1. Introduction
   1. License
   2. Support
   3. Copyright
2. Installation
   1. Requirements
   2. Preparations
   3. Install-Script
   4. First Steps
3. Upgrading
   1. Upgrading from DCWS 1.x.x
   2. Modifying templates for DCWS 2.6.x
4. Administration
   1. Home Page
   2. Categories Administration
      1. How to add a new category
   3. Stores Administration
      1. How to add a new store
   4. Coupons Administration
      1. How to add a new coupon
   5. Deals Administration
      1. How to add a new deal
   6. Pages Administration
      1. How to add a new page
   7. Datafeed
   8. Settings
   9. Other (Pro & Local)
      1. Users & E-mail subscriptions
      2. Merchants & Store Owners (Local Coupons)
      3. Imports from RSS and Other Feeds
      4. Approve/Delete (Quick Management)
      5. Template Adjustments

http://www.YourWebsite.com/PathToDCWS/admin

http://www.YourWebsite.com/PathToDCWS/upgrade.php

4.b. Category Administration tab

Use the category tab to add and modify categories. Here, categories are listed alphabetically and hierarchically, with child categories displayed below their parents.

Follow these steps to add a new category:

1.  Log in to the Administration Panel and open the Categories tab.

2.  Click the Add New Category button.

3.  Fill appropriate fields in the Add New Category dialog:

• Category name –the title of your new category.
• SEO Friendly URL –This will be used as the URL for your new category.  Ex: Entering "laptops-notebooks" in this field will result in a category page at the URL:  http://www.YourSite.com/category/laptops-notebooks.html.
• Parent category – If you would like to make a subcategory of an existing category, select the existing category from the dropdown.  Otherwise leave “Root” as the parent category.
• Category Description(optional) – This description will be shown on the category page.
• Additional options – Click the Show More button to view the following options:
  • Guess keywords –Fill this field with appropriate keywords for the category. These words are used in automated imports – if one of these keywords is found in the imported coupon and/or deal description, it will be assigned to this category. Ex: If you add guess keyword "coffeemaker" to the "kitchen supplies" category, all coupons and deals including the word “coffeemaker” in their description will be automatically categorized as "kitchen supplies."
  • Datafeed Categories matching keywords – Use this field if you would like to assign all items in a given category to your new category.  Ex:  To display all deals in a current category called "Kitchen Supplies" in the new category "Home and Office," enter “Kitchen Supplies” in the "Datafeed Categories matching keywords" field for the new category.
  • Meta Tags, Meta Keywords, Meta Description – These fields contribute to your search engine rankings. If you leave them blank, they will be automatically filled based on your category name and description.

Editing Existing Categories:

To edit an existing category, simply click the Edit link to the right of the category and make the desired changes.  For details on all editable category fields, see the field descriptions above in “Adding a New Category.”

Deleting Existing Categories:

To delete an existing category, simply click the Delete button next to the appropriate category.  Keep in mind that a category cannot be restored once it has been deleted.

Including a Category in the Top Categories List:

To include a category in the Top Categories List, simply check the corresponding box in the “Top Cats” column.

back to top

4.c. Stores Administration Tab

This tab displays a table with all of the online stores with coupons/deals currently on your site.

Noteworthy table columns:

   -Edit/Delete– Use the Edit link to edit details on the public pages for each store.  Use the delete link to permanently delete that store from your site.

   -Add – You the Add Deal and Add Coupon links to manually add deals and coupons to your site.

   -Top Stores – Check the boxes in this column to include corresponding stores in the "Top stores" list on the home page.

