Biofobico
Member
Yes, that's the question after I read some blog posts by our beloved Ian, and realize that more than 50% of the comments are from users who run ( now at least ) the hybrid framework. Do they come here to learn the "good stuff" because its free and move to hybrid? Thematic is more difficult to learn? Can we achieve something with one that we couldn't with the other?
Please share your thoughts with the community and try to be unbiased as possible.
Thanks.
Robo
Member
As someone committed to neither -- well, I have played a lot with thematic -- I too would be interested in the answer to this question. It would be good inf the developers could tell us their future plans. I would not want to pour time into developing thematic based sites only to find in a year that it is all over and no longer supported.
Robo
Member
Anybody? Developers?
Hi,
as long as you know how to work with actions and filters, you can work with any Theme Framework.
I don't know if people start to learn with Thematic (due to free support) and move to Hybrid because it's easier.
Please read the new forum Development Talk for details about the upcoming release and future versions.
Currently I'm building my own business around Thematic. My favorite designer is extending her business with Thematic. Therefore I don't think that I'm going to drop Thematic :)
Keep in mind that Thematic is GPL. Just in case that Ian and I decide to drop Thematic, anyone can pick up the code and continue our work.
Chris
Hybrid is actually free to download and is also GPL. Like Chris said, Hybrid just charges for help in the forums- and I think that's appealing to many people to know there is guaranteed support.
I haven't worked with Hybrid much so I can't give a very comparable review, but based on what I've heard from others and seeing Tadlock's code, I'd say both are solid frameworks.
I'd download a copy of each and play with them both to see what works best for you.
Robo
Member
I had a look at it but preferred Thematic from a quite perusal. Would love to have better documentation here though :-)
"Please share your thoughts with the community and try to be unbiased as possible."
Its simple for me. I'm an utter noob with great ambitions. I found Thesis first - most promoted, I guess. Actually played around with a pirated version (a friend who had purchased emailed me a copy) and didn't like the feel of stealing and didn't want to buy it based on untested skills. Not to mention the Thesis site itself doesn't validate :(
Then I found Hybrid. Ran it through a validator first (if I must learn, I wanted to learn solid code). Validated :D Justin seems like a rock solid guy. Was so relieved that the theme was free, that I paid for support, which I used sporadically. Becoming aware that my year's subscription will soon expire, and wordpress is getting into 3.0. I am going to need hand holding. Do I want to pay again?
Discovered Thematic. Still a noob. Everything is free and there is a solid and active community (though I have just registered). Also validates. My child theme is still quite ghastly, and I have done most of the figuring out already. I should be able to port the code (hopefully). So shifted.
So actually, I have shifted (or am in the process of shifting) from Hybrid to Thematic simply because its solid and free. I don't know if its the design or the hierarchy of the community, but I like the feeling of moderators and community rather than one person to answer it all, though Justin is plain awesome in that regard.
If I had to venture a guess, it would be that many people are in my situation. They seem to run hybrid, because their thematic isn't yet ready. Why Hybrid first? It gets found first. I can't figure out SEO for the life of me, so no clue on nuances, but After thesis, Hybrid is the most easily found framework for someone ripe for that kind of thing.
Okay, I must say that I have absolutely no problems with Hybrid and Justin's support is so freakily accurate, that it sometimes seems like he reads minds. That may be a factor to many, but it is plain talent. I don't know if knowing that helps Thematic in any way. I have read questions on his support forum that I would probably reply with a "tell me more", and Justin responds with a code to copy and paste and the asker's next response is that it's fixed!!! WOW!!!
I have asked for assistance myself a couple of times and found that he gets what the problem is so intuitively, that you wonder if he's got some capabilities for sitting at your desk and trying out your test blog on localhost.
That is probably an attraction for people able to pay easily (its not a large amount) and who need quick solutions often - as in absolute, real answers. Cut. Paste. Fixed.
Hi,
I've previously expressed my favor of Thematic over Hybrid and Thesis.
I moved from Hybrid to Thematic pretty early in my introduction to theme frameworks. This was mainly because I found Thematic's directory structure more intuitive and the support community more open to sharing and reciprocal teaching.
I'll try and drop my pom-poms for a sec and try and make a reasonable comparison.
Devon is right on point. Each are solid frameworks. Try both and dive into the code. Make a child theme with each. See what works for you.
Honestly, $25/year for Hybrid's stellar support and Justin's thorough documentation is a bargain unmatched in my book.
And Thematic's vibrant community supported forums and open documentation provides a truly priceless opportunity to explore, learn, teach, and contribute to what I perceive to be an extension of the greater WordPress community.
@Robo - One of my first posts here was pointing out the shortcomings of the Thematic documentation (wiki) and it wasn't long before I was contributing to it by writing the FAQ section in there.
If anyone wants to get involved in helping with the development or documentation please visit the Dev-Thread in the forums Chris linked in his post above.
Its also good to realize that we aren't necessarily married to just one theme in life. Both frameworks are very similar in structure and method. Aspects of either can be and I'll venture to say that they should be integrated into each other. There is much to learn from both Thematic and Hybrid. Time and/or money exploring either theme is well spent ;)
Happy Theming,
Gene
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