Tags: Chatter, Reviews, Wordpress, Wordpress Hints and Tips
I decided to start a classified ads website for my local area a few months ago. I searched Google for a couple of days and couldnt find software that was quite right.
Is Rubbish
So having just spent $249.90 I was eager to get started. The email arrived from Steve (the owner) with the script and plugins etc, it also contained a link to a video guide for installation.
I watched the installation and carried it out without to much bother. So I had a WordPress installation with a Noah installation in a sub folder. I then initialised the premium widgets/plugins and the bridge. I then set about getting used to Noah (as Im pretty good with WordPress I thought I would leave that until last), this I found was no easy feat. The admin is poorly laid out, illogical and clunky. The code is also not the best Ive seen, a lot of use of tables and inline styling. It also feels like it hasnt been built from scratch, more like its been adapted from something else.
Anyway having fiddled around with it a bit I decided to make a start on my WordPress theme. Upon trying to log into the WordPress admin area I found I couldnt. It threw an error and gave me no access. I asked Steve for help and he couldnt understand my problem and why I was having difficulties and told me to simply start again. Install WordPress then Noah then initialise the bridge. I did this and it seemed to work until I tested out the functionality of the bridge and widgets.
The bridge hardly functioned at all; I created an account in WordPress and tried to login to Noah with those details….it didnt work. I also found out from another Noah user that the bridge only works one way! So it only works if users register through WordPress…well it didnt even do that for me, but even so releasing the bridge in this state seems like its only half done.
So obviously I looked to Steve for support and found none, he simply replied “nobody else seems to have these problems”. Which is obviously a lie as there is numerous people unhappy with the software and Steve’s lack of support, he replies to your emails quick enough if you are interested in buying Noah but as soon as you hit any problems you will be lucky to get a reply!
After countless attempts to get it working, contacting Steve (to get no reply) and visits to the ‘cleverly’ called Norum which is the owners forum (which also uses a horrible forum script, thats slow, clanky and looks rubbish) that is rather sparsely populated and you will need to wait for a reply if you get one at all. Steve also doesnt support his product through the forum, he lets other Noah customers do the work for him.
It got to the point where I was so annoyed with everything I asked for a refund, to which Steve replied with an email basically saying that nobody else had any of my issues and that other noobs to the software manage fine and so its my fault. Doing his usual and not addressing the issue raised. I pushed the matter further and now receive no feedback whatsoever.
I thought I would check the terms and conditions on the Noah website and found these two lines:
“REFUNDS: Payments made to Noahsclassifieds.org are final and shall NOT be refunded under any circumstance.”
“REFUNDS: Payments made to Noahsclassifieds.org are final and shall NOT be refunded under any circumstance. Unless you elect for a 30-day Money Back Trial Period.”
I dont remember an option for a 30-day money back trial period when I made the purchase….funny that!
I suppose its my own fault. If you look at the Noah website, the checkout system, the forum. Non are particularly good and well designed so why would the classifieds script be any different. I hope by writing this review that people looking to purchase a classified script will avoid Noah like the plague and realise the lack of support should you run in to difficulties.
Im currently looking into other options and think I found a good alternative which I will write a review on when I have tested it. Still Im angry that I have wasted over ÂŁ150 on rubbish that I no longer want to use and have no hope of getting a refund for.
UPDATE: I have found a really good out of the box classifieds software called ikiclassifieds. Its very easy to setup and has excellent admin customisation options. It also boasts excellent adsense and banner ad integration. You can set top ads (featured ads) and homepage placement ads payable via Paypal. Overall the site is excellent with phpBB included. I havent customised the code too much as I havent felt the need to, everything is almost perfect straight out the box…a highly recommended bit of software. Support is slightly slow (think the time difference effects it) but so far so good, they have answered all my comments etc. I also think its quite new so cant wait for updates!
UPDATE: Please read all the comment before purchasing iki. There may be a better option for you like using WordPress and a custom theme like Classipress or Classifieds Theme.
201 Responses to “Noahs Classifieds Review – DO NOT BUY IT”
Leave a Reply
-
-
Top Commentators
Neil (119)
elgorrion (6)
Unhappy2 (6)
Mark (5)
Adam Harris (4)
Alex (4)
Clark Bullen (4)
proches (4)
Sunny (4)
Gary (3)
Hey Neil,
I just wanted to let you know that your blog post saved me $200 that I would have spend on Noah’s Classifieds.
I did a ton of research on it because I had seen it in my Cpanel Fantastico script list. What really got me wondering is when I looked at their demo and everything was either confusing or broken.
Then I googled “noah’s classifieds review” and got your thread. So anyway, thanks!!!!
By the way, do you know if ikiclassifieds would be a good solution for an apartment listings website?
Thanks!
Jon
Hi Jon, no problem. No I wouldnt use iki for that kind of website.
