Você está se perguntando o que é uma estrutura de tema do WordPress e se deve usar uma?
As estruturas de temas do WordPress ajudam os desenvolvedores a criar belos temas filhos mais rapidamente. No entanto, elas têm suas próprias vantagens e desvantagens que você deve considerar.
Neste artigo, explicaremos exatamente o que é uma estrutura de tema do WordPress. Também explicaremos os diferentes tipos de estruturas de temas, analisaremos os prós e os contras de usá-las e, em seguida, compartilharemos nossas estruturas de temas favoritas.
O que é uma estrutura de tema do WordPress?
Uma estrutura de tema do WordPress contém vários arquivos usados para criar um tema de site. Ela inclui as principais funções de um tema, mas não o estilo e o design.
Você pode pensar em uma estrutura de tema como um tema pai que precisa ser instalado com um tema filho. O tema filho determina a aparência do site.
No entanto, em vez de realmente dividir o tema em múltiplos, como “pai” e “filho”, os desenvolvedores simplesmente incluem todo o código em uma única instalação, que é a estrutura.
Os desenvolvedores gostam de usar estruturas de temas porque isso lhes permite reutilizar grande parte do mesmo código para muitos sites diferentes. Eles podem criar facilmente muitos temas filhos diferentes para sites que precisam ser estilizados de forma diferente sem precisar reescrever muitas das mesmas funções.
Isso ocorre porque os temas filhos são criados pela estrutura para herdar todas as funcionalidades da estrutura do tema sem o risco de perder a personalização ou a funcionalidade.
Veja bem, nos primórdios do WordPress, havia alguns problemas cruciais na forma como os temas do WordPress eram desenvolvidos e mantidos.
Um grande problema era que não havia uma boa maneira de atualizar os temas do WordPress sem perder o código personalizado adicionado ao tema pelos usuários.
Antes da existência das estruturas, a única maneira de os desenvolvedores reutilizarem o mesmo código era copiá-lo e colá-lo em todos os seus temas.
Isso criou um problema de segurança no WordPress. Por exemplo, se houvesse uma falha de segurança em um tema, não haveria uma maneira rápida de aplicar uma correção a todos os outros temas baseados no mesmo código.
Para resolver esse problema, a equipe principal do WordPress e a comunidade criaram os temas pai e filho.
Com as estruturas, é extremamente fácil fazer uma atualização sem modificar nada personalizado no tema filho. Esse método permite que você mantenha a “estrutura” do seu site forte sem modificar a aparência dele.
Quais são os prós e os contras de usar estruturas de temas?
Há algumas vantagens e desvantagens em usar uma estrutura de tema do WordPress em seu site. Vamos dar uma olhada em ambas.
Vantagens (Prós)
- Comunidade – As estruturas de temas mais populares têm grandes comunidades por trás delas. Isso torna muito mais fácil obter respostas para suas perguntas de suporte. Por exemplo, você pode visualizar os fóruns de suporte para temas específicos no WordPress.org e resolver suas dúvidas.
- Funcionalidade incorporada – As estruturas de temas geralmente vêm com widgets, blocos e outros recursos incorporados. Você tem mais controle sobre a personalização e pode editar facilmente fontes e cores e experimentar estilos diferentes. Muitas estruturas e construtores de temas, como o SeedProd, também vêm com modelos pré-criados e oferecem um construtor do tipo arrastar e soltar.
- Qualidade do código – Geralmente, as estruturas de temas são revisadas por pares, portanto, é muito mais provável que sigam todas as práticas recomendadas. Isso é essencial, pois o tema do seu site será responsivo e leve. Um site de carregamento rápido também impulsionará o SEO do WordPress.
- Atualizações – A capacidade de atualizar sem perder nenhuma personalização de estilo é uma grande vantagem. Isso também é útil ao restaurar os backups de seu site. As personalizações do tema permanecem intactas e você não precisa executá-las novamente.
Desvantagens (contras)
- Código desnecessário – As estruturas geralmente vêm com toneladas de funcionalidades integradas que talvez você não use. No entanto, se a estrutura for bem codificada, isso não deverá afetar seu site de forma alguma.
