• Template editor does not allow template changes to be submitted
• HTML catalog cannot be re-generated or changed
• Users cannot be removed or changed
• Categories cannot be removed
• Design cannot be imported/exported
• Products cannot be imported
• License section is not available
• DB Backup/Restore, Image files, Image editor, CSS editor, XCartImport, Modules
• Settings of AdvansedSecurity and Egoods modules cannot be changed
• All file operations are disabled
• Product titles and descriptions do not allow HTML tags

We recommend you to use LiteCommerce 30-day trial demo if you want to test-drive the above sections and functions.

46. Is LiteCommerce PCI/CISP certified?

The short answer is no. But the thing is that it's not supposed to be a PCI/CISP certified product itself since LiteCommerce is neither a payment gateway, nor a financial organization charging credit cards, nor is it a hosted e-commerce solution.

LiteCommerce is a standalone e-commerce application which can be integrated with any of supported payment gateways and used on any compatible hosting server. Online merchants who use this e-commerce software are supposed to get PCI/CISP compliant status themselves if they use both PCI/CISP compliant payment gateway and hosting service.