I would either use a premium worpdress theme or a property management solution. Im not sure about this one but check out softwares similar to this: propertymaxpro.com
Hello Neil,
I have used Noah’s Classifieds and had some very “weird” behaviors of the software after I’ve gotten off the phone with Steve (the owner). I have had clients registratios erased misteriously. As if after Steve finds out about me using the software (website name), he had the ability of “deleting” some contacts in order for me to suspect that the free version I am using is subjec of bugs. Would you be open to sell me your serial number or passkey at a cheaper rate in order for me to figure out if that is the reason? I have used about 20 instances of the software (free version) and only on one website are the registrations being misteriously deleted. Let me know. I ask you this since you are not interesting in utilizing it anymore. I have just found out about the mess Noah’s hss been for you.
Hi Neil,
I want to create a business for sale listing website and charge people to list there business on there.
Would Classipress be suitable for this.
Hi Daniel,
It sure would but it depends on what business model you wanted to operate? Would you just be looking for listing fees or would you rather take a percentage of final price? If its the percentage option then I would say Classipress isnt for you. But you could start off with listing fees and then develop a system for taking a percentage.
We also purchased the software from Steve. We could not even get it to work because Noah does not work from behind the firewall. We got 3 month worth of run-around from Steve (the owner) who has zero technical knowledge and outsources all of the work. The “solutions” he was sending us were useless at best. Our DBA team basically saw straight through the BS and called him out on it. After that Steve basically stopped answering our emails or requests.
DO NOT BUY.
P.S. We NEVER got the refund.
If any of you used a credit card you can do a chargeback against Steve’s company. Just call your 800 number or bank that the card is from and tell them it didn’t promise what it said and you should get your money back without any problem. Good luck!
Saw this post and just wanted to add my own comments about my **terrible** experience with Noah and its owner Steve.
It always amazes me to find a company this rotten…to the core. It all starts with ownership and the owner Steve, of Noah’s Classifieds is as *rotten* as they come.
I’ve been around software for the past 20 years and my experience with Noah’s Classified is defintely one of the worst experiences during that time. Whats worse is not only is the software extremely buggy, their support and customer service is horrific. Recently I spent several weeks trying to get Noah’s to work on our server and my only interaction with their company was with Steve. He was very unhelpful with his tech support, offering broad suggestions and saying “why don’t you bend” several times. In fact after asking if I should post on their forums for help he encouraged me not to, rather to continue to work with him. That should tell you something right there.
Our server had every software requirement necessary to run this software and his software was still throwing out error messages. We tried *everything* that Steve suggested and more, and our network admin reviewed all the details of the intall many times.
I should have known this was going to be a bad experience right from the beginning. The signup process is very confusing and the end result was I was charged 2x for the same program. It took the owner of Noah’s over 2 months to refund me the 2nd amount and he ended up deducting another $16 from the refund so in the end I did not receive my full refund.
Their money back policy is absurd – they will NOT refund back the money if you are unable to get the software to work for any reason.
I paid for the install service (twice) and after a month I still have not received the $70 refund. Steve said their “new accounting” department is going to issue the refund. Um, that was a month ago, and after sending an email to both of the addresses I have for them (they were both bounced back), I then called his number and left a message. (Update – they finally sent the $70 refund after well over a month).
Their website is absolute eye candy. Do not be tricked like I was by what looks good on the surface. There are many other classifieds software out there and Noah’s should definetely be at the bottom of any list.
https://odr.bbb.org/odrweb/public/complaintlink.aspx
Hi Neil, I think your rant about Noahs Classifieds is Wrong!, There is not another Classifieds database that is more powerfull and customizable than Noahs, Just take a look at what i have acheived with my website – http://www.englishfurniture.co
So many people who make websites expect 5 star royalty treatment from everthing they download or use on the web at least there are honest guys out there still making this amazing software and distributing it to people like you and me!, when you work with a designer or develkopewr you need to be patient and give people respect after all we are all human and not cold machines able to carry out every instruction given!
Hi Matt, are you completely insane or just dumb? Did you actually read what I had to say and the other peoples comments who have used Noah. The functionality is severly lacking, so the “power” as you put it is totally lacking. And as far as customisation goes, Classipress trumps Noah everytime! As its built in WordPress its so easy to change the look and feel of the site but also to bolt on extra functions with the awesome array of WP plugins! So Im sorry Matt but you are completely and utterly wrong and probably Steve’s mate or even Steve himself.
Plus if you are so proud of your Noah website why not put proudly powered by Noah in the footer eh?
Hi Neil,
1. Firstly, I do not know Steve.
2. I needed a classifieds database for a client and found Noahs Classifieds with my web host – GDaddy!
3. I researched Google and found no other software that could come close to Noahs Classifieds capabilities.
4. I also wonder if your plug for Classipress database is genuine and your rant about Noahs is a hoaks! As you have not backed up any of your statements with clear examples.
4. I have demonstrated the capabilities of my website http://www.englishfurniture.co – which consists of many different and very powerfull functions, that you cannot currently create with any other classifieds database, until I am proven wrong!
5. WordPress is a gig for amateurs and I have built a couple for some customers, but it is too clunky and slow for my CMS needs!
6. I have worked with CMS for 6 years, when I first encounted Zen Cart, I was so happy, but even then i need to read through hundreds of pages of forum blog just to find the bit that said – Recreate Session – False, because in them days you couldnt check out unless you changed this setting!
7. We are extremely lucky to have open source software available, and the databases are constantly being developed, people that can utilize these CMS also need to do a bit of work, thats life!
