Did the WordPress Drama make things Worse for us?

In this video I am explaining the drama, but I am also sharing my opinion on how I think the WordPress founder is a bit hypocritical in some areas, and I offer some solutions for a better WordPress future. This video took me weeks to make, so I really hope you will like it.

→ ACF (and other Wp Engine plugins) manual update guide

→ The long list with resources I used for this video (not all of them)

→ Software I recommend

→ Starter Guides for Beginners

→ Full A-Z Courses

→ Social media

Some of the links above are affiliate links, which means that I earn a commission when you make a purchase via my link. Thanks a lot if you decide to do that! I couldn't make all these videos without it.

[kierenshepherd]

Really appreciate the breakdown as always Rino. Some fantastic points and I completely agree with the decision to be more intentional. As I get older I feel as though the purpose behind the decisions I am making are sometimes more important than the decision itself. With that I believe I will also be choosing to take some "swims" to better explore options so I can provide my clients with a better service. Thank you again for the non-bias exploration of this topic. I look forward to seeing the live streams when the time is right for you :)

[KariposTheOne]

Great work! Matt should invest his time in making WP better instead of wasting it on unnecessary conflicts.

[carlosabellanosa]

I think... you're great Rino. Sincere, responsible with your community, calm, ... Thank you for the enormous amount of time in sharing your knowledge and progress.

[techguyhu]

Thank you Rino for putting so much time creating this video. ❤

[savagenew]

Thanks Rino, this was very informative and explained quite a lot. As a user of both I'm appalled at how all this got out of hand and it has been completely unfair to all of us users, who has the power to shut them both down, and no one gets around this formula (ruined websites + users leaving by the droves = NO MORE WordPress or WP engine).

[MaryHayes-hn]

This was a really insightful breakdown of the drama! 😲 I appreciate the time and effort you put into researching and presenting both sides of the argument. Your perspective on WordPress’s future and the potential solutions make a lot of sense. Thanks for covering this in such depth—definitely an eye-opener! Looking forward to more content like this. 👍🔥

[rubenrojasg]

The only reason WP is a barely usable open-source platform is because for-profit companies have added functionality in the form of plugins. Without it, there's no chance they would be the industry standard right now. Matt as the owner of a for-profit company understands that, so all this tantrum is just a power move.

[liviuc]

Very good points. I read some of the comments, the solution is not going to platforms that have higher risks in meddling with your content (like webflow or framer), solution is a wordpress v2, oriented to creating business websites, with a proper visual builder and decent pricing. I feel now its an aggressive model where every plugin on the market comes with 2 tiers, free and paid, and to get a decent solution going you have to pay about 5 or 6 subscriptions at least.

[iterateology]

My biggest issue with all of this is that the clients that pay people like us to set up, build, and maintain their websites - it's THEIR businesses are affected. They just want a website that works and they can publish new content as needed. Keeping things updated is the main way to keep our clients sites safe. I do currently have client sites hosted on WPE and it's really stressful.

[danherzl]

webflow and framer are loving this fight

[BlatteBella]

Haj. I was wondering, do you know why the menu in wordpress dissapear? I used to use header and footer alternative plug in but it only works on beaver

[tobiwebdev]

Thanks Rino, I felt more enlightened on the whole drama with your video. I hope they settle this drama soon and not chase us away from the system.

[trattogatto]

This confirms that I made the right choice when I decided to use CMB2, and code my custom fields in the Child Theme, instead of relying on ACF.

[chickinatesla]

I've been so busy and dealing with hurricanes that I haven't made the time to suss this out. I so appreciate you explaining this is great detail. On one hand I can understand Matt's frustration seeing something flip to 'squeezing out the biggest return on their investment'. And on the other hand 'what about the people'!?

[DeeGil]

Thanks Rino! You should break down all the other current events happening in the world for me too 😉

[Tchekden]

Wasn't aware of this whole drama. Indeed, scary situation. Hopefully, the ship will continue its cruise... and keep us updated with your findings when swimming around 😉

[PacoDelporte]

Great video, I completely agree with your analysis. If my company wasn't already using ACF Pro but the free version, I would have pushed to switch from SCF to ACF anyway.

Finally, just for a detail question, at 24:54, you mention that WP Engine has created great plugins but the examples are not good.
ACF was created by Eliott Condon in 2011 then bought by Delicious Brain in 2021 to land at WP Engine in 2022.
Local was previously called Pressmatic then Local By Flywheel (bought in 2016) then finally just Local (bought by WP Engine in 2019)

[matsiemahlo]

You doing great job Rino, I have just started watching your videos and I am truly learning alot about WordPress, Plugins and website design.

[thebuildreview]

I am an ACF Pro user, but as a business owner I feel Silverlake have profited way beyond what is reasonable - riding on the coattails of Wordpress. If it wasn't for wordpress ACF wouldn't exist. This in my opinion is corporate greed being caught out. What is evident, and what you didn't cover in this video is the missed opportunity to call a truce and renegotiate. This is bad business management, particularly by Silverlake who have more to lose. Dumb.

[dchick]

Thank you so much for this explanation!! I never understood all the relations and interconnectedness.