4.c.1 How to add a new store

Follow these steps to add a new store:

1.   Log in to the admin panel and open the Stores tab.

2.   Click the Add New Store button.

3.   Fill appropriate fields in the Add New Store dialogue:

• Store Name – the name of your new store.
• SEO Friendly URL - will be used as the URL for your new store.  Ex: Entering "build-a-bear" in this field will result in a store page at the URL:  http://www.YourSite.com/store/build-a-bear.html.
• URL –Fill this field with a link to the store’s home page (can be an affiliate or a regular link). You can then click the "Transform to affiliate URL" button to transform a regular link to an affiliate link.
• Upload Image –You can upload an image from your computer by clicking the "Click here to upload" button.   You can also use an image that is already online by entering the image URL in the corresponding box.  If the image source allows hotlinking, you can check "Don’t write it to the server" box.  If you aren’t sure, it’s wise to leave this box unchecked.
• Select Store Category –Choose and click the appropriate category from the category list on the left.  Hold down the CTRL button while selecting categories if you wish to include the store in multiple categories.
• Store Description –this description will be shown on the store page.
• Tags –appropriate keyword tags
• Additional options – Click the Show More button to view the following options:
  • Domain– Enter the domain of the store to use a preview image of the store’s home page throughout the site.
  • Affiliate Network– select the appropriate affiliate network.  This is only needed if you plan on importing deals/coupons and creating affiliate links during the import.
  • Affiliate Network Store API ID (optional) –This is only needed if you have your own raw feed which requires an affiliate network store API for creating affiliate links.
  • Affiliate Network Tracking Pixel URL (optional)–enter tracking codes that you may have received from affiliate networks. This is only necessary if you want to track your store page impressions.
  • Store owner(optional) – Assign this store to a specific store owner.
  • Full description– Add an additional description to the store.  Can be used for fine print if needed. This description appears at the bottom of the store page.
  • Address, City, Phone, etc. (optional) – additional store contact information
  • Meta Tags, Meta Keywords, Meta Description – These fields contribute to your search engine rankings. If you leave them blank, they will be automatically filled based on your store name and description.

Editing Existing Stores:

To edit an existing store, simply click the corresponding Edit link in the Edit/Delete column and make the desired changes.  For details on all editable store fields, see the field descriptions above in “Adding a New Store.”

Deleting Existing Stores:

To delete an existing store, simply click the Delete button next to the appropriate store.  Keep in mind that a store cannot be restored once it has been deleted.

back to top

4.d. Coupons Administration Tab

This tab displays the coupons currently on your site and allows you to manage them.

Noteworthy Columns:

   - Coupon code – displays the coupon code if it was entered at creation

   - Expiration date – displays the coupon expiration date if it was entered at creation

   - Edit/Delete – Use the Edit link to edit coupon details.  Use the Delete link to permanently delete a coupon from your site.

4.d.1 How to add a new Coupon

Follow these steps to add a new coupon:

 1.   Log in to the admin panel and open the Coupons Tab.

 2.   Click the Add a New Coupon button.

 3.   Fill the appropriate fields in the Add a New Coupon dialogue.

• Coupon Title – the title of your new coupon
• SEO Friendly URL - will be used as the URL for your new store.  Ex: entering "half-off-womens-shoes" in this field will result in a store page at the URL:  http://www.YourSite.com/coupon/half-off-womens-shoes.html.
• URL – link to the coupon page.  This can be either an affiliate link or a regular link.  Click the “Transform to affiliate URL” button to transform a regular link to an affiliate link.
• Coupon code – numbers/letters that identify the coupon at checkout
• Coupon file – URL of the PDF or image file if the coupon is printable
• Expiration Date/Start Date – appropriate coupon dates
• Generate Printable Coupon – Check this box to create a printable version of the coupon.
• Barcode – coupon barcode (any webserver can generate EAN-12/13 barcodes.  You may need to install the Genbarcode software if you need something more complicated.)
• Additional Options – Select Free Shipping, Clearance, Rebate, Freebie, and Show on Main Page as they apply.
• More options – Click the Show More button to view the following options:
  • Tags – appropriate keyword tags
  • Image - You can upload an image from your computer by clicking the "Click here to upload" button.   You can also use an image that is already online by entering the image URL in the corresponding box.  If the image source allows hotlinking, you can check "Don’t write it to the server" box.  If you aren’t sure, it’s wise to leave this box unchecked.
  • Coupon Title –
  • URL –
  • [Deal of the Day] Sub-title, Savings, Price – details used if coupon is a deal of the day.