Cheers
Matt
Well you couldnt have searched Google for very long because there is many much more “powerful” and better constructed software than Noahs Classifieds out there now!
Im sorry but I have to laugh….hahahahahahahahaha……you think WordPress is Clunky and for amateurs…holy crap you really are delusional! WordPress is THE best software on the internet! And you mention Zencart….well now I know you are outdated and dont know what you are talking about…….Zencart is garbage compared to new softwares out now.
All I can say is you are completely behind the times Matt…….big time and if you made you site work from the “FREE” Noahs classifieds then well done you but people want an out of the box solution as described on the Noah website and they dont get it…..fair enough if you didnt pay for the software and you made it work then great…WELL DONE…..but many on this site paid for aproduct which lacks in many ways.
PS your site really isnt that great so not such a fantastic example.
I am the publisher of a fairly new online newspaper. http://jamesriverjournal.com
I am also a developer. I will be establishing a classified section today. I wanted to review Noahs Classifieds one more time before making the purchase. What I am seeing does not look so good. I did speak with the owner last week.
My problem on these reviews is: I notice most of the writers don’t use their actual names. That discredits them right there. And to the person singing the praises of Noahs- I clicked the link to your website. It’s expired.
To bad, because choosing the right classifieds system is a very important decision for us.
Hi Dan,
Most people dont use their real names, its an alias thing, just like me on most sites too. This is the only one I think where I use my name.
With regards to Noahs well if you are a developer then you will soon find out if you buy it what a huge mistake you have made.
Isnt there any handy Joomla classified options you can quickly and easily bolt on to your site? However I can recommend Classipress which is WP based. I recon you should go down the Joomla addon route, see if there is something which will basically do the job and you can develop it further perhaps?
Do NOT lose your time with the crap. I made a big mistake. I got Noah’s Classified script. It’s the worse php software I ever worked with.
It seems like it was build from a pieces of open source software by a mad man who has no clue what PHP is.
I recommend to anyone! DO NOT get NOAHS for money, do not get the crab for free.
It’s just vast of tons of your time. I’m advanced in PHP, but this NOAHS Classifieds is no worth of your time. Just a JUNK.
Saw this link to Noahs Classifieds and just wanted to add my own comments about my **terrible** experience with Noah and its owner Steve. It always amazes me to find a company this rotten…to the core. It all starts with ownership and the owner Steve, of Noah’s Classifieds is as *rotten* as they come. I’ve been around software for the past 20 years and my experience with Noah’s Classified is definitely one of the worst experiences during that time. Whats worse is not only is the software extremely buggy, their support and customer service is horrific. Recently I spent several weeks trying to get Noah’s to work on our server and my only interaction with their company was with Steve. He was very unhelpful with his tech support, offering broad suggestions and saying “why don’t you bend” several times. In fact after asking if I should post on their forums for help he encouraged me not to, rather to continue to work with him. That should tell you something right there. Our server had every software requirement necessary to run this software and his software was still throwing out error messages. We tried *everything* that Steve suggested and more, and our network admin reviewed all the details of the install many times. I should have known this was going to be a bad experience right from the beginning. The signup process is very confusing and the end result was I was charged 2x for the same program. It took the owner of Noah’s over 2 months to refund me the 2nd amount and he ended up deducting another $16 from the refund so in the end I did not receive my full refund. Their money back policy is absurd – they will NOT refund back the money if you are unable to get the software to work for any reason. I paid for the install service (twice) and after a month I still have not received the $70 refund. Steve said their “new accounting” department is going to issue the refund. Um, that was a month ago, and after sending an email to both of the addresses I have for them (they were both bounced back), I then called his number and left a message. (Update – they finally sent the $70 refund after well over a month). Their website is absolute eye candy. Do not be tricked like I was by what looks good on the surface. There are many other classifieds software out there and Noah’s should definitely be at the bottom of any list.
I had tried noahs classified script on my website, what followed was the terrible experience, I now use wordpress script and am quite happy
Hello,
I like the look of your site adshive.com. Is this still being done on wordpress? If so please could you explain how you’ve done it. I’d greatly appreciate it.
Thanks
Luke
By taking a quick look at code I dont think this is a WP site.
I was using WordPress before, Last month I bought Geodesic Classified Script and I think they are the best
Well it better be for that money. Sheesh, thats a fairly pricey script. I would get a cheaper option until you are sure it will make money. I have 3 classified sites and they make me zilch. Admittedly I dont advertise or market them so cant expect much.
Ive found this Noahs script and so far it doesnt seem that bad. I hope it will stay like that, because it is for free and would not like to buy some expensive script. I did buy one expensive script once and it was such a terrible experience, so I would not recommend to buy expensive scripts on net at all whether it is noahs or anybodys else..
I too stumbled upon Noah’s Classified, and foolishly bought too quickly. Yeah, the “eye candy” and a long, tiring work day sucked me in. I think the people who say it is decent are the ones using the basic script from their hosting company, which OBVIOUSLY has an interest in keeping their customer’s happy. They(hosting co.) have probably already bug-patched Steve’s code(which he didn’t write and that guy is long gone).