- Limitações da estrutura – Muitas vezes, as estruturas têm limitações. Se você quiser personalizar muito o seu site, talvez seja necessário substituir os arquivos principais instalando um tema filho especial, mesmo que a estrutura cuide disso para você.
- Preço – A maioria das estruturas de temas não é gratuita ou oferece recursos limitados na versão gratuita. Há uma taxa única ou uma taxa anual para receber atualizações e suporte. No entanto, se você optar por criadores de temas, terá uma melhor relação custo-benefício e os planos iniciais também não são tão caros.
Você deve usar uma estrutura de tema?
Se você for um desenvolvedor que está aprendendo a criar seus próprios temas para WordPress, poderá usar uma estrutura de temas para reduzir o tempo de desenvolvimento.
Por outro lado, se você for uma pequena empresa, poderá adquirir uma estrutura de tema e um tema filho para usar em seu site. Geralmente, a compra de uma estrutura de tema lhe dá acesso a muitos temas filhos diferentes de uma só vez.
Por exemplo, o Genesis tem excelentes temas filhos para diferentes setores que você pode usar e personalizar facilmente de acordo com suas próprias necessidades.
Outra vantagem de usar uma estrutura para seu site é que, depois de aprender a usá-la, você pode mudar facilmente de design sem precisar aprender um tema ou uma estrutura totalmente nova.
Nossa seleção dos melhores frameworks de temas para WordPress
Existem inúmeras estruturas de temas do WordPress disponíveis. Aqui estão algumas das principais estruturas de temas que recomendamos para diferentes usos.
1. Estrutura do tema Gênesis
Com base em nossa própria experiência, recomendamos o uso do Genesis Theme Framework da StudiPress. Ele vem com uma biblioteca de códigos sólida como uma rocha, altamente otimizada para velocidade e desempenho do WordPress.
O Genesis não é sobrecarregado com muitos recursos extras, portanto, você pode escolher os plug-ins específicos do WordPress necessários para o seu site.
Há dezenas de temas secundários disponíveis para o Genesis que podem ser facilmente instalados e personalizados. Além disso, se você se inscrever no WP Engine para sua hospedagem do WordPress, terá acesso ao Genesis e a todos os temas secundários gratuitamente.
O StudioPress agora faz parte da WP Engine, a mais popular empresa de hospedagem gerenciada do WordPress. Você pode obter esse tema e todos os mais de 35 outros temas do StudioPress ao se inscrever na hospedagem do WP Engine para criar seu site.
Bônus: os usuários do WPBeginner também recebem um desconto adicional de 20%. Comece a usar o WP Engine hoje mesmo!
2. Divi
O Divi é um tema popular de arrastar e soltar do WordPress. Ele é realmente uma estrutura de tema, embora não use temas filhos reais. Em vez disso, ele usa um construtor de temas e layouts, que mantêm suas personalizações seguras quando a estrutura é atualizada.
Usando o poderoso construtor de páginas do tipo arrastar e soltar, você pode importar facilmente modelos personalizados ou usar centenas de layouts pré-fabricados para criar suas próprias páginas e sites, conforme necessário.
3. SeedProd
O SeedProd é o melhor construtor de temas e páginas de destino do WordPress. É um plugin para iniciantes que o ajuda a criar temas personalizados sem tocar em uma única linha de código.
A melhor parte é que você tem mais de 300 kits de modelos de temas, mais de 90 blocos para personalização, construtor de temas do tipo arrastar e soltar e muito mais. Dessa forma, você pode criar sites para qualquer tipo de nicho.
O SeedProd é uma solução completa para o lançamento de sites comerciais. Em cada kit de modelo, você obtém uma página inicial, páginas de destino, uma página de contato e muito mais. Você pode simplesmente substituir o texto e a imagem fictícios para começar.
4. Tematização
O Themify é uma estrutura de temas WordPress de arrastar e soltar com mais de 42 temas, um poderoso construtor de páginas, muitos complementos e modelos adicionais e muito mais.
Isso permite que os desenvolvedores e proprietários de sites criem um site sem escrever nenhum código. Além disso, você recebe 11 plug-ins e arquivos do Photoshop para todos os temas.
