Without getting too bogged down in difficult coding issues, you now have a good grasp of the architecture and underlying technologies that go into the mix to produce a working osCommerce online retail site. The importance of this knowledge can't really be measured quantitatively, but you will feel the difference as you work. Knowing how things are put together will automatically allow you to make leaps of intuition concerning how to go about performing the various tasks that will be required along the way.
Sooner or later everyone requires something that is a bit beyond basic customization, and when this happens, you will be equipped with the requisite information that will make your life a lot easier as a result of reading this chapter. From an understanding of how osCommerce as an application sits within the framework of the World Wide Web, to an understanding of how PHP, HTML, and MySQL all interact to produce the final product, there will be very little that you should not feel...