I watches Steve’s install – hours of no activity from Steve(no further logs to the error_log file…updated every time I pinged the site). Then he blamed EVERYTHING on my hosting company, which I have used for 6-7 years and have several sites hosted with. He blamed the database server – hello, I have another very busy site running off that same server, no problem. I was willing to give him the installation fee – he doesn’t budge for a dime. So I will use my web sites to spread the word far and wide. The worst $200 he ever hung on to. Word.
Hi,
I’ve been doing IT for 10 years.
Steve from Noah’s classifieds is THE most unprofessional, childish, pathetic, scam artist I have ever met.
Noah’s is OK, but their lack of support, their arrogance wrecks what could be a good product.
I HATE YOU STEVE FOREVER, seems I’m not the only one.
Geodesic is a MUCH better product.
Dont sit on the fence dude hahaha
LOL. thanks your comment helped my ire subside momentarily ;P
To be honest I’ve got this software I’ve paid for, it’s live, customers want to use it, I move it to another server and Steve argues with me about (their lack of) service & professional behavior. Rather than just tweaking the software so I can say “hey Noah’s is great”, but NO, Steve wants to argue, mess me around so my site is down for another week and generally piss me off to the point where I will tell everyone I know, and those I don’t.
Less than 5 minute job to fix, my site is still down and big Steve is still arguing with me about how I should be polite, sites been down now for days.
I was looking to pay someone for some mods and got a month of run-around from big steve, he only replies to emails to be sarcastic.
2nd time now.
Quoth pat:**terrible** experience with Noah and its owner Steve. It always amazes me to find a company this rotten…to the core
ROTTEN TO THE CORE.
K, bought Geodesic last year due to frustrations with Steve, had same server move problem, fixed in less than 2 hours, no dramas and “let us know if we can help further”. Steve you are an asshole.
after sucking up to steve because he wouldn’t help me after waiting two weeks (second time, only support call), and castigating him for it, a month later my website is still not fixed.
You gotta ask yourself if you really want to buy into such bad service. Noah’s Classifieds is really bad, hoping this gets indexed in all search engines and you lose for being a loser Stevo, loving you work!! Abysmal service!
I hope I save someone from such a pathetic experience as knowing steve from Noah’s Classifieds.
Having used Noah’s for over three years, I believe that Neil’s criticism of Noah’s is abit too harsh.
The software does do what it claims to, and through a bit of effort can be customized both in terms of appearance and functionality. I did, over my three years of using Noah’s, encounter some frustrating hickups, particularly in implementing Noah’s ecommerce aspects. However, in all cases I was able to find work-arounds. I have periodically called on Steve for assistance, and though he tends to be quite busy, he has never failed to return my calls and has always addressed my technical issues that arose.
My previous project (run on the Noah’s platform) sold over 3,000 paid ads, and in this context a $200 initial capital outlay was (in my view) insignificant. I have now moved on to developing another classified ads site, and have purchased another Noah’s license for this purpose.
Well you said it Mark. WORK AROUNDS. Why should buyers have to make work arounds. Work arounds mean the original software is flawed, thankyou for adding to my already strong point that Noah sucks.
Dude you bought another license! Are you mad? Have you read all the comments here? Did you look at other scripts that a re far better and easier to work with than Noah? Ah well its your time and money you are wasting. Oh yeh are you factoring in all the “work around” time you put into developing your website with that figure of $200. I bet if you counted all the hours you spent trying to get Noahs to actually function right (charged at say $30 per hour), you will have spent a whole lot more than $200.
Mark,
I’ve logged two support requests and my site is still down. I’ve only logged three in the time I’ve owned Noah’s…over 18 months. I think one has to really look at the after sales service also to identify whether something is good or not. Like you my app is up and running and doing somewhat I want, but due to the difficulty with the owner (a common thread) it’s crap and I can’t admin it for 2 months now…not good IMHJO.
buy something else plenty around.
Just moved my Geodesic (same issue as noah’s) and they fixed it in less than a day, that’s what I want I don’t want to have to argue with someone I’ve just given $200 US to to get my site functioning, it’s EXTREMELY poor form and I will continue castigate this rubbish software to protect unsuspecting users, as long as I can be bothered.
good luck with yours. BTW I notice some guy who works for Noah’s (Arnold) posting positive reviews around, do you work for Noah’s too?
Hi,
wow, did not expect lots of bad experiences with Noah’s
Although i am searching quite a while for some kind of programm which i can present products (without a selling mod)
Is this possible in WordPress an can anyone tell me how?
Thanks you all!
Dhanan
Use classipress. U don’t have to charge for ads.
would you want your site down for 2 months?
yes = buy Noah’s
No = don’t buy noah’s
it’s that simple. don’t buy noah’s
btw i don’t necessarily recommend geodesic, but it’s been better than noah’s
i bought three copies and I’ve had to dump one to write my own stuff…so horses for courses.
Hi All,, Oh my god, I feel like a back stabbing two faced bastard. I have just read all your posts and at the same time I’m reading emails from Steve regarding NOAH’s. I was just about to buy it and I thought Id look for some reviews….Here I am. This is the email I have just had from Steve 30secs ago…..