5. Construtor Beaver
O Beaver Builder é um popular construtor de páginas do WordPress que vem com um complemento Beaver Themer, que o ajuda a funcionar como uma estrutura completa. Isso permite que você crie páginas de destino personalizadas, bem como temas WordPress personalizados inteiros, sem escrever nenhum código.
Ele oferece modelos de temas com diferentes layouts de página. Você também pode criar layouts para produtos WooCommerce, páginas 404, páginas de pesquisa e muito mais. Além disso, o Beaver Builder permite que você crie diferentes partes, como cabeçalhos, barras de anúncios, botões de call-to-action e muito mais.
6. Astra
O Astra é um dos temas para WordPress mais populares do mercado. O tema principal pode ser usado como um tema autônomo, mas com o complemento Starter Sites, você também pode importar designs completos de sites para o tema principal com a funcionalidade de uma estrutura.
O Astra é uma mistura entre uma estrutura de tema baseada em biblioteca de código, como o Genesis, e uma estrutura de arrastar e soltar, como o Divi. Ele também pode ser usado com qualquer construtor de páginas de sua escolha, o que dá muita liberdade aos usuários.
Qual é a melhor estrutura de temas para WordPress?
A melhor estrutura de tema para você depende do seu nível de habilidade e de quanto tempo e dinheiro você está disposto a investir.
Para os desenvolvedores, recomendamos o uso do Genesis. Ele existe há mais tempo, e a estrutura de temas do Genesis é altamente otimizada para SEO e desempenho.
Para usuários comuns que desejam criar um site para sua empresa ou blog, recomendamos o uso de estruturas de arrastar e soltar, como Divi, SeedProd e Themify. Eles não exigem nenhuma habilidade de codificação para começar e são superflexíveis.
Como alternativa, você pode usar um tema autônomo do WordPress com opções flexíveis de personalização, como o Astra.
Esperamos que este artigo tenha ajudado você a saber mais sobre as estruturas de temas do WordPress e seus prós e contras. Talvez você também queira ver nosso guia sobre quanto custa construir um site WordPress e nossa comparação dos melhores registradores de domínios.
Se você gostou deste artigo, inscreva-se em nosso canal do YouTube para receber tutoriais em vídeo sobre o WordPress. Você também pode nos encontrar no Twitter e no Facebook.
Syed Balkhi says
Hey WPBeginner readers,
Did you know you can win exciting prizes by commenting on WPBeginner?
Every month, our top blog commenters will win HUGE rewards, including premium WordPress plugin licenses and cash prizes.
You can get more details about the contest from here.
Start sharing your thoughts below to stand a chance to win!
Diane Caron says
I’m trying to learn and understand the world of websites and website building as well as blogs and their development.
When the word ‘framework’ is being used, its meaning is a selection of specific code used to build a website or blog.
If I use the analogy between Website framework and house building framing, the wood studs framework is like the framework for website building except it’s code. Whereas the outer perimeter of wood framing is the “parent framework”which generally stays the same. The inside wood framework is the child framework which can be modified wo changing the parent framework.
Is this a good and correct analogy? Is this what you mean when you say parent and child framework when pertaining to websites and blogs?
WPBeginner Support says
It is as close as that analogy would get We would recommend re-reading our guide for the specifics.
Administrador
Adrian Lightfoot says
Do you edit Genesis itself or the Child Theme added to it.
WPBeginner Support says
You would normally want to edit the child theme
Administrador
Johanna says
Another disadvantage of using a framework is if the creator is a one man shop who decides to close the shop and cease support and further development.
With the continuous development of WordPress, PHP versions and plugins, it is important that the framework/themes also keep up with the changes to stay compatible.
WPBeginner Support says
While not specific to frameworks, that is something to consider as well.
Administrador
Krayl says
Great article! Given this article was written in 2012 would you still recommend using the suggested frameworks or are there more current options you would suggest in 2018
.
Thank you in advance!!
WPBeginner Support says
Hi Krayl,
We still recommend Genesis theme framework.
