Justin Tadlock on Frameworks and Parent vs. Child Themes
A great read with several interesting points:
On clarifying the difference between theme frameworks and parent themes:
Advanced parent themes are not frameworks
(…)
One thing we should definitely not confuse are the terms “framework” and “parent theme.” These two are not interchangeable. That’s where a lot of the confusion stems from.
and on Parent vs. Child Themes:
When a theme developer creates a child theme, things become problematic because that child theme might eventually need an update. If you’re a theme developer and are building a child theme with a 20kb functions file and five or six custom templates, I can assure you that you’re doing it wrong. I’ve even had to tell myself this.
What you should really be creating is a parent theme. Child themes from theme developers should be nothing more than a stylesheet and a few functions. This idea of releasing advanced child themes just creates the same problem child themes were meant to solve: upgradability.
Really well written post. I’ve seen the parent/child theme upgrade dilemma play out before. I will surely look at future theme customizations differently. Justin presents some good rules of thumb for deciding to build a parent theme or go the child theme route.