“Hi Justin. You can do far better than that site. We have a company is the use doing a huge horse/equine site using Noah. I cannot wait to see what they are doing but it’s gonna be pretty big. We have had many really nice horse sites done with noah but over time I lose track.
Steve.
”
Id asked him if his s/ware would allow me to create a site similar to http://www.adhorse.co.uk. It stands out a mile that he has no examples to show me and then tries to kid me by saying “over time I lose track”….
All I can say, is thank GOD I read these posts or I`d be ÂŁ200 down and pissed of…..
That’s ÂŁ200 back into my daughters inheritance then..
Cheers ALL
A glitch in Noah’s payment system double-billed my credit card a year ago and I have been trying to get a refund ever since, with multiple emails, voicemails and trouble tickets.
When Version 5 became available, I sent multiple requests again but, this time, rather than ask for a refund, I asked for my double-payment to go towards the purchase of the V5 upgrade. Again, no response at all.
My V4 is buggy. Perhaps V5 has the bugs fixed.
I am faced with the dilemma of either writing-off my double-payment and paying Noah yet a 3rd time (for V5 this time) or ditching Noah in favor of a different CMS. I don’t want to spend weeks setting up a new CMS and transferring my classifieds database, but I don’t want to throw good money after bad (on Noah) if Noah is going to behave poorly and perhaps even fold as previously-loyal customers abandon it.
Joomla with AdsManager seems to be much better supported. I wish I’d chosen it instead of Noah in the first place.
Hi Steve, well youd be daft to throw more money at Noahs when its obviously sub-standard and youve had such a bad experience with it already. I setup my 3 classifieds websites with CLassipress in 2 days. OK I didnt have to transfer data from an existing database but hey Im sure you can add the latest entries by hand and people will re-populate it. Im not sure about Joomla really, I looked into it as a CMS a year or so ago and didnt like it. But each to their own, Im a WordPress kinda guy.
“Steve, of Noah’s Classifieds is as *rotten* as they come.”
I have to say, I feel stupid and taken advantage by this Steve guy. Absolutely NO Support. Only excuses. You know what he told me? “You think, you’re the only customer?” That is after I paid him for custom instal and walkthrough. I never got a call back from him, I did get an email that told me that he would rather give me my money back. Total lazy loser. He just wants to sell the script and forget about you. DO NOT BUT ANYTHING FROM HIM. I actually would like to file charges against him for ripping me off and costing me time and money that I have invested in my project hoping to that he would get me started. My classifieds features do not work, I still have Google ads from his account on my classifieds which he is hosting for $149 a yr. Shring tools do not work. I have not gotten one single call back from him.
CHARGEBACK ON HIM and then let’s sue this Steve guy. This is unexaptible.
Let’s get this guy.
Post here if you would like to do it. We should get together.
Hi Steve,
I’m just sitting here waiting and waiting to have this thing set up and going.
I need to add custom fields, such a phone numbers: Office and Cell to listings.
I need you to put back my own “addthis” (which you replaced with your own ID – which does not work) I don’t want the bubble there.
I need to be able to add banner and my google ads,
I need to see my stats,
Walk through,
I need to add my fracbook iframe, like button,
This already took so long.
How much longer will it take now?
Please call me so we can have it all done once and for all.
Thank you.
—————-
Here is his reply to me:
—————-
Steve Taylor Noah’ Classifieds to me
May 27 (9 days ago)
“I think it is best if I return you money. I have no customers ever as demanding as you or as condesending to me. You act as if we have no other customers. Regards.”
Atleast he offered you a refund, bet you dont get all of it though! I got nothing back from him, no advise or money! Hence this post which Im sure is costing him. Ah well what goes around comes around eh.
I feel your pain Alex as do many, many others! Check out the alternatives discussed in the comments. I myself am using Classipress now. Its not perfect but a damn site better and easier to use/setup/manage than Noah’s!
Neil… F***in’ kudos to you man… having the balls to stand up & let it be known about this asshole. I think the ppl who got screwed SHOULD sue him! I thought my problem was because I took one year of web design & didn’t know much about much. Anyway, after speaking with him, he did let on that it’s soooo easy that my basic training would be enough. He took something that COULD have been pretty good and pissed on it with his immaturity and pompous attitude.
If I purchased a proper software like WordPress, Classipress or ikiclassifieds… Is there anyway YOU or anyone on this forum can help me build something similar to http://www.backpage.com
I have NO PROBLEM paying for your service.
Signed… Frustrated
Hi Alex, I think you should look at more “craigslisty” types of script here are some I found, I cant recommend them but check em out:
http://www.snetworksclassifieds.com/?demonstration=show
http://www.mycraigslistclone.com/demo11/
http://www.the7soft.com/craigslist-clone.php
Hey many thanks bro… totally appreciate the response.
Just a bit of FYI for your readers: if you’re planning to go with http://www.snetworksclassifieds.com make sure to read their terms and conditions… they have a lot of stipulations and there’s a bit of double talking in some of their information. They DO have great phone customer service though.
Thanks again & good luck on all your future projects… it’s a cold freakin’ “customer service” world out there man… lmao
I wish I read that article before I purchased Noah’s Classifieds… It is working although with bugs… Definitely not worth the money. Far from elegant solution. Wont even bother asking for a refund.. I don’t think they will give anything back.