Administrador
Arif chy says
Thanks a lot sir for more valuable content. i want to know what child theme has been used for wpbeginner from studiopress? please let me know it help me a lot
WPBeginner Support says
Hi Arif,
We use a custom child theme made specifically for our website.
Administrador
Paul says
Concise and well written article, your site is an excellent resource. Thankyou!
Hiwa says
dear wpbeginner thank you for good help
i have a website at the first it was based by Web2py of Python programming language next i change this to Django from web2py and after i take decide to use wordpress because python take more time at me than wordpress and now i am using the wordpress right now i am agree of wordpress and i want to design a theme for myself but i dont know to use which framework who be good for speed and tools. i read the article but i need more help
which frame work do you suggest to use?
thank you very much
WPBeginner Support says
Hi Hiwa,
You can start with the underscores it is not a framework but a skeleton theme that you can build upon. If you really want to work with a framework, then we recommend Genesis.
Administrador
Joe Calka says
Hello
I have been using worpress for about 2 years now and I love your site i have learned a ton of things. I use Genesis Framework to build my sites I am not an expert coder but I love the functionality of this framework ….
George says
Hello,
Great post and helpful.
Could someone please advise me what is WordPress framework? I am using free 2016 Theme. Also, what is Genesis framework by studio press? can I use it by itself or I need a child theme with it?
WPBeginner Support says
Hey George,
Genesis is a Theme Framework. You will need a child theme with it.
Administrador
George says
Great, thanks for the clarification.
Deepak Singla says
Nice post. WordPress theme frameworks are the building blocks of the theme. There are tons of theme frameworks such as Genesis, Cherry Framework, TemplateToaster, Headway available. The choice depends upon your requirements.
Abhishek says
Thank Your for This Post But. Is It possible to develop your own theme framework or not.
Nilanchala says
Some of the comments here are inducing more questions then answering problems. Though I am not having expertise on WordPress development, I believe for high volume traffic websites going with any theme frameworks might not be a best option. It might be good to start with to go live quickly but overtime you will feel to write your own custom theme.
On my site stacktips.com, I have tried many different frameworks. Currently I am stuck at Redux Framework. It just serve the purpose but it comes with the cost. It makes too many DB queries, and lot many useless code blocks it has to go through before rendering a page.
Hence, I am writing my own theme from scratch. Design the layouts you need, and place the templates required. I believe thats the way to go! Having said that, if your client is stuck at low budget, you have no choice but to use some frameworks.
Diane Broadley says
Hi Thank you for this – very helpful. As someone who has tried for years to learn WordPress, the thing i find most difficult is understanding the file scenario behind the site. EG – that you need a folder of wordpress for every site you build. When you download it from your host, why can you not choose where its put, why can’t you move it and does that affect your personal home page which maybe a separate site. I cant make the connection between a starter wordpress theme on your server and using a theme online. Basic information about the file management behind it all is really difficult to find and understand. Beginners courses are frustrating because they rattle on about blogs, which has nothing to do with building a site. Lynda beginner wordpress seems hopeless.
Thats my experience anyway!
Thierry Muller says
I always advise Genesis lovers to take a look at Beans Theme Framework. It is also a fragmented approach but offers even more flexibility without compromising on performances.
That combined with UIkit (only load what you need on a per page basis) pretty much cover any type of layouts we can imagine. The Beans API is incredibly powerful and with the ability to assign fields (post meta) to template pages, it means that we can have an admin side matching the front end on a page template basis.
No bloat, powerful and light weight. Oh and it is also free
Karen says
That sounds VERY interesting! Thank you for the recommendation, Thierry!
Kanishk Kunal says
Having worked with Beans Theme Framework for WordPress theme development, I would second that Thierry! I love how Beans gives you the power to select which UIkit components to load.and intelligently optimizes loading based on page needs.
I have only started to dive into the Beans API and find it quite powerful as well as easy to work with. Since Beans is free and we have a great community building around it, I am sure it is going to turn out to be one of the most favored WordPress theme framework.
Warwick says
A great article – thanks for the comprehensive detail, and thanks Thierry for the tip on Beans. I’m installing as we speak!
sreekanth says
present im using truepixal theme,so here my doubt is can i use the genesis framework parallel to run my website.
