Using WordPress

[loodibee]

With wordpress being so popular and easy to use, do people still like to handcode anymore? You can pretty much build in any design with wordpress. Of course to get it exact, you need to have html/css/javascript knowledge. I just find it easier to use wordpress rather than code from scratch. I've saved a lot of time by customizing themes and configuring plugins. I was able to completely change the theme of my current website for less than one hour per week and in less than a week.

[jscheuer1]

That adds up to less than one hour total. Are you sure that's what you meant?

[Beverleyh]

With wordpress being so popular and easy to use, do people still like to handcode anymore?

Short answer - Yes - Most of the regular posters here will design, script and code websites, and build their own database driven platforms (and any variation or combination thereof) completely from scratch. This may include delving into a pool of code/frameworks/db structures previously written because we've built up a repertoire of self-made, reusable utilities that facilitates fast and easy turnaround for ourselves in new projects. If you've come here to sing the praises of Wordpress, I fear you're in the wrong place. At the end of the day, it's just a tool, and if you can/want to use it, great. Personally, I never have. Most of the websites I develop are completely custom/hand coded. Sometimes I use a 3rd party CMS, such as Joomla, to manage content (sometimes with a customised theme and plugins) and other times I will use one of the CMS's I wrote/developed myself, integrated into a framework/layout I wrote/developed myself, using plugins/addons I've written/developed myself. Depends on the project. And possibly more depends on developer experience. Wordpress/Drupal/Joomla carry a lot of overhead and are overkill for many projects.

[james438]

It's sort of like saying that with all of the big businesses around like Walmart and Target is there really any market for smalltime businesses like Tom's locksmiths or Jerry's Famous Caramel Corn? Obviously, yes.

When I first had the itch to code in 2005 I tried some of the start up blogging sites that were popular at the time, but within about an hour of starting up an account with them I realized that what I really wanted was to work with the code itself. The code was a whole new world for me and I loved it. I could save a lot of coding time if I went with Wordpress, but I wanted to spend more time coding, not less. My love of web development is rooted in learning how the code works and what it can do.

At first I was learning lots of little coding tricks and then a few of my coding tricks came together to become fledgling programs and later a few of my fledgling programs came together and became some of my favorite programs such as my search program or my web theme generator. I'm proud of my programs because I made them and, like the other people that come to this website, I love coding.

I very much respect the Wordpress and phpbb developers and users whose interest in coding is not as great and who have other priorities. I thought about going that route, but I feel like when I write something for myself it is tailor made to fit my needs and if there is a bug I can fix it or ignore it as I see fit and if I have troubles I can always seek help here on the forums.

[loodibee]

Well, I guess the goals are different. If you want to improve your coding skills and continue to hone your craft, then handcoding is the best way. But if just want to get a site up quickly to concentrate on the "business side", then wordpress is the way to go. I'm not suggesting one way or the other. Someone recently asked about if she should still try to learn to code or is it better for her to learn how to use configure a website with wordpress so I just wanted to ask and get people's opinion on how they feel about it.

[molendijk]

If you want authorized people to be able to edit your pages online, use Wordpress if you can't write a CMS yourself. Otherwise, don't use Wordpress (or Drupal, or Joomla, and the like):
1.
Wordpress may (and often does indeed) overwrite the custom code you want to insert on your pages.
2.
Wordpress generates code that doesn't validate, most of the time.
3.
Wordpress is vulnerable to attacks, because so may people use it.
4.
Wordpress is code-overkill, resulting in pages not loading fast.
5.
What if you don’t want your site to look like everyone else’s?
6.
Wordpress updates may harm your site.
7.
More generally: if you let a program do what you don't really understand yourself, you may get yourself into all sorts of trouble.

[james438]

I agree with everything that molendijk has pointed out regrading Wordpress, and for those reasons and more I prefer to use my own scripts or from others whom I trust, however, I feel that molendijk's can be a little misleading for newer coders.

I've noticed a number of people do want their site to appear mainstream and not unique. Many small business owners want their site to look like everyone else's.

Wordpress updates can harm your site, but if you take simple precautions this won't be an issue. Everyone should practice backing up their site. If you install Wordpress it does not mean you are going to have an open door to hackers. Many hackers will see Wordpress as a nice target because so many people use it, but there is also a team of developers constantly looking for potential security holes and ways to plug them before the hacker can notice them.

I don't think anyone here is saying Wordpress is a horrible horrible program, but like any program it is important to understand the risks, weaknesses, and rewards. For a good number of people Wordpress is a great choice.

Full disclosure: I am now the site admin for my church website that went live today and it uses Wordpress. I no longer have the time to build a custom website. I also never had the creative skill to make a website look pretty

[molendijk]

James is right: Wordpress is not horrible per se. And if used by someone who understands coding (like James) there won't be unresolvable issues. But people must understand the risks of using Wordpress if they don't know how coding works, see also this.

[bellaahihwalsh]

Old widget code will not work on Wordpress 5.6 .. Is there a new widget code to download?

[JungleBoy666]

Old widget code will not work on Wordpress 5.6 .. Is there a new widget code to download?

You know, wordpress is still very popular among developers because of its options and easy codes. I've been working with it since 2015 and its simplicity is really appreciated by me. And of course, there are several problems as vulnerability of websites or bad products updates. But still, the advantages of using wordpress are obvious. Several months ago I created the developer course for my students from university but didn't have time to create a good theme for the website. Fortunately, I found a really great education wordpress theme that looks really amazing for educational websites.