@ buto
I would dispute the charge. You don’t have to wait for him. It took me over a month of constant calls from different phone numbers to catch him and dozens of of emails requesting refunds. He was clearly avoiding me.
I did however keep emailing him so that I could show in court just how many times I have requested paid for support and refunds.
In the end he insulted me, telling me to get mental help and just as I was going through a list of Attorneys I got a partial refund. Then I emailed him again and squeezed the rest out of him.
There is no customer support after purchase.
I only wish I went to look for reviews before paying for it. So that is exactly what I’m doing now, thanks to Steve.
I wish I had seen this website before I purchased Noahs classifieds..
He promises its all good and afterwards he won’t deliver….
this guy is bad news and why people can’t be trusted today…
Steve you fraud…why don’t you just make it right with people…
” for the love of money is the root of all evil”
and it just goes to show, that you are not as smart as you think, because your just falling into the lie right among the untrustworthy group of people out there in today’s criminal society!
better sleep well now your day of reckoning will come!
just another victim
Jim
I purchased Noah Classified back around 2008. At the time I believe Steve just came into the picture and some other guy was really the developer. (Zoltan or some name like that) If I remember correctly, Steve was just a business guy that bought out Zoltan for the rights to the script and kept Zoltan on as the tech guy. When I had a problem, it always was directed to Zoltan. Steve didn’t seem to know anything about PHP. I think he’s just a suit.
What I thought was funny is that as soon as I bought the script, which was much cheaper back then ($89.95), I received a phone call from Steve telling me about all the features and wanting to walk me through all of them. Wow. This guy was excited about the sale. I was even told (and read) that my purchase included lifetime updates. I thought that was cool. That would change.
The script use to have a really cool update feature. You would just click a link and it would download the changed files and install them. It worked great and never affected my layout. Very advanced feature. Then Zoltan??? left the company and Steve changed his mind about giving lifetime support and updates. At this time another guy was brought in to replace Zoltan (still not sure that’s his name)to do what Steve couldn’t.
I had to resort to the forum to get help but even there Steve would poke in and start deleting messages if you posted a problem. Fortunately some knowledgeable users were online at that time in order to help with bugs in the script. (That forum is now gone, replaced with one that’s not as helpful)
Updates that I did download after Zoltan left and before Steve changed the lifetime policy would usually cause big problems with the site so unless it was a security issue, I stopped updating. To this day there is still a bug in the modifying of an inactive ad that they won’t acknowledged even though I asked for a fix a long time ago.
Hello, I researched Noah’s Classifieds and right away realized it is no good. I like the Classipress very much and WP is good, however; I am new to this WP and PHP but I know enough to stay away from something like Noah’s. I can’t believe webhost have it in their CPanel’s to install, no way. I haven’t bought Classipress yet, but I’m thinking hard on it. I would love to find a really good auction software but seem to find it hard to find a good one of those to. All in all, there is no way I would buy Noah. Goodluck Matt, I looked at your site, it is so boring, my lord. You need to do more research to see what some sites can really do. You site is not that good, believe me.
Ciao and goodluck
Auction software? Well I know WP can handle it, I think WPMU Dev might have a plugin. However if you are looking for a dedicated solution have you tried Probid. I have used it quite a lot for projects and its OK.
Hello,
I was looking into buying Noah’s after the demo version looked quite good, I’ve been greatly deterred by the review and abundance of bad reviews. Thanks very much as it seems I’d have wasted my time and money with that one.
One thing I’m wondering is, if everyone here was looking for a classified type script for a certain site and Noah’s wasn’t used, what was the better alternative?
I could do with a good looking, unique, trusted classified script, any tried and tested recommendations? I’ve seen a few links in the comments, but not really anything that has been credited to any great degree.
I’ll continue to look for one, but please let me know if you can help me in making a decision on a classified script.
Thanks
I dont think you would be disappointed with Classipress. Ive now got three classipress sites. The best thing is that it is under constant development and its WP based so if you know WP then you can develop extras yourself.
Hello Neil,
Thank you for sharing your user experience and keeping up with the posts. I would imagine that you hope to gain a little satisfaction from this and here is a bit more for you…I was just about to buy Noah’s Classifieds, but your blog and everyone’s comments have caused me to avoid making the purchase. I came across your site, because I was searching for answers to questions that I posted on the Noah forum, that have yet to be answered. At any rate, I am relieved that I did not purchase the software, but now I am left, once again, searching for software that will work for my situation. Here’s what I posted on their forum:
Hello All,
I am considering purchasing Noah’s Classifieds to use for a new website that I am creating, but I have some questions first…
One, I was reading through the installation requirements and it stated, “IonCube Loader is required. (If you use Go Daddy, we have separate Installation Instructions for the E-Commerce Version),” I searched the forum, but I was unable to locate the separate instructions, are they located somewhere else, or do you get them when you purchase the software?
I did find an answer to this buried in their site.
Two, I plan to do a fair amount of customizing for my particular site and I will need to modify the files, it noticed that it said that, Noah’s is Open Code, not Open Source, does that mean that the files are still fully accessible and modifiable so that I can achieve the look and function that I desire?