Tamara says
Thank you for this article. It’s helping me slowly get my head around all the terminology.
I didn’t even know of the existence of “theme frameworks” until about 10 minutes ago, but I can take any theme that I mostly like and customize it with a Child Theme. So I still don’t quite understand the difference or relationship between a Framework and a Parent Theme.
Or are you saying that the framework is not a theme itself but rather the toolbox that a theme designer uses to create a parent theme? And the average user like me then installs and perhaps modifies the parent theme? Is there any reason I need to be concerned with frameworks if I’m not a designer?
WPBeginner Support says
Exactly, a Theme Framework provides you a set of tools that you can easily use in your theme.
Administrador
Roberto says
Great article! Finally something that makes sense regarding theme frameworks.
Thanks.
Pete Gregory says
Outstanding article & I especially appreciate you mentioning the learning curve involved to use these frameworks! Many newbies don’t understand the amount of work associated with building any custom website, but these frameworks, once learned do make things easier. Personally, I like iThemes Builder but it is geared more towards a developer type with at least some code experience.
kamlesh sharma says
Nice n meamingful post to let ppl understand what a framework is.
As am new to web developing. Can I still use Genesis framework ?
I have say zero knowledge of codes n all. Can I make a robust n decent website using genesis …. ?
Eric Gross says
Alright leave it to me to reopen a post from 2012, but hey still relevant for those getting deeper into web design. I’ve been using a subscription to Elegant Themes, a super cheap price which gets access to all their themes, but as I understand it no framework. You just install their themes, some of which have the functions you mentioned like sliders, or use ratings plugins. Create a child theme, tweak CSS, they even have an ePanel for adding your analytics code, uploading a logo… But I’m ready for that next step…
From my vantage point I see frameworks as a more robust way to add functions to a site, than say adding plugins. You purchase a framework with the understanding that a team of mad coders are checking to ensure that their php files that enable eCommerce, won’t conflict with their already existing js code that allows a page to be translated into Spanish. Am I right? Perhaps some examples would help. Specifically the “learning curve” to utilize the power of the framework would be nice.
My work is from SEO background, brings up the concern though of page speed. For SEO a faster loading page ranks higher than a slow one. If a site is built on a theme that has numerous capabilities, but your site doesn’t use them is that possibly hurting your page speed? In Disadvantages, you make the statement this “doesn’t directly influence you”. Makes me wonder who this article was written for and who is influenced by unnecessary code?
Thanks in advance, I’m just trying to figure things out, great website. Keep up the good work.
Eric Gross says
So am I right? The benefit of frameworks is that you benefit from the strength of a team who developed the framework, to avoid downtimes.
And what about my speed to load concerns? Thanks.
Patrick says
Quote: Our Pick
There are tons WordPress theme frameworks that are available. ….. Yes, you do need to have development skills to code a child theme for this.
You can use the Genesis Extender Plugin which has a CSS Builder and PHP Builder so that takes care of development skills.
The Genesis Extender Plugin is by Cobalt Apps. You can design any Theme with the Dynamik Website Builder if you don’t have a Genesis Child Theme.
The Genesis Extender Plugin is as Powerful as The Dynamik Website Builder but If you have a Genesis Child Theme then use The Genesis Extender Plugin.
The Dynamik Website Builder has three components: Dynamik Settings, Dynamik Design Options and Dynamik Custom Options. The Genesis Extender Plugin has two comp: Extender Settings and Custom Options which are both the same components as in The Dynamik Website Builder.
I haven’t seen anything that’s as powerful as The Dynamik Website Builder or Genesis Extender Plugin. The next closest might be DMS (Drag And Drop Design Management System) by PageLines.
Shreyans says
Something I wanted to know for long. Thanks.
Kamran Abdul Aziz says
Nice n meamingful post to let ppl understand what a framework is.
As am new to web developing. Can I still use Genesis framework ?
I have say zero knowledge of codes n all. Can I make a robust n decent website using genesis ?
Srihari Thalla says
As you said you “have zero knowledge of code”, I wouldn’t recommend Genesis at this point of time. Go on with Headway Themes. It is a complete drag-and-drop framework and you don’t need any knowledge of coding.
