A Word on WordPress

A solid platform for blogging.

At Aspen Digital, we've been developing PHP based websites since 2001 and are quite familiar with WordPress. As with all content management systems, WordPress comes with it's pros and cons. We've used it for many projects and have written several WordPress plugins. Although we don't recommend it for every site, when it comes to blogging, it's an excellent choice.

When WordPress was released in 2003, it was written as a blogging platform. Although it has been extended to support other use cases, it's core is structured to support that original paradigm. When blogging isn't the primary function of a site, using a framework geared toward that end can become a nuisance for developers. Nonetheless, WordPress has matured into a very capable and popular platform, powering a significant slice of the web.

Unfortunately, that popularity means it is frequently targeted on a massive scale by hackers and botnets. Their team does a good job of patching their code quickly, but it can become a bit of a maintenance nightmare when dealing with 3rd party plugins, which is why the platform gets a black eye regarding security. Inexperienced and experienced users alike are susceptible to exploits found in thousands of nefarious plugins.

Unless the codebase and trusted plugins are updated regularly, sites powered by WordPress can easily be compromised.

Budget WordPress shops frequently load up a pre-designed template, install a variety of 3rd party plugins to add some desired functionality and don't service sites for the long term. Updates get overlooked and sites get hacked.

When taking on a WordPress project, we recommend the following:

• Always keep WordPress and plugins current
• Select a host that will support you with hacks
• Use trusted 3rd party plugins and themes

If you have a WordPress project that you need some experts to take over, please contact us.