eCom solution - buy or build?

[i-devs]

I've been looking at ecommerce solutions for a client project to the point that I think my head feel off a week ago!

For various reasons, I'm now leaning towards an ecommercetemplates.com solution rather than other paid or open-source solutions, but thought I'd toss out this thought as a whole other angle...

How hard would it be to create a solution using WebAssist, Cartweaver, or an InterAkt (MX Kart, MX Kommerce) package?

Now, to complicate matters, how hard or stupid would this be to attempt with little/no experience in php, mysql, or dynamic sites? These are things I want and need to learn, so the desire to do so isn't missing, just haven't done that yet and not sure jumping in head first like this is the best approach, but maybe these tools are like good training wheels to get there?

This would be a new site built from the ground up, and preferably, a XHTML/CSS table-less design.

Any thoughts, experience in this area will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

[SoftwareSquared]

some great free open-source tools are available for free that use php/mySQL. PM me if you'd like to talk further about this issue

[aspen]

I would not do this if you have no experience with the necessary tools. You really don't want to muck things up security wise when you're dealing with credit cards and other sensitive data.

As for solutions... well my newest ecommerce site is being built using this version of oscommerce.

http://creloaded.com/

[i-devs]

Thanks for the feedback.

I can't disagree and I've certainly been leaning towards starting out with a packaged solution, which may help me learn more in the long run, and then consider some sort of "tool set" for building anything in the future.

I was surprised not to see a few more responses... but I guess "eliminating" the typical "which cart is better" keep everyone else away.

Open source wise I was considering Zen, but the heavy load of db queries is turning me off there. I love the full XHTML/CSS table-less idea of Cube Cart, but it sounds like they aren't quite there yet. Of course, no real experience or expertise there, just based on the countlessX100 posts I've read!

Heard good things about creloaded as well, and took a little peek there... maybe some day.

[dreamscape]

It boggles my mind why people take on projects they have no idea how to do, or when the realize they're in over their heads they refuse to admit it.

If you really wanted to help your client, you should have referred them to someone that could actually help them... But then no one is really in the business of helping others anymore.

Yes everyone has to learn, but train on your own time and money, not your clients.

As for learning eCommerce development, I would recommend you start with one of the open source solutions that has a good community backing that you can assist you in learning that piece of software. In addition to learning that software, you will also gain knowledge of the basic and not so basic aspects of eCommerce applications. Contribute back and write modifications, contributions, etc... I'd also say make your own store, even if you are not really going to launch it, it will be a good learning project. I would recommend doing that for a solid year at least before even considering taking an eCommerce project; and even then, I would say start small, and only take on modifications or something before attempting to tackle and entire store from the ground up.

But whatever you decide to do, for everyone's sakes, don't tell someone you can give them a eCommerce solution when you full well know you can't.

Hey what the hell do I know anyways.