Child themes are for end users that like to tweak small things such as their stylesheet but want to stay updated with the latest WordPress features, which the parent theme takes care of. Rather than editing the parent theme, the user edits the child theme. That way, they can stay updated without losing their customizations.

All this other mess you see happening with crazy-advanced child themes in the WordPress community is ridiculous. If you want to read more of my thoughts on this, check out Frameworks? Parent, child, and grandchild themes?.

I build themes, not buy them, so nothing ever comes as an update so why make a mess of a good system by throwing in child themes? For those with no code experience? To pump out tons of “almost” duplicate sites? Why ever use a theme that is not unique in the first place if you don’t want someone else’s footprint?

Sounds like something created so part time developers can sell more stuff people don’t have a use for. And it makes a lot of billable work for me when it comes to actually making any theme SEO proper and get the client up in the engines…which is the only purpose of all of this, unless you deal in ‘vanity sites’ for rich people.

With all of the hype, can someone provide any practical reasons for any of this? As for the framework, it is just trying to kick out duplicate themes that are not unique so developers can sell more generic junk.

Every install of any ‘bought’ theme always takes more work than starting from scratch. What client won’t ask for so many changes that the entire ‘framework’ goes through multiple changes? I guess it’s all about pumping out tons of junk at $50 or $100 over and over. Thesis-/revolution/studiopress…I can code the look in an hour and then everything is easy to find. Everybody hides everything all over so learning another half baked framework makes no sense. I suggest making your own for yourself that reaches to your own particular limits. If that is beyond you then stay far away from it because it will be someone else’s ‘framework’ so you might as well just send your clients to them!

Every install (over a dozen) of thesis I have done has had to be hacked to the core to get around the minimal options they give…and hide all over. Add Blogussion and you have a real mess.

Enough! Why is wordpress so intent on dumbing all this down…so grandma can make sites?

Maybe try Artisteer…then you can do anything and you only have one cluster f*** to learn and deal with updates. That’s the only framework I ever saw for sale worth ANYTHING.

So, sorry, but I see child themes as beyond useless.