Editing Existing Coupons:

To edit an existing coupon, simply click the corresponding Edit link in the Edit/Delete column and make the desired changes.  For details on all editable coupon fields, see the field descriptions above in “Adding a New Coupon.”

Deleting Existing Coupons:

To delete an existing coupon, simply click the Delete button next to the appropriate coupon.  Keep in mind that a coupon cannot be restored once it has been deleted.

back to top

4.e. Deals Administration

Use this tab to view and manage all of the deals on your site.

All deals are organized in a table, which has 6 columns:

1.    Store– Shows the name of the store which this deal belongs to.

2.    Title– Shows title of the deal, you can see URL at the status bar by going over it with your mouse.

3.    Price– Shows deal price.

4.    Exp. Date– Shows expiration date of the deal (might’ve been entered at creation).

5.    Posted– Shows the date of posting.

6.    Edit/Delete– Here you can edit or delete the coupon.

4.e.1 How to add a new Deal

1.    Log in to the Administration Panel and open the Deals tab.

2.    Click the Add new deal button

3.    Fill the appropriate fields in Add New Deal dialogue:

• Select the correct store from the Insert New Deal For dropdown menu.
• Deal Title – title of the new deal
• SEO Friendly URL - will be used as the URL for your new deal.  Ex: entering "half-off-womens-shoes" in this field will result in a deal page at the URL:  http://www.YourSite.com/deal/half-off-womens-shoes.html.
• URL – Link to the deal page.  Can be either an affiliate link or a regular link.  Click the Transform to affiliate URL button to transform a regular link to an affiliate link.
• Price,Old Price, Coupon Code (if deal customer needs code), Expiration Date, Start Date
• Adjust Publishing Date – If you would like to wait to publish the deal, enter the date you would like it published.
• Upload Image -You can upload an image from your computer by clicking the "Click here to upload" button.   You can also use an image that is already online by entering the image URL in the corresponding box.  If the image source allows hotlinking, you can check "Don’t write it to the server" box.  If you aren’t sure, it’s wise to leave this box unchecked.
• Category – Choose and click the appropriate category from the category list on the left.  Hold down the CTRL button while selecting categories if you wish to include the deal in multiple categories
• Deal Description –This description will show on the deal page.
• Additional options –Click the Show More button to view the following options:
  • Free Shipping, Clearance, Rebate, Freebie, Show on the Main Page – Check these options as they apply
  • Generate Printable Coupon – By checking this box you can make this deal printable.
  • Barcode – You can add a barcode for the deal using this field.  Any webserver can generate EAN-12/13 barcodes.  If you need something more complicated you may need to install Genbarcode software.
  • Tags – Enter relevant keyword tags.  The guess button will attempt to add tags automatically.
  • Meta Tags, Meta Keywords, Meta Description – These fields contribute to your search engine rankings. If you leave them blank, they will be automatically filled based on your store name and description.
  • Custom Sort Order/Rank/Group ID –This field can be used to sort your coupons (advanced template usage).

Editing Existing Deals:

To edit an existing deal, simply click the corresponding Edit link in the Edit/Delete column and make the desired changes.  For details on all editable deal fields, see the field descriptions above in “Adding a New Deal.”

Deleting Existing Deals:

To delete an existing deal, simply click the Delete button next to the appropriate deal.  Keep in mind that a deal cannot be restored once it has been deleted.

back to top

4.f. Pages Administration Tab

This section allows to create and manage text pages.

