USHOP 2.0


  1. What is uShop?
  2. Who should use uShop?
  3. Is there a trial version that I can use to test uShop out myself?
  4. What is the difference between the trial version and the full version of uShop?
  5. Where can I see a current listing of all of the applets that come with the full version of uShop?
  6. How much does uShop cost?
  7. Do I have to purchase another license of uShop for each on-line store that I develop?
  8. Is uShop a stand alone system or are their monthly service fees?
  9. What are the system requirements of the store owner?
  10. What are the system requirements of the customers?
  11. What sort of support is available?
  12. Is there a tutorial available?
  13. Is there a tool to help setup uShop's applets?
  14. Is there a tool to help setup uShop's CGI script?
  15. Where is the data for the products stored?
  16. Does uShop have a database interface?
  17. What forms of payment does uShop accept?
  18. Does uShop interface with any merchant account systems such as Authorize.net?
  19. How does uShop handle secure transactions?
  20. Can uShop validate credit card numbers?
  21. How does uShop validate credit card numbers?
  22. What if I don't accept credit card orders?
  23. Is there a way to request no payment information at all?
  24. Is there a way to have the customer print out the order and just fax it to the store owner?
  25. Can I configure different tax rates for customers from different states?
  26. Can I configure different tax rates for customers from different cities of different states?
  27. Can I configure different tax rates for customers from different countries?
  28. Can I configure the shipping charges?
  29. Can I configure the handling fee?
  30. Can I configure the handling fee based on where the customer lives?
  31. Do you have to use Frames?
  32. Is there a limit to the number of store pages and/or products?
  33. Is there a limit to the number of uShop applets that can be put on a single .html page?
  34. Is there a limit to the number of items that can be purchased at a time?

Q) What is uShop?
A) uShop is a collection of Java applets and one CGI script that together create a powerful and extremely flexible Online Shopping System. The applets serve as a Java front end to the CGI script and can be easily plugged into any web page - thus, offering the ultimate in flexibility when designing your web pages.

Q) Who should use uShop?
A) uShop is ideal for small to medium sized on-line stores. (Under 1000 products)

Q) Is there a trial version that I can use to test uShop out myself?
A) Yes! We have provided a trial version of uShop - called uShop Lite. This trial version contains only a sample of the many applets that are included with the full version of uShop - but it is functional so that you can set it up on your server and get it working today!

Q) What is the difference between the trial version and the full version of uShop?
A) The biggest difference between the trial version and the full version is that the trial version only contains a small sampling of the many applets that are included with the full version. You can see a complete description of the differences between the trial version and the full version Here.

Q) Where can I see a current listing of all of the applets that come with the full version of uShop?
A) You can see a current listing of all of the applets that come with the full version of uShop by following the "Applet Reference" link at our reference site: http://www.uburst.com/uShop/reference/

Q) How much does uShop cost?
A) Effective February 1, 2000, a one-store license of uShop 2.0 costs $129 (US) - but be sure to check out our online store for specials. Online Store

Q) Do I have to purchase another license of uShop for each on-line store that I develop?
A) Yes. We require that a separate license be purchased for each online store that is using uShop. We do, however, provide discounts when purchasing multiple licenses licenses. See our Online Store.

Q) Is uShop a stand-alone system or are their monthly service fees?
A) uShop is a complete, stand-alone system. When you buy uShop, you get the complete collection of uShop applets and you can put these applets on whatever server you choose to host the web pages of your on-line store.

Q) What are the system requirements of the store owner?
A) The server on which the store owner is going to host the on-line store pages must be a UNIX or NT server capable of running Perl CGI scripts. Furthermore, for transactions to be secure, the server should also be a secure server that can run Perl CGI scripts.

Q) What are the system requirements of the customers?
A) The only requirement of the customers is that they have a Java-enabled browser. We have successfully tested uShop on the most common browsers (Netscape 3.x and later and IE 3.x and later) running on the most common operating systems (Windows, NT, and Unix). See also Requirements/Limitations.

Q) What sort of support is available?
A) We provide a variety of support options. See http://www.uburst.com/support.html for a complete list.

Q) Is there a tutorial available?
A) Yes! With both the trial version and the full version of uShop, we have provided a tutorial to help introduce you to uShop and get familiar with plugging the uShop applets into your web pages.

Q) Is there a tool to help setup uShop's applets?
A) Not officially, however, uShop applets do work very well with NetObjects Fusion. Otherwise, we don't provide a tool yet so for now you just have to add the applet calls directly into your .html pages.

