Issue #158 Loop WP

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Hi, friend. 👋

Welcome to Issue #158 of Loop WP!

Last week, we discussed Accessibility, and I have a quick follow-up to Fluent Community in the shape of BuddyPress.

This week, I ask, “Does it really matter”? In fact…I ask a lot of questions.

Let’s go! 👇

Some Quick Context

🤓 Last week, I read an article by Brian Coods (linked in the “News & Tips” section) and I’ve been thinking about it constantly.

It got me thinking and reminded me of a previous newsletter I wrote. 👇

“WordPress Wasn’t Even Considered”

In Issue #121, I discussed why a friend didn’t even consider using WordPress for a new website. If you don’t want to read Issue #121 (which you should), then the most relevant points as to why WordPress wasn’t considered are:

• Perceived difficulty for non-tech users.

• No clear marketing or messaging to counter these assumptions.

• Complexity, a fragmented ecosystem, and a lack of a unified experience.

• Confusion around WordPress.com vs WordPress.org.

• Little understanding or care about it being Open Source.

🚨 Things have changed a lot in WordPress since Issue #121, and the feature freeze suggested by Paul Charlton of WPTuts is essentially in effect, with WordPress now operating a yearly release cycle.

That in itself has implications for WordPress, and there are concerns that WordPress could be left even further behind or even lose its dominant market share (more details in Issue #152 and Issue #153).

💡 Brian’s question is slightly different from mine, but it is related: “Is clean code still important?”

The context for Brian’s question was not a friend looking to build a website (in my case), but in response to the launch of Figma Sites (and the internet’s reaction to it).

“Does It Really Matter?”

🚨 It depends on who you are asking the question to: an amateur builder, a web designer, a developer, a business owner or the end user?

🧠 If you don’t read Brian’s full article in the “News & Tips” section below (which you really should), the question is around “code quality” (specifically clean code), and the most important points for this newsletter are:

• Methods of code production are evolving.

• However, the principles underlying clean code, such as performance, accessibility, and maintainability, remain crucial.

• As AI continues to shape the development landscape, these foundational values will guide the creation of effective and user-friendly applications.

It Should Matter, But It Probably Doesn’t (for now)

💡 Like my friend in Issue #121, who didn’t care about the benefits of WordPress, most people will not care about the quality of code produced by AI.

🤔 The rise of AI website builders is similar to how most people will not care about the code quality produced by popular site builders (think Squarespace and Wix) and page builder plugins.

What most people and businesses care about (especially when starting out) is not code quality:

• It’s costs (initial and ongoing)

• Ease of use

• How the website looks (if it’s “beautiful”, it’s all good)

• How easy is the site to maintain (do we need a developer?)

When a business grows and scales, it will look to more mature solutions, but that’s not the goal initially.

🚨 That’s why Automattic is entering the AI game in big ways (more than just being an AI site builder) and even looking into marketing again in an attempt to keep WordPress relevant.

Who’s Responsible?

💡 So, friend, if AI code and AI site builders aren’t making clean code and taking “divception” to a whole new level, and developers/designers know there are repercussions for:

• SEO.

• Accessibility - everyone benefits from an accessible website.

• Bug fixes and code maintenance.

(Not an exhaustive list.)

Brian makes a good point in his article about code democratisation, but leads me to the question: “Whose responsibility is it to educate the users of these tools?”

🤔 Is it the responsibility of professionals, the tools/platforms themselves or a combination of both?

🚨 With financial penalties (potentially significant) when the European Accessibility Act comes into force, a lot more people will start to care about the code quality of their website.

(This raises the question of why Figma thought it was Okay to release such a poor website builder, but it makes good-looking websites. 🤭)

Parting Thought

⚡️ Just because something “looks good”, doesn’t mean it’s good for you.

I’ll leave you with this final thought from Brian, as there might be a lot more people who will find that they need to care in the future. 👇

That’s It For This Week 👋

I’m experimenting a little bit with the format of this newsletter over the coming weeks, and your feedback would be greatly appreciated, friend.

See you next week! 😀

Weekly WordPress News & Tips

This week's excellent and insightful WordPress News & Tips:

• 40% Off - Learn to build high-value block themes and plugins with AI and automation in a focused 10-week course. (WP Shout)

• Who Cares? - Is clean code still important? (Brian Coords)

• AI in Search - Going beyond information to intelligence. (Google)

• WP Campus Connect - From Grassroots to Global: How WordPress Campus Connect is Nurturing the Next Generation of Users and Contributors. (The Repository)

• Freelancing - What Do AI Site Builders Mean for Freelancers? (The WP Minute)

• Better Than Figma? - Penpot’s Flexbox & Grid Features Explained! (WPTuts)

• Acquisition - Post Status has acquired WP Speakers. (Post Status)

• Plugin Owners - Struggling to market your plugin? These tips could help. (Tom Pestridge)

• WordPress Event Talk - One For the Road via PressConf with Adam and Emma. (Doo_the Woo)

• November 5th - Cloudfest USA announces WP Day. (Cloudfest)

• Field Report - PressConf 2025. (The WPCC)

• Digging the 1st Tunnel - WordPress Is Sitting on a Goldmine with the Feature API. (PootlePress)

• Add to Cart+ - WooCommerce names Square as preferred POS partner to power omnichannel commerce. (WooCommerce)

• Webinar Replay - Perspectives on the State of WordPress Accessibility. (WP Accessibility Day)

• Forget IPs - Using cryptography to verify bot and agent traffic. (Cloudflare)

• Website Optimisation - SEO vs Accessibility. (Crystal Scott)

If you have a question about this email or WordPress, reply, and I will answer you as soon as possible.

👋 Until next time,