I’ve been using Magento Commerce since it’s early early preview release back in August of 07′. I’ve been a junkie ever since. It took me about an hour playing with the framework to decide that THIS was the solution i’d been waiting for. Not only is it open-source, a godsend for developers, but the ingenuity, the community, and the true MVC nature of the framework just rubbed me in all the right places.

Any developer knows that the E-commerce space has sucked for some time now. Yes… sucked. Been crap. Nothing to get excited over. And for myself… the majority of my clients are small, up and coming businesses, entrepreneurs themselves who don’t have the budget for an over-priced ASP or custom solution. I like those people, I like their drive and ambition.. and I’m happy I can provide them with something to let them bang out with the big shots.
My most recent Magento project www.kanemarie.com, is a luxury jewelry retailer. Previously hosted by a ASP-driven box, I took on the project to really push magento to its limits. I’ve been happy with the results. Lot more work to go though. Magento just makes you WANT to code. Your not stuck within a limited system like say an OScommerce, or X-cart…. trust I’ve was a whore for them both in the past.

Why do I love Magento? From a design standpoint… you can literarally skin this baby anyway you wish. The Design is TRUELY seperate from the code. So CSS fanatics dig in. No need to mix PHP code within some smarty template with your xhtml. That in itself is a MAJOR improvement.
Another improvement is the code-base itself, the team behind magento has put alot of time into developing a smart, saavy system that can deliver results amongst a variety of e-commerce stores. Multiple language support, Multiple stores, Smart browsing via layered navigation, RSS product feeds, tagging and reviewing products, comparing products, product wishlists…. even Product Image Zoom is standard right out of the box. Impressive? Trust me theres more once you pop the hood.
But I think I started this blog and made blogging about magento my first post because of the community behind this project. Like I said, I’ve been playing with Magento since last August during its early preview release and I’ve had the pleasure of not only talking to the team.. but several developers, store owners, and cool people alike within the forums and magento blog. There’s a surge of support that’s uncanny for a software project this early in its lifespan. I’m thrilled to say I’m apart of the community, and invite any other developers to join as well. Ask and answer, show off your sites, and enjoy what definitely is E-commerce evolved. I sure am.
Go Go Magento!!
Look forward to more posts on this blog about specific tips and tricks with developing e-commerce sites with magento. Feel free to message me on the magento forum or send me a msg via Twitter as well.