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We provide free email support for our software for every customer. Please
contact us. Please read through our support area below and if
your question is not here, please use the contact form to get
in touch.
General Frequently Asked Questions
What are the minimum requirements to run PropertyMax Pro?
PropertyMax Pro
will run seamlessly on any server or webhost which is Unix / Linux based and supports PHP
with GD (4.2.2 or higher) MySQL (3.23 or higher).
The system will not let me login?
The login system is run by cookies. These
will need to be enabled in your browser settings. If you are still having login problems,
please follow the instructions on the Admin login page.
Do you offer an Installation Service?
Yes, of course, we offer two levels
of installation, one for installing the software on your sever with no customisation and
another service with full template customisation to your existing website design. However
its so simple to install, you should be able to manage yourself!
How many Properties can PropertyMax Pro manage?
PropertyMax Pro can handle
an unlimited number of properties, location categories and property types but this
ultimately depends on your web host or server if they can handle thousands of properties
and photographs.
What currency units does PropertyMax Pro support?
PropertyMax Pro supports
all of the world's currencies! To change currencies simply edit the corresponding
language file!
Is PropertyMax Pro limited to locations and countries?
No, one of the
features of PropertyMax Pro is that it can be used in any country around the world with
any number of locations and areas for properties. You have full control over these areas
in the admin section. Various Language files are available form the Support Centre.
I am a web developer and would like to offer your program to my customers; do you
offer any unbranded version of PropertyMax that I can rebrand to my own spec?
For
Sure, but obviously as you will be passing off our work as your own, the charge is higher
than just by purchasing the script. Please get in touch for further details.
PropertyMax Pro is great but I have a couple of extras I want installing can you
help?
We most certainly can, we are always on the lookout for ways to improve our
software and make PropertyMax Pro feature rich, so please contact us with the feature
requests and we will do our best to implement them in the next release, if they are any
good! Or if you have some requirements which you would like to have implement only on
your website, please contact us with details and we will happily provide you with a
design quote.
Are future releases and upgrades free? Yes, any one who purchases PropertyMax
Pro will receive free feature upgrades for a year. All security upgrades will remain free
at all times.
Do you provide after sales support.
Of course, you can contact us on the
forums, email or phone. We will always support our products and assist in any way we can.
What payment methods do you accept?
We accept most credit cards and payment
is taken by a third party payment processor PayPal. You may also pay be cheque. Please
contact us for further details on this option.
After I purchase PropertyMax Pro, how do I receive the software?
After
payment you will be able to download your copy or a copy can be sent via email or by post
on CD-Rom.
Will the software run on a windows server?
Unfortunately not at this
present time, we are currently developing a version which will run under the windows
server developments and this will be due for release shortly.
Can I resell PropertyMax Pro?
No. PropertyMax Pro is NOT freeware. You are
not permitted to distribute any copies of the software you have purchased. The script is
solely for one single domain use.
Integration Guide
To integrate PropertyMax Pro into your existing website, please read the Integration Guide, which comes with the full package. But a quick guide is that you are best to create a new page in your own website design theme with just a header and footer, save this file and call it property.php, then add the PHP include code to this file : <?php ("search_.php"); ?>. Then just link to the property.php page and the search box fopr the properties will appear in your website design layout.
You will not have to login to your proeprty admin section and in the configure section (link on the lefthand menu) chnage the Template Page Name to the name of your template page, which is called property.php.
A lot more linking options are available such as linking to individual properties, displaying only properties in certain areas and price ranges, or you can mix and match them all. PropertyMax Pro has a very comprehensive search engine which can be manipulated to your own requirements by just using link variables
Installation Guide
System Requirements
To properly get the most out of PropertyMax Pro, a few
system requirements are needed to run the property software to its fullest potential.
Please ensure that your server is capable of the following:
- PHP 4.22 or higher with GD library installed
- MySQL 3.23 or higher enabled web server
- Unix / Linux web hosting plan
- Web Browser that supports cookies
If your server meets these minimum requirements, then please proceed with the
installation. If you do not know or are unsure, you can contact your current web host and
ask, another option is that you could always just 'give it a go' and install the software
as it is very unlikely that you could 'break anything' anyway!!
The Installation
These installation instructions may be too detailed for some users and they mainly
target the first time installer. So please forgive me if I go too deep in explaining
features. Before you begin you will need to know the following information:
- The name of the database you will be using.
- The database username
- The password for the database
- The name of the host that the database is running on, in most cases this is
localhost.
We all have the urge to dive straight in without reading any manuals and instructions
and I am just the same, but if you can spare a few minutes of your time to read what's
below, then I can assure you, installing PropertyMax will become a lot clearer and
easier!
Now that you are armed with the information we need to allow PropertyMax Pro to
connect to the database, we can now proceed to install the script on your web server.