4.f.1 How to add a new page

Adding a New Page:

Follow these steps to add a new page:

1.    Log in to the Administration Panel and open the Pages tab.

2.    Click the Add New Page button

3.    Fill the appropriate fields in Add New Deal dialogue:

• Page Title – title of your new page
• SEO Friendly URL – will be used as the URL for your new page.  Ex: entering “half-off-womens-shoes” in this field will result in a page at the URL: http://www.YourSite.com/half-off-womens-shoes.
• Parent – If you would like to make this a subpage of an existing page, select the existing page from the dropdown.  Otherwise leave “Root” as the parent.
• Page Content – content you want on your new page
• Additional Options – Click the Show More button to view the following options:
  • §Meta Tags, Meta Keywords, Meta Description – These fields contribute to your search engine rankings. If you leave them blank, they will be automatically filled based on your store name and description.

back to top

4.g. Datafeed

The Datafeed tab allows you to import categories, stores, and deals from the datafeed service.  The tab main page displays account information and stats.

There are also 4 buttons for updating content from the Datafeed:

1.    Get/Update Categories

2.    Get/Update Stores

3.    Get/Update Coupons

4.    Get/Update Deals

Automatic updates occur every day.  However, you may click any of these buttons to update your site immediately.  You may want to do this if you have added a new affiliate network and want to include this new feed on your site right away.

back to top

4.h. Settings

  - Site title– title of your site (appears in search engines and at the top of browsers)

  - Administrator’s e-mail– email address that will be displayed in the “Sent From” field of all automated site emails

  - Site URL– This field will be used when creating links from the "share it" buttons on your site. We recommend keeping this URL the same as your actual URL.

  - Logo URL– Fill this box with the URL of your site’s logo image.  If you haven’t uploaded it yet, you can use the "Click to Upload Logo" link.

  - Logo CSS– If necessary, enter some CSS code to adjust your logo.

  - Language– Choose the language to be used throughout your site.

UI/Template Settings:

  - Expired coupons– Select what to do once coupons on your site expire.

  - Include “Deals” Section– Select whether or not to include a Deals section on your site.

  - Include “Store Owners Registration” Section– Select whether or not you wish to allow visitors to register and setup/manage their own stores.

  - Allow users to submit coupons– Select whether or not to allow users to submit coupons.

  - Prefer to Use– Choose site thumbnails or logo images as the default images on template pages.

  - Home Page Layout– Select “professional edition” or “local edition” for your home page design.

  - Show “Deal of the Day” section– Turn this section on/off.

  - Default Map Region(leave blank to AutoDetect) – Fill the box with an address or zip code if you want to represent your site locally. The map will appear on the home page of the Local Edition design option.

  - Default Map Level– Choose the scale of the map on your home page (for sites using the Local Edition design option.)

Template Colors

  - Template– choose a template from the list.

  - Template Colors – You may choose from predefined color schemes or design your own color scheme using the color swatch boxes.

How Many

Choose the number of deals/coupons to be shown on various pages.

Affiliate Networks and API Settings

Fill out these fields only if you are using automatic imports from your own feeds.

Miscellaneous Settings

  - Google Analytics Code – Enter your Google Analytics code to manage traffic statistics.

  - Activate Rewards –Decide whether or not to activate rewards.

  - Allow all users to post offers –Select yes/no.

  - Default Currency Sign –Currency to be used by default for coupons/deals.

  - All Currency Signs –Enter all currency signs that may be used on the site.

  - Image Height/Width –Dimensions that will be used when resizing image uploads.

SEO & Meta

  - SEO Space– Symbol that will be used instead of “space” in site URLs.

  - SEO Extension– Extensions that will be used for site URLS (.html, .htm, etc.)

  - Search Root Stores URL– Decide whether or not to allow URL extensions in your own URLs (whether or not to allow URLs like: http://www.YourSite.com/amazon.com).

