The Good, The Bad, and The Evil in WordPress Themes
Daisy Olsen
It’s a fact that without a theme your WordPress powered site would be reduced to an administration panel and a database. Sure, you you could access the WordPress admin panel, install plugins, write posts, add links to the blogroll, etc. But with no theme there is nothing for potential visitors to see. Unlike plugins, which are entirely optional, every single WordPress site regardless of size needs a theme. Whether you stick to the default theme or hire a WordPress theme superstar to create an original design, as far as visitors are concerned your theme is the single most important part of your site.
What does this mean for you, as the owner of a WordPress powered website? It means that care should be taken when selecting, creating, or contracting for your theme. Because the need for a theme is universal the world of WordPress themes is prone to bad stuff sneaking in.
As I prepared for my sessions, one focusing on choosing themes and the other on creating themes, I went looking for examples of things to look for and also things to avoid when selecting a theme. From my perspective theme creators can be grouped into three basic, and clearly over simplified, camps:
The Good Theme Creator:
- Releases themes under a GPL compatible license
- Keeps themes updated to incorporate new and improved features of the WordPress API
- Supports the users of the theme they created
The Bad Theme Creator:
- Places restrictions on the way that the theme can be modified, used and/or distributed
- Does not keep the theme updated as new and improved features are added to the WordPress API
- Does not offer to support the users that rely on the theme that they created
The Evil Theme Creator:
- Places encrypted code in the theme, often in the footer area of the site to display “Sponsored” links
- Places functions that alter you sites content without your permission.
- Redistributes the work of others without improving upon the original*
So how do you find the good and avoid the Bad and Evil in WordPress themes? I recommend attending the various theme related sessions scheduled throughout WordCamp!
*NOTE: This is a highly subjective point which could be argued at great length. This author strongly believes in keeping the Spirit of the GPL license beyond the letter of the GPL license.