Step One - Getting the script ready for upload.
Unpack or Unzip the
PropertyMax Pro zip file you have been sent or downloaded form the PropertyMax Pro
website to a folder location.
Next step is to edit the config.php file with the database connection information. The
config.php file can be found in the includes/ folder. Open this file in a text editor or HTML
editor such as Dreamweaver. Do not use MS FrontPage as this will alter
the code. Add the database name, username and password in the space provided and save the
file.
Now upload all the files to your server and you will also need to chmod the photo/
folder to either 755 or 777 to allow the script to upload the property photographs.
You will also need to chmod the admin/backup folder to 755 for the back-up system to
work.
Step Two - Installing the Database Tables
Now we have to point our browser
to the install.php file. This file is especially designed to install all your tables and
default content for PropertyMax Pro to function. Open up your favourite browser such as
I.E, Mozilla or Firefox and type in the address bar:-
www.yourdomain.com/install/
You should now have a screen with some text which you should read and understand!
Below the button, you will see some important information about the tables which
PropertyMax Pro will create on your database.
Press the button in the middle of the screen which says 'Click here to install
database tables'. You should now see a very nice message which says database installation
successful. If you get this message then follow the on screen instruction to access your
admin control panel with the default username and password.
REMEMBER to delete the file install/ folder after
installation as this file is now a security threat and should be removed from your
server.
That's it. PropertyMax Pro should now be installed and fully functioning on your
server. Just follow the information on this screen to proceed or ……read on.
Login to the PropertyMax Admin section by visiting www.yourwebsite.com//admin/ you will be required to enter a
username and password to gain access. Use the following to login:
- Username: admin
- Password: admin
All language packs are located in the includes/lang/ folder. All text that appears on
the PropertyMax pro front end can be edited directly from the corresponding language file
inside each lang/ folder.
To change the currency unit on the English language pack, you will need to edit the
file located at includes/lang/english/index.php Locate the CURRENCY section and edit as
you require.
For extra security, you can rename the admin/ fodler to any name you require, just remember to change the admin folder name in the includes/config.php file. Rename the admin/ folder only AFTER installation has been completed.
Admin Management
A complete Admin User Management Guide is in the full version
Zip file or available for download in the members section.
The admin area of PropertyMax Pro is where you will find all the information and
features to make your property listing website a success If we have not covered any area
here, please let us know.
Changing your Login Password
You should always change your username and
password on a regular basis with any control panel. Click on the link 'Change Password'
on the left hand menu to have your password or username reset.
Adding a new Property
To add a new reciprocal link to your system you need
to click the 'Add New Link' button on the left hand menu. This will send you to a page
where you can enter the required information. All links added on this form are
automatically added and are not set for approval, like links added by third parties. Any
link or modifications you make to your listings will not be available until to 're-build
the pages' by using the build engine.
Adding a new property
IMPORTANT Before you can
start adding properties to the database, you need to ensure that you have added your
required property types and property locations.
To add a new property to the
database, make sure you have the information at hand before you enter the property
information in the add property form. From the main admin page, or the left hand menu,
click the 'Add Property' link and the property form will be displayed.
- Property Owner Information This is for your information only and is not listed
on the website. Leave blank if you do not want to enter the property owner's information.
It is to be used for a quick way to track properties if you are selling them on behalf of
a third party.
- Rental or Sale Select form the drop down list of the property is to be made
available for sale or rental.
- The PropertyRef is a unique name which is applied to each property in the
database. This is required as all property photographs will be assigned to this unique
PropertyRef id.
- Select the correct Property Type for your property. You can add or remove more
property types from the Property Type menu.
- Enter the Property Price in the space provided and ensure that you do not
enter any commas or punctuations as the system will take care of these and formats them
accordingly.
- Select the number of bedrooms the property has from the drop down menu.
- Enter the Address of the property and it is a good idea to not include the house
number, just the road, Town/City and Postcode.
- The Short Property Description is what the viewer will see when they have used
the search facility to find a property. This should be a brief overview of the property
to catch the viewer's eye and imagination to make them seek more information about the
property.
- Long Property Description is used to supply full information about the
property and its features. HTML can be used in this box and can be used to excellent
effect just from using the bold and other common HTML tags if required. Return characters
will automatically be used as a paragraph in the final listings.
- The Property Status will allow you to show the property when it has been sold,
sale agreed, under offer or new instructions. By using this it gives your properties the
look of them being constantly updated.
- Property Listing option will allow you to temporarily remove the listing from
being viewable on your website but still available for admin to edit. Yes, will display
the property and No will not display the property in the search results.
