Fortune3 says that it will not be easy to release a stand-alone version that will provide all functionality of their hosted shopping cart, as stand-alone version would be a HTML code generator instead of a database-driven Ecommerce engine. In other words, they don't want to sell their shopping cart engine.

We must wait and see. Fortune3 never really announces their upcoming releases, but they listen. They are constantly releasing new versions of their software, so I wouldn't be surprised one of these days we'll have it.

Mark is the development director of CommerceTree, an e-commerce development firm based in south Florida. Mark has a degree in computer sciences from FIU and 8 years of expertise in developing e-commerce sites for small and medium size companies.

Just like with regular RSS, every time you update this file with information, your subscribers get an automatic notification.

This is often more efficient in delivery than email marketing - and although ezines and other email communications have not gone way of dinosaur, not having an RSS Feed from your site is like being a television network station with only one or two shows. You can think of your average static twelve-page website or weekly newsletter as examples of these shows.

Once “program” is over, they don’t have a reason to be back. Many web surfers return to your site only because they are reminded.

With an audio-enabled feed, you are taking care of these issues in one shot.

• Update frequently (meaning at least daily) with news, tips or editorials that are relevant to your audience and they’ll be back to listen to and/or read what you have to say.

• Search Engines love sites with feeds. It meets their needs of finding fresh, keyword specific information. If you’re maintaining an updated feed and/or blog, you’re giving search engines more chances to find you and more reasons to list you. Combine your text posts with audio and you’ve got a search engine magnet.

• With audio, even if your visitor surfs away from your site, your voice is still with them and they’ll start tuning in to your “station” way they would with traditional broadcasts.

If you put together a podcast feed, whether it’s a quick tips daily show that lasts five minutes, or a weekly half-hour audio show coupled with shorter text-based updates, you’re giving your site an air of distinction.

But don’t listen to me.

Listen to USA Today, or Washington Times. Both recently ran prominent stories on Podcasting and its growing popularity.

So how do you get yourself properly audio or podcast-enabled?

That’s a little more complex - but starting out can be as easy as filling out a few forms and making a phone call. Now that you don’t even need to have a microphone , money, or a bunch of fancy equipment, there’s nothing stopping you from being able to compete with other sites that offer audio.