Erol 2

So far, we've only really described playing with the input fields at page level, but Erol 2 can also add elements to the page and then add items to these elements for complete control. Looking at the next level down, you'll find a layout table, and anyone who's played with Web-page design will know how useful tables are for getting page elements where you want them. Each layout table has its own properties like those for a page, and you can also choose whether the table is to be placed alongside, below or after any other tables you've inserted.

Now that you have a layout table on the page, you can add actual display, link and product items, again simply by selecting the appropriate button. Display items can be pretty much anything consisting of images and text, and you can use the HTML editor for fine tuning. Link items can be associated with another page in the Web, a product or an outside URL - you can also choose a rollover image for the link if you like.

While viewing any of the page elements mentioned above, you can select a template from a drop-down list, and see in the preview pane exactly how that will effect the item concerned. If you want to make some changes, then all you do is double-click the item and up pops a screen just like the HTML Editor, again with a preview panel alongside. This is the Erol Template Editor, and if you've ever tried to edit other catalogue builder's templates in Windows Notepad, this will come as a pleasant surprise. Here you have complete control of the display, link or product item at HTML level, easily inserting e-commerce elements such as buy buttons, quantity fields, options and prices by clicking the appropriate button. Just like the HTML Editor, you can also paste raw HTML, type in plain text and move everything around until you see the result you want in the preview pane. The template can then be saved with your own description and used over again anywhere in the shop design.

The upshot of all of this is that you can create a truly individual shop (including menu and toolbar pages) using totally freeform elements within layout tables to aid placement. You can edit raw HTML in the editors and see the results immediately. Also, you can design, amend and save your own item templates and use these later on - suffice it to say Erol 2 places emphasis on design like no other Web-shop builder.

Shopping basket

With this prominence on design flexibility, you might think Erol 2 couldn't possibly manage all the back office shopping basket functionality with similar aplomb - but, actually, it's actually a very capable e-commerce tool.

Although, for design purposes, product items can be placed anywhere you like, they're very different from display items of other sorts. Along with the usual descriptions and images for both a normal and an expanded view of the product, you can also define primary options to cater for variations on the product price, such as 'short sleeve' and 'long sleeve' of the same shirt. Secondary options also take care of price-independent things like colour or size.

Discount percentages can be applied over a specific quantity, or you can offer a free product or free delivery as an incentive to buy. You can also ask Erol 2 to keep a record of product quantities as they're sold from your site, in which case the software asks for a re-order level and a level below which to suspend ordering.

For those who would like to organise automatic online payment authorisation, Erol 2 supports WorldPay, DataCash, NetBanx and Secure Trading by default (notice the encouraging UK slant here). If you prefer offline payment processing, then orders can arrive into the built-in order-processing module, with credit card details encrypted using PGP email delivery. You can also print delivery notes, invoices, and control stock quantities from the order-processing screen.