- Adding property images requires a bit of common sense as a few things govern
the procedure to get the most of using photographs for your properties. All photographs
which are uploaded via the admin section will be resized by the height and width which is
set in the admin config.php file. You can only upload JPEG images for your properties to
keep the database running at its most optimised. 10 images per property are allowed and
will be presented in a slideshow format or add your own photograph layout design. All image upload formats accepted.
It is good
practise to make sure the height and width of your photographs match those in the config
file before uploading images otherwise you may see some distortion effects such as
elongation of the pictures. To add images, simply locate the photographs by using the
upload button next to the image boxes.
- To finish adding the property to the database, click the Add Property button just the
once and it may take a few seconds to display the 'Property Added Successfully'
message.
Editing an existing property
Editing an existing property uses the very same
information as adding a new property but first you have to find the property that you
would like to edit. This can be done from the Manage Property page or from the Property
Search page, both will take you to the correct property that you would like to edit. To
edit the property, simply click the 'Edit' button which corresponds to that property. On
this screen, you will be able to add/edit any of the text you have entered as well as
change or delete any of the property photographs you have added.
Deleting a property
To delete a property from the database, locate the
property and then simply click the 'Delete' button, you will be asked to confirm your
desire to delete the property from the database. All images associated with this property
will also be deleted.
Template and Customisations
Changing the results layout
To change the layouts of the search results page
requires certain knowledge of HTML, so please only attempt this is you are sure you can
achieve the desired results. The file you need to edit is called layout_results.php and
is located in the template folder.
Changing the show property page
To change the layouts of the search results
page requires certain knowledge of HTML, so please only attempt this is you are sure you
can achieve the desired results. The file you need to edit is called layout_view.php and
is located in the template folder.
Changing Currency Type
The currency symbol will be automatically changed
when you select the correct language pack. However you can change to any
language/currency combination by editing the language pack file directly on a text
editor.
Changing the number of listings displayed per page.
The option to change the
number of listings shown on the results page can be edited at anytime via the admin
panel.
Changing Languages
To change the language of the front end layout, log in to
the admin control panel, select the configuration link from the menu and select the
appropriate language form the drop down list. If you language is not listed, please visit
our language download section.
Customising the Search Box
The search box which the end user sees will
automatically be updated via the options you select in the admin configuration. For
instance, if you do not want to display property rentals, uncheck the box and the
properties will not be displayed. You also have the option of displaying the other search
options such as bedrooms, price, locations, type etc.
The majority of display settings, rental and sale options are configured in the admin
section. Please see the demonstration for more information.
Troubleshooting and Installation FAQ's
Why are the Property photographs not being uploaded?
This could be down to a
couple of things, most notably the permissions on the photo/ folder need to be 777 or
755. Or it could be that the Photo Upload Path in the configure settings page is
incorrect. There should not be a trailing slash at the end of this link. Check these
things and if you still have trouble with the images, please contact us with any error
messages you receive on screen.
Why are the Property photographs not showing on my website?
If the
photographs are being uploaded to the photo/ folder and are not showing on your website.
Check the configure settings and check the Photo Upload Folder URL. This should point to
the photo/ folder and include a trailing slash.
The system will not let me login?
The login system is run by cookies. These
will need to be enabled in your browser settings. If you are still having login problems,
please follow the instructions on the Admin login page.
Why am I getting a MySQL num_rows() error message?
You are getting this
message because you have not followed the install procedure and run the install.php file.
Running this file will create all the required information for PropertyMax Pro to
function. This error message means that the database content cannot be found.
The Admin control panel logs me out after an hour or so.
That's correct, we
have set a timeout function for the control panel login's to prevent any misuse of your
PropertyMax program. Many people forget to logout when they have logged in to check
something. This is a security feature and you will need to log back in after an hour.
I am having problems installing PropertyMax Pro, can you help?
Yes, we offer
a script installation service. Please contact us via our website contact details and will
get in touch with you to see how we can help.
Why am I getting this MySQL num_rows() error message?
You are getting this
message because you have not followed the install procedure and run the install.php file.
Running this file will create all the required information for PropertyMax Pro to
function. This error message means that the database content cannot be found.
I have followed all your instructions and I receive a database connection error
message.
Ensure that you have entered the correct database name, username and
password in the config.php file. If these are correct, you may need to use your IP number
or domain name to connect to the database instead of localhost. Please consult your
server host help files for this information.
I have edited the config file and uploaded all files to my web host. I when I look
for my website, all I can see if blank white pages. What has happened?
What you
have most probably done is that you have uploaded the files using MS FrontPage, you will
need to delete all the files form your server and then upload them using a FTP editor,
such as CuteFTP or WS_FTP.
I have followed all your instructions but I get following message. Warning:
mysql_connect(): Access denied for user 'user'@'localhost' (using password:
YES)
This message means that you have tried to install the script but have not yet
established a connection to the database. Please check and verify that your database
username and password are correct.
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