edit auth.tpl and news.tpl
 

Hi i am trying to edit the auth.tpl and news.tpl so as on the front end they are displayed with only a box with text "customer login" and "news" then if the customer requires these services they click on the box to be taken to the relative page, am i looking at the correct templates to do this.

Re: edit auth.tpl and news.tpl
 

I don't really follow what it is you are trying to achieve. These are two seperate sections and have nothing to do with one another, and both are complex.

The "auth" section deals with customer registration, customer login, and customer logout. If all you do is create a link to the "login" portion then what happens to the "logout" portion and the "registration" portion?

The "news" section deals with newsletter display, newsletter subscription, and anti-spambot image verification (if enabled).

What specifically do you want to happen when the customer clicks on "customer login"?

What specifically do you want to happen when the customer clicks on "news"?

Re: edit auth.tpl and news.tpl
 

OK what i am trying to do is tidy up and shorten the total length of the vertical column down the left hand side of my web site which at the moment contains various boxes including customer login and news, these two boxes take up quite a bit of room for example the Customer Login box has:

"Username" box, "Password" box,"Log in" link, "Register" link, "Recover password" link and "If java script disabled click here" link.

What i would like to have is a box in the vertical column with the text "Customer Login" and only this so when the customer selects this box they are taken to the login page.

Re: edit auth.tpl and news.tpl
 

The easiest method would be to require secure login. That would remove the "Username" box, "Password" box, and "Log in" link, replacing them with a button that says "secure login".

You can enable this in admin under "general settings" - "security options"
Check "Use HTTPS for users' login and registration:" and "Use secure login form on a separate page (HTTPS):" and uncheck "Do not redirect customers from HTTPS to HTTP:"

You can move the "Register" link, and "Recover password" link, perhaps to the secure_login.tpl, or keep them where they are. I usually leave it.

I usually remove the "If java script disabled click here" link entirely and put a "noscript" warning that JavaScript must be enabled with a link to a static page that tells the customer how to enable it in the different browsers (good customer service). I put this in welcome_tpl right after {$lng.txt_welcome}

This makes it invisible if JavaScript is already enabled, and warns the customer they need to if it is not. A much better solution than allowing the customer to not use it, I think.

OK, now that everything has been moved or taken care of, we have a "secure login" button and a "register" button. Once the user logs in however, the "login" button is going to want to change to "Username - You are logged in - "logout" button. You will have to check if this appears how and where you want it. You can edit it in authbox.tpl.

This is just a guideline and you may want to do things differently. Some people just make a "login" button that takes them to h ttp://www.yourwebsite.com/error_message.php?login_incorrect but I think that looks very unprofessional, but it works.

Re: edit auth.tpl and news.tpl
 

[quote=JWait]The easiest method would be to require secure login. That would remove the "Username" box, "Password" box, and "Log in" link, replacing them with a button that says "secure login".

You can enable this in admin under "general settings" - "security options"
Check "Use HTTPS for users' login and registration:" and "Use secure login form on a separate page (HTTPS):" and uncheck "Do not redirect customers from HTTPS to HTTP:"

Applied the above but now the link Secure login and Register have a broken link.
Recover password still works.

Re: edit auth.tpl and news.tpl
 

Do you have HTTPS? Try entering https://yourwebsite.com/ and see what happens/

You are going to need it. No customer in their right mind will buy from a site that doesn't have SSL.

Re: edit auth.tpl and news.tpl
 

Did what you have said and all i get is internet explorer cannot display the web page.
Also i cannot log into my admin now, whaen i try i get the same answer as above, why? and how can i get access to my admin...

Re: edit auth.tpl and news.tpl
 

It sounds like you do not have SSL. Who is your hosting company? Most at least give you a shared secure server. Look in the email they provided you when you signed up and try to access your site that way. Do you have Cpanel? PHPmyAdmin?

Re: edit auth.tpl and news.tpl
 

If you can access your site with phpmydamin...
Look in the xcart_config table and find "use_https_login" and change the "value" to N.
In the same table find "use_secure_login_page" and change the value to N.

You should be back to what you had before you changed the HTTPS settings.

Re: edit auth.tpl and news.tpl
 

How do you access phpmyadmin

Re: edit auth.tpl and news.tpl
 

Do you have Cpanel? How do you access your site outside of x-cart?

Re: edit auth.tpl and news.tpl
 

no Cpanel can access files etc with FTPEditor

Re: edit auth.tpl and news.tpl
 

How do you set up your email accounts, change passwords, etc.?
Who is your hosting company?
How did you create your x-cart database?

Re: edit auth.tpl and news.tpl
 

Sorted, thanks for the prompts.

Re: edit auth.tpl and news.tpl
 

Did you achieve what you wanted to?

Re: edit auth.tpl and news.tpl
 

No because when i did the following Check "Use HTTPS for users' login and registration:" and "Use secure login form on a separate page (HTTPS):" and uncheck "Do not redirect customers from HTTPS to HTTP:"
I was subsequently locked out of admin so it looks like i need to do some more work, it is a step learning curve to say the least.

Re: edit auth.tpl and news.tpl
 

It sounds like you do not have HTTPS. I'm sorry, I assumed because you were making an e-commerce site you had it. You can't really run a e-commerce site without it. Most web hosting companies will offer shared SSL (https), does yours? While not really the best to use as it will sometimes show errors (the certificate doesn't belong to your web site) it should still work.

In order to use x-cart, you needed to have a mysql database created, along with a user and password. You had to enter that information when you installed x-cart. How did you create that database?

Ask your web host if you have access to phpMyAdmin, or some other way to edit your database outside of x-cart.

Re: edit auth.tpl and news.tpl
 

I have access to phpMyAdmin as this is where i had to go to reset the settings that locked me out of admin.
X-cart was installed and set up by a third party who has now left the face of the earth or at least it looks that way, this is why it is a steep learning curve for me and to be honest i am not sure if i have a shared SSL (https), i am trading online with a merchant account does this help.

Re: edit auth.tpl and news.tpl
 

If you have a merchant account, you may already have SSL. Maybe it just isn't set up properly. Who is your web host? Most web hosting companies include shared SSL (the visitor will get a warning saying the certificate belongs to your web host, not your web site). If you want your own SSL certificate your web host probably sells them, and will help you set it up.

Is your site live or still in development?

Re: edit auth.tpl and news.tpl
 

My site has been live for over a year now, at what point does the customer get the warning that the certificate belongs to the web host as i am unable to replicate this message.
All of the payment methods are dealt with the bank that the merchant account is with via protx, does this answer why i was locked out of admin.

Re: edit auth.tpl and news.tpl
 

Well, the fact that your credit card authorizations are made directly to a processor means you don't need HTTPS for that aspect of your store. It is likely that you simply do not have HTTPS set up on your account. It is not a big deal, although the customer doesn't get any assurances their transaction is secure except for possibly from your credit card processor.

I actually created an account and tried to make a simulated purchase, but was not able to go to your processor as there was a "no available shipping methods" error that prevented it, probably because I used a USA address. I subsequently deleted the account.