Topic: on line commerce -- what do I need?

Things seem to be on the upswing for me lately. I've been asked to design a web site. Cool.
The main purpose of this web site will be for selling music CD's on line. Wow! The potential here is cool, but I've never done this sort of thing before. I understand I will need a database for sales and inventory and so on. I think with some work I can pull this off.
The big question here is:

What do I need to do special, how do I handle the credit card stuff?
Someway, somehow, I am going to need to interact with whatever credit card companies...but I don't know how.

Any other experienced wisdom would be very helpful, and very appreciated.

Thank you.

I don't have any personal experiences in that field that I could share, but you may find the links in the FAQ useful:

http://faq.ozoneasylum.com/467/

kuckus (cell #282)

mobrul: kuckus pretty much hit the nail on the head there - have a look at osCommerce and phpShop they both should make the whole process pretty straight forward (I haven't used them myself yet but the feedback I hear is good). Let us know how you get on.

___________________
Emps

FAQs: Emperor

Thanks fellas
I did a search, but came up with nothing substantial. Didn't even think about FAQ because, well, I didn't think it was really a Frequently Asked Question. ha
Anyway, I've been reading all morning. Kinda cumbersome to read through, but there is lots of stuff so it should be well documented, fairly easy to use once I put my hands to something.
Let's see how this turns out.

If anybody has any horror stories, advice, praises, I'd love to hear them before I take the dive.

mobrul

Update.
After a day of research, crunching some very preliminary numbers and time frames, I contacted said client.
"Well, what you're looking at is going to cost somewhere in the neighborhood of [a lot] dollars,"
I heard his jaw drop, through the phone.
"And it's going to take me, working alone, approximately [next millinium] years to accomplish this."
He said, "Uhh, can we just use Paypal?"

So, my friends, my adventure has ended almost before it has started. Unfortunate...I was in the mood for an adventure. On the other hand, I still have a decent project to work on, and I'll be getting paid.
We've even worked into the contract (not signed yet, but in the works) that my payment will include a percentage of whatever he sells on-line! (his idea, not mine!!)
...and I'll always be around to update later when paypal doesn't cut it anymore.

So my story ends. Thanks for the help.
mobrul

*chants* Mobrul whimped o-ut... Mobrul whimped o-ut....


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Mobrul: I know how you feel. Just before you get started you have a big wall in front of you.

I was going to start selling prints of my work on-line (If I can get of my arse and get it sorted , but by the looks of it, it is way to pricey. I was wondering the same thing a weeks ago "How do I and what would it take to sell stuff on line?" and someone pointed me to:

worldpay.com(World pay plc)

Look okey, there like paypal (I think) but has more stuff to play with and they have a "Click and Build stores" which is all do for ya just push buttons and fill in forms for an online store. I don?t know how well it all works as I'm still reading up on things and to see if I can get the price down a lot. So I'll have to read and find out for yourself, which is the best option for you.

It's not going to be an easy ride and cost bugger all, as some prices are high, that's why I think it's a no go for me. But it might help you though, that's why I'm mentioning it.

Might help or not, now I?m off to read all that stuff in the FAQ.



DS