Post by hubbort333 » Sun Jul 26, 2020 1:22 am

I've been attempting to prescribe a few subjects to individuals however subsequent to working with such a large number of destinations and attempting to introduce them, I've come to acknowledge how effing Terrible such huge numbers of topics are.

I've been very open about past topics that I considered frightfully codes like Shoppica et al, however in any event Shoppica didn't supplant center documents or expect you to have an unfilled database. There are subjects out there by enormous venders like TemplateMeta, themeglobal, and others that supplant many center documents and design records so that in the event that you at any point needed to evacuate their topic, you'd have to reinstall opencart! THIS IS NOT ACCEPTABLE!

So I'm therefore making a boycott/whitelist of either subject creators as well as individual topics that make this trash.

I'm placing them into 4 classifications:

1. Maintain a strategic distance from no matter what. These are the ones that supplant center documents. On the off chance that you are a subject creator supplanting ANY center documents, you have just fizzled at life. These likewise appear to be the ones that expect you to have a spotless database and you should run their sql record to introduce all their demo portrayals and store settings to make their demo on your site, as opposed to make your site resemble the demo.

2. Not suggested. These are the ones that in any event utilize their own records, however aimlessly incorporate documents that don't should be duplicated, similar to the installment envelope. On the off chance that you are a topic creator and have an installment organizer, you have again fizzled at life! At any rate this can be effectively fixed by erasing the installment envelope from the subject. In any case, who realizes what different documents they just replicated over from the default subject that weren't essential.. The more records they duplicated from the default, the more difficult it is to update.

3. Use with alert. These are your Shoppicas, Journals, PavMega, and so forth.. Subjects that include an extra reflection layer that can be a torment to work with.. regularly convoluted by utilizing ocmod versus vqmod since ocmod is progressively hard to investigate. These are well known subjects and can be decent, yet in addition include such an extensive amount their own stuff that you can lose all sense of direction in their reality. Use with alert.

4. For the most part protected. These are the topics that follow the best possible strides to theming. They make their own documents, regardless of whether they have their own adaptation of modules. They never overwrite any documents. They utilize an appropriate adjustment framework like vqmod or ocmod to incorporate themselves where essential (tho for the most part this ought not be required). What's more, they just incorporate the documents that they've really modified.

I'd prefer to get criticism from others also, including the subject creators who I will probably disturb... In any case, it's getting hard to advise individuals to stay with OpenCart when a significant number of the accessible appealing topics are coded like trash.

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Post by IP_CAM » Sun Jul 26, 2020 3:28 am

Well, if the Journal Theme Extension Creators would ever have cared about
their Customers, they would run their own (free) User-Forum, it's as easy as that. :-\
They're in Business, to make profit, but they have no HAM-Spirit, as a 'Radio-Amateur'
would call it. And they made a lot of Money with that Theme, among others, seldom
or never visible or even active in this Place.
---
And one has to aware of, that Journal is NOT just a Theme, but a giant sized OpenCart
Extension, full of custom Files, Scripts, Styles, and Code. A NON-Journal familiar OC Dev
or User would not even be able, to assist, without getting familiar with that heavy Piece
of OC Theme Software first.
The Journal 2.9.5 ZIP is about 35 MByte, in contrast to a complete OC2.3.0.2 installation
ZIP File with about 13 MByte Size. So, anyone can imagine, how much Custom Files and
Code a Journal uses, all over the Place, down to the custom System Files. :choke:
---
It's therefore no wonder, that not many of the OC Dev's fell in Love with it, Journal does not
play a fair Game, but leaves it to others, assisting their Customers, hopefully for free. But
Journal is also aware of the the many stolen Journal Extensions used, another Factor for
'serious' Dev's, to keep their hands off, when it comes to assist such 'Cheapies' for free.
And a good reason for Journal, to only support paying Clients. And the same applies to some
other Theme Brands, adding heavy Custom Code and/or Routines into their Theme Extensions.

But it's like in any other Business too, Competitors usually do not assist each others, and
on the Web, just about everyone can be a Competitor, regardless of, where he/she resides.
And OC is not a 'common wealth' project either, but just a smart Business-Model and -Idea.