Later, when you develop your coding skills, you are ready to move on with Genesis
Kamran Abdul Aziz says
Its been a year now & am ready to go with Genesis.
Melanne says
When you say that you need coding knowledge to create a child theme for genesis, how much coding knowledge do you mean? Right now I create child themes for twenty eleven, and the only files I work with are style.css and occasionally some php files, though only very minor edits. Will I be able to code a child theme for genesis or do I need to know how to actually write php to do that?
Lori says
Hi!
Thank you for sharing this informations. What I can’t understand ‘bout framework and parent themes working with child one is:
1) when I’m building a new theme to sell, for example, do i zipped both parent and child theme together and make them two installing as one is based on the other? Or do you develop the new theme overriding the parent one (but in this way all future updates of the parent theme can’t be done correctly)?
2) A framework isn’t actually a theme and i guess is not a standalone theme, so how can developer use it? Pasting code needed? Or putting the framework folder INSIDE the new theme folder and include and calling functions needed?
Sorry, I’m just starting right now developing with wordpress and i’m quite confused
However, i’m building my first personal parent theme
Thank you for anwser!
Editorial Staff says
1. Most companies offer the parent theme as a separate download. If you own both the parent and the child theme, then might as well go the same route as others. If you are selling a child theme of another framework, then you should send people to get that framework (whether it is free or paid).
2. Frameworks are themes themselves, but they have hooks that other developers can use to customize things without overriding a theme file.
Administrador
Martin says
This is all very well, but you dont actually give a definition of “Theme”. Youve sold me on the framework, but what is it a framework of? What actually IS a theme?
Editorial Staff says
Theme is the design that you see on your WordPress site. It is also called a skin or a template.
Administrador
Robin Jennings says
Genesis is a great framework. Just ensure you get a mobile responsive theme straight up as not all of them are.
Pat Fortino says
Have used genesis, woothemes, yoothemes, and twentytwelve. Twentytwelve is the is easiest to understand and very fun and easy to work with. Genesis is the most difficult to understand. woothemes canvas and yootheme warp are in the middle. For the life of me, I cannot understand the love for genesis. I hate it. Using genesis is like building a ship in a bottle: you can never get your hands on the code. Instead, you spend most of your development time scouring studeopress site and the web to find out how to do simple code changes. Also, genesis is the most expensive of all and i have not found the support to be anything other than OK.
Yootheme templates are very powerful, but their support is aweful. Mostly volunteer answers.
Utkarsh Bhatt says
The love for genesis is because of its referral program. I have used Genesis, Woothemes and pretty much any framework available for WordPress, and I have to say that Genesis was pretty hard to understand, at least in the beginning, Like you said, the best theme for development is Twentytwelve.
Editorial Staff says
Actually referral program for other themes convert far better than Genesis because most folks buy their themes based on how it looks on the outside rather than the code itself. Ofcourse creating a standalone theme works and is probably easier in the short run to just tweak something like twenty twelve. However, to speed up development time and not reinvent the wheel in every single theme… it is much better to just spend some time on how Genesis works, and then simply start using it across your site.
Administrador
Bradley says
I use the Woo Framework. I love the themes, they offer a lot of useful plugins (such as WooCommerce) made specifically to work with their themes, support is great, and I can customize the backend for users.
Lara says
Hi. Thank you for the post. I am a beginner web designer and I designed my sites the hard way by modifying other people’s code without too much knowledge of css or php. Can you guys recommend a framework that has visual editor and does not require to much coding. I do not want to modify existing themes. I want to build my own. I checked Headway and genesis. Genesis doesn’t have a demo. Headway is not bad. Is there anything similar to Headway besides the ones mentioned in the comments that you would recommend? My issue with headway is that you can not overlap boxes and there has to be 1 pixel in between them and so I’m a little perplexed as to how to execute certain design elements where overlapping is necessary. Perhaps there is another way to do it? Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks you.
Editorial Staff says
You will NOT find a solution that you are looking for. Headway is the closest you will get. If you are looking to design sites, then we would recommend investing some time in learning the platform. That will vastly improve the overall quality of your work. I learnt by trial and error (exactly the same thing you are doing). Modifying existing themes to make it work for me. After a little bit of time, I was able to create my own themes. I would highly recommend you to not give up. The founder of genesis and StudioPress learnt the same way.
