There are some big changes coming in ZenMagick. One of the big concerns was (and still is) the integration (or lack thereof) with zencart.

To pave the way for some real improvements for this there has been a huge amount of work to make things simpler, cleaner and faster.

Right now ZenMagick is integrated via a number of file patches and additional files (overrides) in storefront and admin. Last week we removed

• *all* of the remaining admin integration files
• the first batch of required file patches (replaced by one new file patch, though)
• the current storefront override file (init_templates.php)

And, there is more to come.

This means for the next release/upgrade there will be some cleanup required to get rid of obsolete files. On the plus side – wait, that is already the plus side!

In the grand scheme of things this will mean faster request handling (more/no zencart code used for most of the time), less conflicts with zencart code and generally we expect a much more predictable behaviour.

Of course, with so many changes there are things to consider. For one thing, ZenMagick will, for the first time ship with custom versions of core zencart files. This means if those files are patched in your system right now, those changes will need to be applied in our version. OTOH, those files are mostly not the commonly modified files.

I will write up some more details once the dust has settled a bit…