The Commerce Server Product Group released some new additions to the recently released Commerce Server 2009.  Two of the updates are design focused and the other is a document describing how to localize your Commerce enabled SharePoint sites using site variations.

The first is a new template pack, that provides a much nicer look and feel to the out-of-the-box site experience.  When CS2009 originally shipped, it contained what was known as the “Default Site”.  This site certainly wasn’t the best looking, but all of the foundation eCommerce functionality was there and the expectation was that you’d need to add your own design elements to really make the site shine! 

This new template pack provides what is now being called the “Contemporary Site” which still provides all of the foundation eCommerce functionality but looks far better out of the box.  What this really means, is less time and effort to get that production-ready Commerce Server site up and running!

Not only does the template pack provide a new Contemporary  Site, but also a new look and feel for the included mobile channel.

If you read my previous post on Redesigning the Default Site, you know that I certainly encountered some challenges when trying to apply my own design to the default site.  I have yet to confirm whether or not some of these challenges have been addressed with this new release.  Another point to mention is that the sub-pages (category, product) don’t contain the left-hand category navigation.  I can’t speak to why this is, but know that you will likely want to make sure that you have left-hand category navigation throughout the site.

The other new addition is the Silverlight inline product editor.  If you’re a site administrator or a merchandiser you may want to make a quick change to your product details, while in the context of your site – the inline product editor allows you to do this.  Any changes made in your SharePoint site are reflected back in the Commerce Server catalog.

When browsing the site in the administrator mode (NTLM site), you’ll notice a link to edit product properties on the product detail page.

You are then presented with a Silverlight based Product Property Editor window, allowing you to make changes to the exposed product properties.  Once the changes are made, clicking Apply updates the property value and the data is sent back to the catalog.

This is a huge improvement over the original Default Site.  Let me know what you think in the comments below.

Additional Resources

Microsoft Commerce Server 2009 Template Pack (Contemporary Site)

Microsoft Commerce Server 2009 Inline Product Property Editor

Localizing Your Commerce Server 2009 Site Using Site Variations