-Syed Balkhi
Founder of WPBeginner
Administrador
Lara says
Thank you!
Any advice on how to make boxes overlap in headway?
Chris Howard says
Hey Lara
Just stumbled unto this.
If you still want an answer, Headway allows you to “Nudge” blocks. That should solve your problem. Look for it in the block’s Design Mode stylings. http://d.pr/i/NTJA
Also, do you the Headway support forums. You should get an answer there.
All the best
Bernie Roseke says
“There was not a single comprehensive article that explained what is a WordPress theme framework.”
YES! Thank you! I am a small time blogger that read Darren Rowse’s book, “Problogger” and he is a pretty big supporter of the Genesis framework. So naturally I went to check it out, but I could not for the life of me figure out what a framework was. I’ve done probably 3 hours worth of web surfing (over many days). The StudioPress page is the worst. You would think if they wanted you to buy it they should tell you what it is. But all you get is “WordPress is the engine, Genesis the body, and the child theme is the paint job”….. what on earth does that mean?
Thanks for clearing this up. This post deserves higher search engine rank. Good luck.
Mick says
No mention of any Automatic frameworks?
Personally I LOVE the _s framework. Yes it is a little more advanced but it has everything there to start building your own custom themes!
Editorial Staff says
Again, this is not a list of frameworks. There are tons of amazing frameworks out there. The point of this article is to educate users on what is a framework.
Administrador
Roland says
Ok, you’re right. You have to spend some time to learn the special hooks of the framework. But afterwards the framwork can save you a lot of time. I use Xtreme Theme and I never regret.
Editorial Staff says
Agreed, the first few times it takes longer. But once you get used to it, it speeds up your dev time significantly.
Administrador
Martin says
As far as frameworks go there is nothing at the moment that is as powerfull as Ultimatum. I have been using it for a while now and the drag and drop part gives you the abillity to create great looking sites but if you want more you can easily add custom styles and so on. I have tried several others, but none of these even comes close to the power of the Ultimatum framework.
I would look out for this new contender in the framework market, because it’s going to be big.
The community is also excellent and very responsive. All in all, the best money I have spend over the last year!
Chris Rouse says
I’ve been using Standard Theme by 8BIT for a while now. It’s a fantastic framework to work with and has taken me from not knowing a thing about CSS to building child themes for it (that are actually being used other Standard Theme users!).
I started off with pre-built free themes and always hated something about them. They were tough to customize because I didn’t know where anything was or how to tweak it, and as you said, upgrades broke everything. Switching to a framework has been a game changer for me. Rather than looking through thousands of crappy free themes, or wishing I could afford the premium theme that looks cool, I can just build the theme that I want for the most part.
Another thing to point out about a number of frameworks, including Standard Theme, is that a number of them are now being built around Bootstrap (formerly known as Twitter Bootstrap). This means they come with built-in responsive layouts for different screen sizes. This saves a lot of work building mobile sites, or having to sacrifice design to use a mobile site plugin that converts the site for you into something that doesn’t look at all like your site.
Melissa M. Miller says
I use WooThemes Canvas and I love it!
Debra says
Child themes make perfect sense now. I finally get it! Thank you! Now I can get on to steps 2 through 2000….
Aditya says
I have been using themes from themify for long time…..but with lot of recommendations I am thinking to move towards to genesis….but as you said in the post that genesis is for developers but I am not a developer but I really love themes from genesis…..and I also intend to learn somewhat things about coding….
So should I go with studiopress or can go with drag and drop frameworks like headway or thesis ?????
Editorial Staff says
If you like the child themes from Genesis, then use that. You don’t have to be a developer to use it. You have to be a developer to customize the themes unless you go with something like Headway.
Administrador
Tushar says
Thanks for this article however I could think of 2 things
1] This topic has a very large scope whereas this post could very well be a part 1 of that
2] This article seems very limited around Genesis / Headway towards the end.
Also, one must not forget about good free frameworks such as Theme Hybrid and Gantry Framework.
