For a complete information about WebStores 2000 Code and Database structure, look at our advanced help system for developers

Example: The two tiers in webcortex store:  consist of the Microsoft® Internet Information Server (IIS) and ASP front-end code and the Microsoft SQL Server™back-end database. Shop utilizes a farm of front-end servers running IIS and a single high-performance SQL Server-based server.

ASP Tags - 
Webstores 2000 uses a technique from the cold fusion world called "custom tags". we refer to it as "ASP Tags".

We have included in a single file called sub.asp over 30 sub routines and functions that can be reused across all WebStores 2000 e-commerce application pages.

Global variables - Included and ready to use across WebStores 2000 e commerce application pages.
Global variable are of two types: 
Store Global variables - holds information on a store level: store_name, Store_active, Shipping_Class, url_string, etc.
Customer global variable - holds information on a user session level: Cid (customer id), first_name, last_name, etc.

Example for using ASP Tags &  Global variables:
Say you want create a new page: new_page.asp. 
In this page you want to show customers the total of their basket: (i.e. hello joe smith, your cart total is $995 at the moment.)

Using webstores 2000 your code should look something like:

<%'------------Start------------% >
<%'File name: New_Page.asp% >
<%'Project : Add in to webstores 2000 e-commerce system% >
<%' include the sub.asp file that contains the ASP Tags% >
<%' include the store_settings.asp file that contains the global variables information% >
<!--#include file="store_settings.asp"-->
<!--#include file="include/create_instance.asp"-->
<%' first check if the user is logged in% >
<% if(cid = 0 or Log_Out = -1) then
' The user is logged out.  redirect user to login page ...%>
Response.Redirect "store.asp?"&url_string&"&page_id=2" 
else
' Call the Get_Price_Total fucntion that returns the total for the current shopping basket%>
Hello, <%= first_name %>&nbsp;<%= last_name %>. Your cart total is <%= Get_Price_Total %>
<br>Thank you for choosing <%=  store_name%>
<%End if %>
<%'------------End------------% >

The html out put will read : 
--------------------------------------------------------------
Hello, Joe smith. Your cart total is : $995
Thank you for choosing : My store
--------------------------------------------------------------

Code Explanation: we use the following global variables: cid, Log_Out, first_name, last_name,url_string

Later, we use the Get_Price_Total function (which included in sub.asp), to calculate and display the total amount of the customer shopping cart.

Similar way you can use various collections of ASP Tags &  Global variables to build your own pages/business logic.

DLLs and COM
Except for 3-4 DLLs that are used for real time credit card processing, files uploads, and email, There are no other hidden DLLs, we used only Pure ASP Scripts.

Check this section frequently, as we keep adding more and more code samples, and tips on how to use webstores 2000 e-commerce system.