From what I gather, the php can be molded, but you can only use the software on one site, additional licenses will be needed for additional sites.
Finally, I plan to create a site, wherein I will eventually charge the purchasers, through a subscription plan, but I do not wish to charge the listers; from what I could see while playing with the demo, this doesn’t look like it will be a problem, am I correct? Additionally, I want to be able to allow for somewhat of a bidding process; example, the lister posts something and then the purchaser can make an offer, additional offers can be made by others and each time a new offer is placed an email will be sent to each of the potential purchasers…Is this possible?
I am somewhat PHP literate and I think that I can make the necessary changes, but I’m hoping that the software already has most of these possibilities in place. I thank whoever takes a couple of minutes to answer some of these questions in advance and I must say that I have been drawn to Noah’s classifieds almost completely due to what I have read in your forum and also from what others had to say about the community and forum on other forums.
This last statement is true, I searched the web and found many, many instances, where others praised Noah’s and on the surface, the forum looked good, but after I didn’t receive any responses to my questions, I noticed that there is very little recent activity there.
I appologize, I know that this is a very long comment, but I hope to get my site off the ground using the right software. So now to my question for all of you…what type of classified, or auction software do you think would be best suited for my application?
Thanks in advance,
Kevan
Hi Kevan,
Your right I do get satisfaction from losing his sales but as you can tell from the hundreds of comments he deserves it and should stop pedalling Noah.
If you are well versed in PHP then I would suggest using WordPress, and take a look at WPMU Dev. They have a number of plugins that may help you achieve what you want i.e. subsciptions, classifieds (I havent tested this classifieds plugin yet). And with your knowledge and a bit of help from them (their support is good) Im sure you can custom build anything else you may need. I thikn for the bidding option you will need to build it yourself, but if you built it as a WP plugin that would integrate with the others then you would make money selling it for sure.
Let me know what you decide but I can highly recommend WPMU Dev! I can also advise that Classipress is good but Im not sure how easy it would be to develop it.
Contact admin@theclassifiedproject.com! They can help you out! or vist theclassifiedproject.com
Perhaps a dumb question, I don’t know too much about WP, I mostly just use code view on Dreamweaver. Can I use classipress while using Dreamweaver?
I was seriously looking into Noahs, but reading peoples reviews and posts on here, I’m having negative feelings. I have talked to Steve several times, seems like an ok guy answering all me questions, even reducing the price a $100 bucks for me. So is there any OTHER script out there that will function(Bug-less)like Noahs? Oh and of you want to talk about a real problematic buggy script, buy Cubro Classifieds,,,,
Hi Crash if you use code view in DW then you can eidt any web file. If you are talking about “design” view then the answer is yes and no. It depends what version you have. I think I can setup my CS5 to link up dynamic files. There is also a thing called Themedreamer which is excellent (better on older versions of DW). Type Themedreamer into Google.
Alright, sounds pretty good. Like I said I don’t know too much about the whole WP system so I was just curious. Classipress has some pretty good looking templates and setup, I’ll definitely look into it. Thanks for the info!
For all those dissatisfied with Noah’s classifieds and other systems. Check out this website: theclassifiedproject.com it is only fairly new however they build the site for you for free, all you pay for is the graphic design element! However in saying this they do take a commission from the listings, but it is better than wasting money on disappointing software.
Hello Neil,
Thank you again for this post. Here’s my update, I did give Noah’s a try, but I couldn’t get it to work. I spent hours with that silly thing and after downloading, uploading and attempting to install it several times, I found out that it is virtually impossible to get it to run properly with my hosting and many others(I use Godaddy shared delux). But, the good news is, thanks to you I installed Word Press, which I was completely new to and I found that it is extremely user friendly. I did check out WPMU Dev and you are right, they seem to have excellent scripts, but I didn’t find one that was quite what I was looking for. I then checked into a reverse auction, freelancer, project script by Sitemile.com and ended up buying a developer membership for only $259. After you opened my eyes to Word Press, I have found that the scripts seem so much cleaner, run better and cost less. I hope you keep up the good work, Neil and I am definitely going to bookmark your site and subscribe to your RSS. For those of you wondering about switching over to Word Press, give it a shot. You can run off of their servers for free at WordPress.COM, or you can use your own hosting, using WordPress.ORG, most of the scripts use PHP, CSS and Java and they’re layed out well and surprisingly easy to use. Additionally, WordPress is free to use and they have a ton of free scripts that you simply add with a click from your user dashboard. As I mentioned, check out Sitemile and see what you think of it they have demos on the site, so you can try before you buy.-Kevan
Hi Kevan, thanks for the heads up the RSS is fixed, its that damn whitespace thing (I dont know why it happens…it doesnt happen with all my WP installs).
Im glad you have discovered WordPress, it really is a fantastic system and so expandable, dont let anyone tell you its just a blogging platform! Sure thats its roots but its so much more than that now. I think they won a prestigious CMS award too the other year. It really goes from strength to strength and the development is faster than any other system.
Sitemile looks good. The classified script looks good too but not sure it does anything different than Classipress, although it does seem to have some more payment gateways. Maybe I’ll check it out. I shall bookmark the site anyway.