I am using Theme Hybrid since a year or so and the kind of support I received is phenomenal. I have also tried Gantry for few couple of client sites and that too is very good for developers.
I don’t mean Genesis is bad, its great too but when we talk about WordPress in general (and not just Blogs) – Genesis is not the last stop.
Thanks again
Editorial Staff says
Hey Tushar,
The topic “framework” is very broad YES. However, we covered exactly what the title said. It is intended to explain what frameworks are. It doesn’t say that we will list ALL frameworks that are out there. Surely there are tons of amazing frameworks out there. We haven’t tried all of them. We can only write and recommend the ones that we have tried. This is exactly why we asked users to tell us which frameworks you are using. Yes, we have heard great things about ThemeHybrid however we haven’t tried it. This is why we cannot recommend it in the article.
Administrador
Zimbrul says
This is one comprehensive article about WordPress frameworks, what they are and what they do.
I’m using Headway Theme, a bit of iBuilder (not quite like it), Thesis and of course, Genesis. As with the release of Thesis 2.0 Genesis became my favourite WordPress framework and the reasons are simple: clean code, easy to alter, easy do do basic modifications without getting your hands dirty with CSS, simple to understand even for someone with little or no experience with frameworks. The nice thing you can say about Genesis is that the more you get it to know the more you want to learn. And of course it the support. Support for Genesis framework is the best I came across in the market. Never closed a support ticket without being answered and the problem clarified.
Headway Theme is amazing, you can do great things with it IF YOU HAVE ENOUGH IMAGINATION IN DESIGN (not my case).
Karen F says
Why did you leave out the Builder Framework? It’s really fabulous with a first rate community and support staff. I sound like I’m shilling for them – I am not! But it’s really great – and widely used – and I’m baffled that you don’t mention it! In addition, I’d love to hear you evaluate it’s pros and cons and compare it to the other Frameworks. And Builder has a wider reach in a way, between their BackUp Buddy plugins and their WebDesignUniversity.com from which I have learned SO much with their webinars on everything WordPress. Honestly, you are doing a disservice to the WP community to exclude them. And again, I am not associated with them as anything other than a customer!
Editorial Staff says
Hey Karen,
We know the folks from iThemes, and we are good friends with them. Yes Builder is a great framework. This article is not meant to list all frameworks that are available. Plenty of other articles do that just fine. The point of this article was to highlight what is a framework, why you should use the framework, pros and cons of the framework, and then our pick. We believe that we did a pretty good job at covering what the article intended to cover. This is exactly why we asked users to suggest which framework they use and love. In a sense that is doing pretty of service to the community. A reader can come to learn about frameworks, and then see what others are using and recommending.
Thanks for dropping by and commenting.
Administrador
Karen F says
LOL! You are right! When I reread your post — you WERE asking for everyone’s experience with Frameworks! Well, let my ruuuusssshhhh to wave the flag for the iThemes team be a testament to their fabulous community and the loyalty they inspires! Sorry for jumping the gun there. And, it would be great for you to evaluate the strengths of the top Frameworks.
Pandoon says
And what about speed? There are a lot of unnecessary code, so does it load lower?
Editorial Staff says
It depends on which framework you are speaking of.
Administrador
Rusho says
All the theme listed in this article are commercial. You should mention some free framework such as Granty or Thematic Framework. Anyway, the topic is helpful.
chris kluis says
What about Roots?
Fred Romano says
StudioPress and Genesis rock! I will never go back to other frameworks after using Genesis. The code is clean and “bloat free” compared to the competition. These guys also provide amazing support!
Carrie Dils says
I stumbled on Genesis about 18 months ago and have never looked back. The pro you mention of community”really takes the cake. I can’t speak for other framework communities, but the group of users and developers around StudioPress is TOP NOTCH.
Regarding flexibility, I haven’t really been bothered too much by this. Again, the StudioPress core dev team has demonstrated a continued desire to grow and expand Genesis capabilities.
If you can’t tell, I’m sold.
Thanks for the write-up. All that said, Genesis is a framework more geared toward developers and it’s nice to know others that might be better suited for a different kind of user.