  - No SEO match (Page Not Found)– Select what you would like to happen when a user navigates to a page that does not exist. The available options are: "Show the Home Page", "301 Redirect to the Home Page", "Show 404(Page not found) Page"

  - Main Page Meta Subtitle, Meta Keywords and Meta Description

back to top

4.i. Other (PRO & LOCAL)

Additional aspects of your site can be managed from the Other Tab.

back to top

4.i.1 Users & E-mail subscriptions

Click the Manage Users button to view a table of users with 9 columns:

1.    ID

2.    Name

3.    Email

4.    Joined - Date the user joined your site

5.    Admin? – Displays “Yes” if user is an admin

6.    Can Post? – “Yes” if the user can post on the site

7.    Approval req? – ”Yes” if the user’s posts require admin approval

8.    Store – “Yes” if the user is a store owner

9.    Edit/Delete – Click Edit to edit a user’s details.  Click Delete to permanently delete a user.

Adding a New User:

Follow these steps to add a new user:

1.    Log in to the Administration Panel and open the Other tab.

2.    Click the  Manage Users link.

3.    Click the Add new user button.

4.    Fill the appropriate fields in the Add New User Dialogue.

  - Username

  - Email

  - Admin, Can Post, Approval Req, Store Owner– User permission settings checkboxes

  - Password

Click theE-mail Subscribers button to view a table of subscribers with 6 columns:

1.    ID

2.    Name

3.    Email

4.    Subscribed – shows date subscribed

5.    Active – shows user’s active/inactive status

6.    Edit/Delete – Click Edit to edit a subscriber’s details.  Click Delete to delete a subscriber.

Adding a New Subscriber:

Follow these steps to add a new subscriber:

1.    Log in to your site Administration Panel and open the Other tab.

2.   Click the E-Mail subscribers link.

3.   Click the Add new subscriber button.

4.   Fill in the appropriate fields in the Add New Subscriber Dialogue:

a.   Username

b.   Email

c.    Active – set subscriber’s status as active/inactive.

d.   User ID – If this subscriber is a current user, select their User ID.

Sending E-mails to active subscribers:

Follow these steps to send an E-mail to all active subscribers:

1.    Log in to the Administration Panel and open the Other Tab.

2.   Click the E-mail subscribers link.

3.    Click the Send E-mail to all active subscribers button.

4.    Add a Subject and Message.

5.   Click the Send button to send the e-mail to all subscribers.

back to top

4.i.2 Merchants & Store Owners (Local Coupons)

Click theManage Store Owners link to view a table of store owners with 5 columns:

1.    ID – Store owners ID

2.    Name – Store owners name

3.    Plan –Store owner’s plan (click to manage)

4.    Stores - Stores owned by store owner (click on store name to edit).

5.    Edit – Click to edit store owner’s profile.

Click theSee users management button to go to the Manage Users page, where you can manage and add users and store owners.

Managing Payment Plans:

Follow these steps to manage your payment plans:

1.    Log in to the Administration Panel and open the Other tab.

2.    Click the Plans & Payments link.

The payment plans are organized in a table with 6 columns:

1.    Name – plan name

2.    Price – plan price

3.    Offers limit – shows limit of postings

4.    Months limit – shows time limit of plan

5.    Description

6.    Edit/Delete – Click Edit to edit the details of a Store Owner Plan.  Click Delete to permanently delete a Store Owner Plan.

Adding a Payment Plan:

Follow these steps to add a new payment plan:

1.    Log in to the Administration Panel and open the Other tab.

2.    Click the Plans & Payments link.

3.    Click the Add New Plan button.

4.    Fill the appropriate fields in the Add New Plan dialogue.

  - Plan Name – Name of new payment plan

  - Price (text) –Price of new payment planin words

  - Price (numeric) – Price of new payment plan in numbers

  - Months Limit – Set limit for months on plan (0 for unlimited)

  - Offers Limit –Set limit for number of deals/coupons that may be posted with this plan (0 for unlimited)

  - Description –Description of this payment plan.

back to top

4.i.3 Imports from RSS and Other Feeds

You can manage imports from RSSand other Feeds at the drop down box by choosing it and clicking Import button. 