But it's growing up, and will soon reach it's maturity. And as further it get's, as less 'free' Wisdom
will be part of it. Partly due to it's technology, and partly due to growing 'missing spirit', for most-likely
nothing in return. Except for frequently beeing confronted with repeating Matters, mostly by those,
in most cases fully unaware of, what they're playing around with, in the first place .... 8) :D

No wonder, will most of them just silently fade away again one day. Or then, they start a 3 Dollar
OC Darknet Download Site, to at least get something out of it ... :P And somebody at the OC Forum
will hopefully freely assist ... :crazy:
---
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Post by Mike_Shop » Fri Aug 14, 2020 4:52 am

Hello there guys,

I am so glad I was forwarded to this specific topic.
I have a long story of me getting here but to make long story short I have about 5-7 coders tell me what to do and how to do.. they all said one by one to use all CMS's out there... probably just because they know that "one" platform.. So, I went literally crazy for one year try ing to start / open my online shop...
Since I did my o0wn websites because most programmers can only programed my time and mone but they did not deliver anything at all I have decided to do the shop on my own and after reading adn reading and watching lots of videos on You tube I got to the point where I started the web-shop on Opencart, of course on my own..

I am a fast learner I do not code I only know some html and very little CSS but as a golden rule i never change anything If I don't know what I am doing or IF i really have to do ir never without a backup ..

I am happy to see this thread where you talk about themes because I need one pretty much even tough some say it is better to keep it the way it is or some say to buy a theme... I know the coders would wanna create a theme maybe from scratch and make it custom because art work should be paid.
Unfortunately in this period I am trying to reinvent my self so I have a limited budget so...

1. I have no idea at all if a theme is good or poorly coded.
2. I have no idea if you install it IF I will get any errors or nor form it
3. I have no idea if I will need to ever uninstall it if it will leave me with a broken shop... and a shop is not a presentation site with 5 - 10 pages which i can do in 3 hours. ..

So, I am glad some of you choose to say it out loud.. but I still don't see a list with trusted themes... I don't thing it is necessary to say.. this theme is SH#$&iT
even though it is in my nature to say things out loud when I have to..

But it will help a lot instead of focusing on HOW to say or what to say about the bad ones.. just make a top 10 or a top 20 of the good ones..

I wanna thank PAUL @paulfeakins and some other guys for helping me with my first major problem in open cart which made me install opencart 5-6 times in 4 days... in order to discover it was not because of me but because of google..


So, please help me choose a theme
I don't need you guys to say this is bad... just tell me if here is any good ones ... IF... :))

http://mooboo4.demo.towerthemes.com/
http://demo.towerthemes.com/tt_ventur/
http://ventur2.demo.towerthemes.com/
http://ventur8.demo.towerthemes.com/
http://demo.towerthemes.com/tt_ventur/i ... ry&path=59
http://raavin2.demo.towerthemes.com/
http://t902.demo.towerthemes.com/
http://t905.demo.towerthemes.com/
http://demo.towerthemes.com/tt_ravado/
http://basel.openthemer.com/accessories/

By the way, I am a musician and I want to make a mixed shop of music and fashion on www . vlahopol .com

Due to this virus situation I am on a very low budget but I am willing to pay for a decent theme I don't want it for free... Also I can help with good promotion IF anyone would think to just offer me one for free. I will be a good partner to have since many music companies endorse me.
My website is visited by many people around the globe. :)
God damn guitar players .. :)

Very much appreciated.
Mike

Thank you for your support,
Kind regards,
Mike


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Post by IP_CAM » Mon Aug 17, 2020 8:19 am

I don't need you guys to say this is bad... just tell me if here is any good ones ...
Well, it's not as easy as you might expect, Themes are built in different ways, some Theme
Creators only change minor stylesheet.css Content, like Colors, to look a little different
from the OC default Theme. But others use their own Code, and that will most likely add to
problems, if one add's some Extensions, built on the 'default OC Theme way of doing things'.
Just to give you a simple Sample:
OC v.3.x default Theme, Breadcrumb Section:

Code: Select all

{{ header }}
<div id="product-product" class="container">
<ul class="breadcrumb">
{% for breadcrumb in breadcrumbs %}
<li><a href="{{ breadcrumb.href }}">{{ breadcrumb.text }}</a></li>
{% endfor %}
</ul> 
OC v.3.x Electro Theme, Breadcrumb Section:

Code: Select all

{{ header }}
<div id="breadcrumb" class="section">
<div class="container">
<div class="row">
<div class="col-md-12">
<ul class="breadcrumb-tree">
{% for breadcrumb in breadcrumbs %}
<li>
<a href="{{ breadcrumb.href }}">{{ breadcrumb.text }}</a>
</li>
{% endfor %}
</ul> 
meaning, that an Extension, where a VqMod or OcMod is looking for a (default Theme) Code Line
in such Sections, to add/change/whatever, it will possibly NEVER find it in another Theme, and
will therefore just not be able, to do it's Job as planned, it's as easy as that.

But such is neither OC's fault, nor the Custom Theme Creators fault, because OC is Open Source,
and everyone is free, to change/move/add/remove whatever one likes. But if one is not able, to
understand the BASIC meaning of such Code, one requires a Professional, if one likes to change
existing things.

It might be only a slight difference in coding, like:

Code: Select all

 <li><a href="{{ breadcrumb.href }}">{{ breadcrumb.text }}</a></li>
or:

Code: Select all

<li>
<a href="{{ breadcrumb.href }}">{{ breadcrumb.text }}</a>
</li>
what disables an OcMod or VqMod from doing it's Job as planned, if such a Routine is looking
for One-Liner Code, but in another Theme, that One-Liner Code is split up into 3 Lines,
as shown in the lower Example.

So, better accept the Situation, as it exists, and don't expect, what just cannot be expected. And
don't forget, that basically, everybody could be everybody else's Competitor too, in a worldwide
Market, so, don't expect others to be of help, just for the plain fun of it, real Business does not work
that way. And expecially not, when it comes to latest Software Releases, because the least amount
of Wisdom and Modifications/Themes exist for such.

Just to give you some Ideas on this. OC itself might come for free, but that's about it, one needs to
be aware of such. There is no such thing as Friendship, when it comes to real Business, despite of
the fact, that some Fellows around here frequently assist others for free, up to a certain point at least.

Good Luck ;)
Ernie

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5'200 + FREE OC Extensions, on the World's largest private Github OC Repository Archive Site.


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Post by nikkinemo95 » Tue Sep 01, 2020 2:59 pm

What I mean: This Place here should be spilt into fully independent Version (Sub-) Sections, to clearly
demonstrate the differences, Users should be fully aware, from the very first Reading here, where something has to belong, with possibly even REQUIRED Values, to be entered when posting, like at least Version and Theme used.

Active - New - Unread - Unanswerred Section Postings should be placed, where they belong, in a Subsection on those
Main Pages, starting from the latest Version, and going down to whatever will be decided on still to be shown. Then,
Visitors will not only be confronted with and admired by a professional looking Forum, they will get used to a more
professional way, to 'handle', whatever is related to the OC Project, in general.

Sections should exist, containing 'valuable' Information, like a Q/A, where 'general' Knowledge would be 'sampled'
and shown. For that, Visitors could LIKE-Click answers, and whoever get's the most Likes, has a better chance,
to get MOVED over to the Q/A Folder. Somebody could then selectively 'move' such Postings onto such Places,
once in a while.

Then, once in a Year, the 'Max'-Donator of Wisdom would be invited to have a free look over the HK Harbour, or something like that, or at least get's a free 'VIP' Ticket for my Club. So, at least, I would make a buck too..., on OC, after all

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Post by JNeuhoff » Tue Sep 01, 2020 5:14 pm

@Mike_Shop : I briefly looked at these themes. Neither one is good, too bloated and unnecessarily deviating from the standard. I'd definitely stay away from the Basel theme. If you plan to install other 3rd party extensions chances of clashes are high.

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Post by Emily84 » Thu Dec 10, 2020 5:25 pm

That is why I hire a specialist, an OpenCart Theme builder who will build your theme based on the default OpenCart theme.
It is rather costly but it pays in the end.