Q) Is there a tool to help setup uShop's CGI script?
A) Yes! We have provided the "uShop CGI Setup Wizard" which will generate a CGI script configured for your server along with personalized instructions on how to install the CGI script on your server. This CGI Setup Wizard works with both the trial version and the full version and can be found by following the "CGI Setup Wizard" link at our uShop 2.0 Reference Site

Q) Where is the data for the products stored?
A)Right now, the data for each of your products is stored in the .html page itself. You specify the product information in the parameters of each input applet. If you want to change the price, for instance, then you just have to edit the .html page and change the price parameter of the product.

Q) Does uShop have a database interface?
A) Not at this time.

Q) What forms of payment does uShop accept?
A) The forms of payment that uShop accepts are totally configurable. You can specify the list of payment types that the customer can choose from and choose from a variety of order form applets have fields for entering credit card information...and a new order form applet for accepting payment via electronic check.

Q) Does uShop interface with any merchant account systems? A) We have developed interfaces to Authorize.Net and ClickPay...both available as $99 (US) Add-Ons to uShop. These interfaces allow you to have Authorize.Net or ClickPay to handle processing the credit card or electronic check information online and automatically.

Q) How does uShop handle secure transactions?
A) For a complete description of uShop security, follow the "Making Transactions Secure" link at our uShop 2.0 Reference Site

Q) Can uShop validate credit card numbers?
A) YES! Just set the "validate" parameter in the order applets to "yes".

Q) How does uShop validate credit card numbers?
A) Based on the selected credit card, uShop 1) Checks the number's prefix, 2) Verifies the number of digits in the number, and 3) Performs a MOD 10 checksum on the number. No external resource/service is required for this functionality.

Q) What if I don't accept credit card orders?
A) No problem. The "payment" parameter of the order applets allow you to list only those payment methods that you accept.

Q) Is there a way to request no payment information at all?
A) YES! We have added the uShopOrderContact applets which do not request any payment information at all.

Q) Is there a way to have the customer print out the order and just fax it to the store owner?
A) YES! Since not all browsers allow you to print Java applets, we provided the uShopPrintButtonCGI applet and the uShopPrintFormCGI applet, which allow customers to generate a printout via a CGI-generated .html page.

Q) Can I configure different tax rates for customers from different states?
A) YES! (English version only). You can use the "taxtable" parameter to specify different tax rates for different states. Use the "taxrate" parameter to specify the default tax rate.

Q) Can I configure different tax rates for customers from different cities of different states?
A) YES! (uShop 2.0 or later).

Q) Can I configure different tax rates for customers from different countries?
A) YES! (International versions only). You can use the "taxtable" parameter to specify different tax rates for different countries. Use the "taxrate" parameter to specify the default tax rate.

Q) Can I configure the shipping charges?
A) YES! uShop provides the ability to calculate shipping based on 1)Total Weight, 2) Subtotal, 3) As a Flat Fee, or 4) By Quantity. See the description of the "shipping" parameter in the order applets for more information.

Q) Can I configure the handling fee?
A) YES! The "handling" parameter of the order applets allow you to specify a default handling fee that will be charged on all orders.

Q) Can I configure the handling fee based on where the customer lives?
A) YES! uShop provides the ability to set different handling fees for customers from different countries. See the description of the "handlingtable" parameter in the order applets for more information.

Q) Do you have to use Frames?
A) No. You can use virtually any page layout scheme for your store that you want. Just plug the uShop applet's into the .html pages and uShop will do the rest.

Q) Is there a limit to the number of store pages and/or products?
A) No. With uShop, you can have as many store page and products as you like.

Q) Is there a limit to the number of uShop applets that can be put on a single .html page?
A) Technically, there is no limit to the number of uShop applets that can be put on a single .html page, however, it is a good idea to limit the number of applets to less than 20 per page. Remember, the more applets that are put on a single .html page, the longer it will take for the page to load and for the applets to start....so if your store is going to have many items, it is probably best to separate the products over several .html page of 10 to 20 uShop applets each.

Q) Is there a limit to the number of items that can be purchased at a time?
A) Unfortunately, yes. uShop allows up to 20 different items to be added to the shopping cart at a time. The reason for this limitation is described at Requirements/Limitations. Update: We have found a solution to this and will be incorporating it into a future release. The release date is TBD, so please do not ask us...we'll let you know.