WordPress.org

1. Jackie
   Member
   Posted 1 year ago #

   Ok so I got though the 5 minute install.. twice!. In fact I got stuck on my regular mac for 8 hours trying to figure out what wasn't working but when I got to my 2nd one, it took 2 minutes if even that.

   In any case I found 2 articles on the net about free word press themes and the fact that free has a price. That price is the fact that you don't know what coding is in those templates that can hurt your site. So the 3 hours I spent surfing the net and downloading free wordpress themes is in vain.

   So how is anyone able to tell which templates are safe and which aren't???

   This issue seriously concerns me and so I'm trying to customize my own but the find the information either overwhelming or lacking for beginner WordPress users like myself who have no knowledge of code and prefer not to. I'm more the super user type who does well learning most software though I still struggle with Photoshop because I just haven't given it enough time.

   If it is as simple as opening these PHP files and searching for any "Http://" Links.. then please let me know.

   So thats my questions.. How do you know the wordpress theme you downloaded is safe? And secondly what are easiest ways to customize themes you can find on wordpress.org (I assume those are safe and free of links and other nefarious code)

   I really wish the "Look" factor of wordpress and customizing was totally separate from the SEO and performance factors of these themes as I have learned so far.

   Best regards
   Just another mac wordpress user

2. James
   Happiness Engineer
   Posted 1 year ago #

   That price is the fact that you don't know what coding is in those templates that can hurt your site.

   That's true about any theme, free or otherwise, unless you code your own.

   So how is anyone able to tell which templates are safe and which aren't???

   The free themes here are inspected line-by-line and should be relatively safe.

   what are easiest ways to customize themes you can find on wordpress.org

   It's really a learn as you go process, but there are a lot of great resources here:

   http://codex.wordpress.org/Blog_Design_and_Layout

   http://codex.wordpress.org/WordPress_Lessons#Designing_Your_WordPress_Site

   http://www.w3schools.com/

3. pengbos
   Member
   Posted 1 year ago #

   That price is the fact that you don't know what coding is in those templates that can hurt your site.

   I have reviewed a lot of free themes, none of them has any malicious intentions. I think you worried too much. how can a template hurt your site? the only thing you should care is about how to customize it to meet your needs.
   My suggestion is that you should try out the theme in your local host or some test environment before applying it to your real host.

4. Jackie
   Member
   Posted 1 year ago #

   Ok thanks much MacManX and Pengbos.

   Just so you know the article I read on themes and the potential to harm your site is here:

   http://1cat.biz/are-free-wordpress-themes-really-free/

   http://www.connectsimply.com/blog/are-free-wordpress-themes-really-free/

   Perhaps they might have been written as a scare tactic. But in any case I'm sure Ill be more comfortable with these and until then I'll use the sources that have been mentioned in the thread/forum.

   Thanks again all.

5. James
   Happiness Engineer
   Posted 1 year ago #

   You're welcome!

   Yeah, the articles that you've linked to appear to be scare tactics designed to direct traffic to their friends and/or affiliates.

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