Here you can see all of your feeds.  Click the View Feed button to see the actual feed.

Adding a New Feed:

Follow these steps to add a new feed:

1.    Log in to your site Administration Panel and open the Other tab.

2.    Click the Manage Feeds button.

3.    Click the Add new Feed button.

4.    Fill in the appropriate fields in the Add New Feed dialogue:

a.    Feed Name – Name of your new feed

b.    URL – URL of the new feed

c.    Store – If your new feed is for a single store, add the store name here.

d.    Type – Indicate whether the feed is for deals or coupons

e.    Feed Type –Choose feed format (RSS, XML, etc)

f.     Feed Parser Filename – Select a parser filename.

To Upload a Feed from a File:

1.    Log in to your site Administration Panel and open the Other tab.

2.    Click the Manage Feeds button.

3.    Click the Import from File button.

4.    Select a feed from your file system.

5.    Choose Feed Type and Feed Parser.

6.    Check the Automatically publish offers form the feed box to auto-publish, or leave unchecked to require approval.

7.    Check/Uncheck the Show Offers on Main Page check box.

What is the Parser?

Right click and select “view source” on the Feed view to view the raw code of the feed. To recognize this code and define it for all sections of your site’s original you need a Parser (transformer between the Feed and your site).

The parser is a small PHP file located in the /admin/rss-inc folder.  You can write the parser by yourself by looking at the provided examples, or you order it from OWS Software Inc.

back to top

4.i.4 Approve/Delete (Quick Management)

Click the Approve/Reject user posted offers button to view a table of submitted offers with 4 columns:

1.    Shows Check box for manually selecting or unselecting the offers.

2.    Shows Offer information.

3.    Allows choose/change the categories by highlighting by mouse; choose few categories by holding CTRL.

4.    Allows manage the offer – Edit andReject.

To filter the offers in the table, you can use Type buttons and Filter. This allows choose type of offers and see all or only not approved offers.

Approving/Rejecting User-Posted Offers:

Follow these steps to add approve/reject user-posted offers:

1.    Log in to your site Administration Panel and open the Other tab.

2.    Click the Approve/Reject user posted offers link.

Use this section to review imported or user’s submitted offers, assign categories, quick approve or reject Deals/Coupons.Please note that Reject button here works as "1-click delete", so you won't get any confirmation window.

Deleting Expired Offers in Bulk:

Follow these steps to delete multiple offers in bulk:

1.    Log in to your site Administration Panel and open the Other tab.

2.    Click the Bulk Delete button.

Please note that the Delete button on this page works as "1-click delete," so you won't be presented with a confirmation window.

back to top

4.i.5 Template Adjustments

Modifying Your Templates:

1.    Log in to the Administration Panel and open the Other tab.

2.    Click the Edit Templates button.

3.    Choose the appropriate template.

4.    Make the desired changes to the template.

5.    Save/Cancel your changes.

Adding Custom HTML Blocks to Your Site:

HTML Blocks are sections of templates which allow you to insert dynamic elements on your site.

Click the Custom HTML Blocks button to view your HTML Blocks in a table with 5 columns:

1.    ID – The HTML Block ID.

2.    Code– “Address Block” code for your HTML Block.

3.    Name – Name assigned to the HTML Block.

4.    HTML– Preview of the HTML Block code.

5.    Edit/Delete – Click Edit to edit your HTML Block.  Click Delete your HTML Block.

Follow these steps to add custom HTML Blocks:

1.    Log in to your site Administration Panel and open the Other tab.

2.    Click the Custom HTML Blocks button.

3.    Click the Add new button.

4.    Fill in the appropriate fields in the Add New HTML Block Dialogue

  - Title – HTML Block title.

  - Code – Code for your HTML Block.  This code is the same as the template where you want to insert the HTML Block.

  - HTML – HTML code for your block.