Thanks Neil It is good information.
thanks for keeping this up! I’m not a techie and I was going to by noah’s too. but after looking into their, I hesitated.
I’m glad I did.
wow, many thanks for this review and particular for the comments. I was close before buying this script, thank you so much!!
good to see many people getting on hear warning anyone away from steve that somehow got noah’s into funtastico…that was how I first stumbled on it. What a con for novice users!!
More than 3 months away from Noah’s and gee I just checked my site, it’s pumping…what a relief to get rid of the Noah software.
DON’T GET BURN’T LIKE THE REST OF US DON’T BUY NOAH’S.
I had to edit your comment somewhat. You cant really do the name calling thing. Just put down your experiences with the software and your interactions with Steve etc. Refrain from name calling and speculative comments.
That doesn’t sound good. You save me time from thinking about purchasing Noah’s Classified. I better spend time considering other products. Steve should learn from this and improve his product, after-sales support and service.
… and thank you for the info, Neil.
Hi neil thanx for the warning of noahs.
I am just wondering what is the best classified site for me to join if I want to build the following spes
- Build a nice site for others to advertise on.
- The client uploads the pic and information they want to sell
- I charge them a small listing fee where they can advertise for one month then their listing is automatically deleted off my webpage.
- I would like thousands of listings from random people wanting to advertise with me with out my site crashing.
I value your recommendation
Kind regards Pat
Hi Pat,
Personally Im still using Classipress. I havent had any issues with it so far. For me WordPress is the way forward. I will be trying another classifieds plugin for WP at some point and will hopefully write about it once I do.
If anyone is looking to build there own classified site, I recommend the classifiedproject.com they do everything for free and take a small percentage of the revenue! My site has features that are far superior to Classipress and Noahs. Check my site out osteopathpages.com.au
Please let us all know about these features as the features area on the classifieds project website look a little wooly to be frank. The website isnt too expiring either, not even a demo I can check out. Looks a bit lame. Plus why would I want to give away a percentage of sales when I can get a decent system for a few dollars anyway?
Neil,
Take a look at their map search feature for example on my site…https://osteopathpages.com.au/home.php type in osteopath and set the radius to anywhere then zoom in. Also I am more than happy to give a percentage away of my site as they take care of all the setup and maintenance. I didn’t have to raise a finger, and didn’t pay a cent for this site. Each to their own though. I recommend them highly.
Yeh thats pretty cool but wouldnt say its a must have, in fact I would say that some people wouldnt like it. Still dont think that would sway me to give away a percentage of earnings Im afraid.
The map search is not a compulsory feature and can be chosen or not when creating the site. Infact I am pretty sure they create any features you ask for. It is not templates like the other software. It is customised completely to your liking, I think that is the reason they take a percentage. Anyway thanks for checking out my site.
This Software Review is dated for a version you purchased what ? almost 2 years ago ?.
Yes but a lot of the comments are not. A lot of the people commenting have purchased Noahs recently. I tell you what though Arnold, send me a copy or get Steve to send me the latest copy and I will review it honestly. I bet you or he doesnt because there has been little development of an already flawed software. Also the customer service and support matters, its not just about the software, The customer service and support sucks for Noahs as multiple comments above will testify too, so even if the software has changed and the hundreds of bugs ironed out its still not worth it as the service/support isnt up to the job.
No, not really, what one can reasonably expect from someone who conducts themselves with poor accumen, is that they always will, no matter what changes happen in the software. Someone with such poor customer service is usually reflected in the ethos of the company and therefore their developers, and seriously would you buy a car from a dodgy dealer ever? rhetorical. The world is so busy, people have choice, why should they put up with disreputable sales/service people like NOAHS. The old story, you burn someone once and they will tell 10 people. I made a concerted effort to work with this uncooperative company for nearly 6 months, when I had paid them for software. It’s just shabby and rude how I was treated and herewith is a list of people who have similar bad experiences.
I never trust code that’s written by people who cannot spell — whether it’s in an email, on their website, or in their code comments.
hey neil,
Im in the process of creating my website. Im very new to this game and besically have learned most things as I continue to progress. However, im not writing my own code or anything, I use a web builder service that has my hosting and stuff. Anyway, I wanted to implement a classified sections where users pay me a small flat rate to post golf equipment for sale. This would be convenient for the site and the users looking to buy used clubs. I have no idea where to start on achieving this. I know I probably sound dumb but when you comment can use please use easy computer terms or simple step by step instuctions on how to do this. I really thought that there would be some kind of free version I could put on my site for this because its very basic and I wanted the flat rate payment to run through pay pal. If you want you can email me if there is a long list of things I have to do. I really need some honest help, not some person that is trying to make some silly profit from me that Im not going to pay, and you seem like you care about the applications and the people trying to run their websites. Thank you neil.
Will email you.
Hi Mikey,
Noticed your post regarding building a golf classified site. Our system would be perfect for you. All the set up is completely free..no upfront costs, we just take a small percentage of the revenue. If you are interested contact me at admin@theclassifiedproject.com and I can answer any further questions you may have.
Regards,
Ezra