This reminds me of the conversation my father had with Fiat cars 40 years ago, when his brand new car arrived without a cigarette lighter, from memory the cost of this option back then was less than £5.00

Ironically when he checked he discovered the wiring was behind the blanking plug on the dashboard, cost about 75 pence to fit one himself.

Fiat explained quite clearly, that with anticipated sales in tens of thousands for the then rather inexpensive Fiat 500, that 75 pence per car added up to a considerable amount of money, but even more strange was they said it would have cost extra NOT to include the wiring.

By comparison CC have opted to provide what the majority seem in their opinion to want, (ie no lighter) they may of coarse be incorrect in this assumption and may be loosing thousands of orders as a result.

By comparison to my own meagre business, i choose not to stock signet rings in white gold because carrying 30 varying styles and head sizes in yellow gold costs me less than half as much as carrying twice as many to supply anyone requiring white gold., I do often get asked for white gold and in general, 99% of the time when i quote the additional charge because thats what i would have to do in order to stock them, i dont get the sale. therefore in my case as i am happy to earn what i do from my yellow gold and silver sales, anyone telling me to supply what the customers want i would politely disregard

Over the last 4 years as a result, i have sold hundreds in silver & yellow gold and one (1) in white gold

And one of the reasons for my high sales level, is because i can afford to carry stock, paid for in cash therefore able to sell them cheaper as i incur no bank loan interest or charges, where as my competitors on average are selling yellow gold 30 to 40% more expensive than i am, and three of my competitors went bust last year.

CC are spending their resources, staff time etc. in the way they feel is best for them, and it is not for me or you to tell them to do otherwise.

It would be like me advising you to only sell coffee granules because thats what 51% of the public buy.

My philosophy has always been "I pays my money and takes my pick". I have made some silly purchases and some damn good ones. I stick with CC not because they are always the best but because the upgrades are free for life, The official support system is fantastic, not forgetting the help I get and try to give here. But because the programs deliver on their specifications.

Java my advice is to get started. If your business model is a good one then the small cost, less say than $250 all up should soon be recouped. In the mean time set up a shop you like. Nothing wrong with having two shops going with two hosts. Similar to having two as Viv puts it Bricks and Morter outlets.

Again if you have a good idea get it off the ground, procrastinating just will not hack it. Use what is available and adapt.

We all use CC products for gain, why? they have a shallow learning curve and suffice till something better can be used. If possible. They are only tools after all.

So in conclusion Java if you cannot use these tools go somewhere else, or use these tools and join our helpful group and get sorted

Another option would be to ditch your POS machine and merchant account, go with Paypal and get one of those card readers from Paypal that Eric is raving about

Then you can collect money in store, on the side of the road and on-line!

When you factor in the monthly charge by your bank, any maintenance and the limitations of the merchant account when it comes to on-line processing gateways, the easier option may well be to embrace Paypal and earn money across all kinds of platforms with ease.

Just a thought

Dave

Ok, first things first... I do not mean to be an a.. hole. I know I came off that way. And I apologize. Yes, I meant to blast Scott as I did, but I realize now this was the wrong approach. I understand Scott was defending his baby as any good father would. When someone sets off to build something, they envision it a certain way. Of all of the site design software I have visited, I did not run into one that did not offer a full service cart. So I was kinda shocked, and yes, disappointed when I realized that my merchant could not be used. I pay fees on top of fees, and I don't want to pay more fees for the same service I already pay for. But I am not alone in my disparage of Paypal. Not familiar with google module though.
I have my domains through Godaddy, so I get a free 5 page site builder. I used it in depth and it is absolutely horrible. Fonts change color all by themselves. It's not smooth and seamless like the CC VSD. I have another site that is hosted by precision web. net. They have a site builder that is ridiculous. I paid a college kid to create my site and it was bad. I fired him and tried some things myself with their software and it was so difficult to figure out. The support is bad, so I just got it to a point where it worked, and I just left it alone for the last few years. I envisioned rebuilding that site through CC. Part of the reason I got mad that I couldn't use my merchant account.
I appreciate you guys not completely blowing me off. Thanks for the encouragement guys.
Viv, I couldn't help but smile as I read your story about your pop. He sounds like a cool dude. Older Fiat and MG are wiring nightmares! I understand your analogy though. Thank you.
Prism... thank you for your refraction of light..I get it. I have been thinking long and hard about this, and there are things that I can do to keep my merchant account relevant with CC. I will reluctantly use the paypal module and just have a separate page where I will explain if you do not want to use paypal or google, simply call me and give me your credit card info over the phone. Pretty simple really. It's a pretty good business model that I have and fully expect it to be successful. $250 is a bargain for sure and it will only take a few orders to recoup.
I'm not hip to the idea of getting a paypal card reader and using that exclusively. But, then again, I do not know enough about it. Thanks Guys, Brian

I would dump Godaddy and the other hosting, for SDRIVE lets face it, cost will be similar, BUT Sdrive is designed for and by CC so as simple as 123

If you take a trial order through to the shopping cart on my delorean site, there you will see my simple solution, and although other CC users have questioned its safety, Santander bank advised me it was safe to do that way, and 3 years and i have not had a single issue (note no branch address)

If however you want a cheeper hosting, paid i think 4 or 5 years in advance (£30.00 per year so £120 or £150 up front) send me an email, i can give you a link and instructions on how to get the deal, i will donate my commission to a good cause, my holiday boat

But i stick to my opinion go with SDRIVE it will be better for you.

CC wheres my commission, i get £30.00 from justhost every time