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Post by johnp » Thu Mar 25, 2021 7:34 pm

I'll be really boring and say what I always say. Where possible I build custom designs based on the default theme. It's reliable and works well. :)

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Post by johnp » Sat Mar 27, 2021 1:30 am

emmawade wrote:
Sat Mar 27, 2021 1:07 am
really thanks.
No probs. I've tried many themes and always come back to the default one. With a bit of HTML and CSS knowledge you can get a pretty good reliable result.

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Post by brianunderwoo » Wed Nov 24, 2021 6:13 am

Hello. which theme is best for any website? with your opinion?

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Post by Eagleapk » Sun Dec 26, 2021 2:55 pm

Thankyou for sharing. i got solution. on site
Last edited by Eagleapk on Tue Nov 22, 2022 2:00 am, edited 3 times in total.

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Post by shoessanjay » Sun May 01, 2022 5:57 pm

I'm no coder. I consider myself as a power user. And the only thing I can say about Journal are positive things.

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Post by IP_CAM » Sun May 01, 2022 10:32 pm

And the only thing I can say about Journal are positive things
Well, that may be so, but the problem remains, that Journal is a commercial Product, and it's not even available in the official OC Extension Section. So, Opencart generates no Income out of it. That's most likely the main Reason, why this OC User Forum should not serve as Platform for Journal-related things, if someone needs Support. At least as I look at this ... :D

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Post by Joe1234 » Thu May 26, 2022 2:18 pm

shoessanjay wrote:
Sun May 01, 2022 5:57 pm
I'm no coder. I consider myself as a power user. And the only thing I can say about Journal are positive things.
I agree 1,000,000%. Has an awful learning curve with back end design, but the best thing made for OC....theme or whatever it is.

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Post by paulfeakins » Thu Aug 18, 2022 7:20 pm

We've just created another great CSS only theme, we hope you like it!

In the marketplace: https://www.opencart.com/index.php?rout ... n_id=44083

Live Demo: https://electrontheme-oc3.demo.antropy.co.uk/

You can see sites built with these themes at the top here: https://www.antropy.co.uk/portfolio/

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Post by williamserna » Tue Nov 08, 2022 11:20 am

I don't know why they can't think of some good and unique themes to use.

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Post by adilmoreno » Thu Apr 20, 2023 12:51 am

I would definitely recommend the themes by Antropy. They seem to work perfect after testing them:

In the marketplace: In the marketplace: https://www.opencart.com/index.php?rout ... n_id=44083

Live Demo: https://electrontheme-oc3.demo.antropy.co.uk/

You can see sites built with these themes at the top here: https://www.antropy.co.uk/portfolio/

Live Demo: https://electrontheme-oc3.demo.antropy.co.uk/

You can see sites built with these themes at the top here: https://www.antropy.co.uk/portfolio/

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Post by paulfeakins » Thu Sep 14, 2023 6:53 pm

Just thought we'd post here as we had someone moving from OpenCart to Shopify - we asked the reason and they replied with:

" I'll be honest, the sites are slick, so many theme options, usability...tbh, they from what ive seen are miles ahead of opencart.

Example, we take clearpay, we want to take Klarna, klarna are not compatible with Opencart. It seems like woocommerce, shopify are just miles ahead."

Now I don't agree Shopify is miles ahead and it's got all sorts of problems including them owning your website and your business, vendor lock-in etc. and there is actually a Klarna extension which we're explaining to this client, but they have a point about themes.

There really needs to be some kind of concerted effort to increase the number and quality of OpenCart themes because a lot of people are sold on a pretty design - that's why Journal is so popular despite it being a bloated mess.

Any ideas on how as a community we can do this? Perhaps OpenCart should create a curated selection of themes in the store that get shown first - themes which are verified as both good code and professional designs?

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Post by Johnathan » Thu Sep 14, 2023 9:34 pm

Yes, that would be great. However, I don't see Daniel really prioritizing that, given that he's still working on fixing bugs in 4.0. ;)

I do recommend the Antropy CSS themes to users whenever they ask for a theme. Just create more of them so we all have more options! :laugh:

Also, my Stripe Pro extension lets OpenCart users accept Afterpay/Clearpay and Klarna, so those are options for OpenCart. It does require that they use Stripe, but it's available at least.

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