4.4. Frameworks Worth Checking Out

Although any theme could conceivably be used as a framework, some notable examples have been designed especially for this purpose. We’ll take a look at these now, as well as some child themes that have been created from them.

4.4.1. Freebies

Here are just a few of the great free frameworks on offer.

4.4.1.1. Thematic

Ian Stewart’s Thematic, shown in Figure 4-1, is one of the best-known theme frameworks out there, and for good reason: it boasts thousands of users, it has been tested with dozens of popular plugins, and there’s plenty of helpful, free community support. You can grab Thematic from ThemeShaper, which is also home to a huge collection of tutorials about building child themes, as well as creating your own framework.

Figure 4-1. A plain Thematic demo, using the default styles

Thematic child themes are plentiful: Figure 4-2, Figure 4-3, andFigure 4-4 show just how flexible this framework can be.

Figure 4-2. ThemeShaper uses a Thematic child theme

Figure 4-3. Commune, by Cristian Antohe

Figure 4-4. The Neutica+ child theme, by co-author Allan Cole

4.4.1.2. Hybrid

Justin Tadlock’s Hybrid, shown in Figure 4-5, boasts plenty of documentation and support, and it’s free and open source. You’ll also find a collection of language translations, plenty of child themes to download and try, and Hybrid-specific plugins to enhance your use of this excellent free theme. Access to an extensive collection of in-depth tutorials and forums costs a reasonable US$25.

Figure 4-5. Hybrid in action

You can download Hybrid from Theme Hybrid. While you are there, take a look at some of the lovely child theme examples by Justin; screenshots from two of them can be seen in Figure 4-6 and Figure 4-7.

Figure 4-6. Share your thoughts with the world, with Life Collage

Figure 4-7. It’s fun, it’s hip, it’s Old School

4.4.1.3. Carrington

CrowdFavorite’s Carrington framework is open source, and comes in four flavors: one with some graphic design laid in (Figure 4-8), one with no markup at all, one designed especially for mobile devices, and plain old vanilla. There’s official and community support available, and plenty of documentation for the curious coder.

Figure 4-8. The blogger- and developer-friendly Carrington Blog

4.4.2. Paid Frameworks

These paid frameworks come with stacks of bells and whistles, a strong enterprise and SEO focus, and premium support.

4.4.2.1. Thesis

The Thesis framework from DIY Themes promises to put an end to all your SEO worries, with plenty of options for end users and professional theme developers alike. In Thesis, you make modifications to a custom CSS and functions file within the theme itself, rather than using the child theme method mentioned above, but it’s still a rock-solid framework nonetheless. At the time of writing, Thesis is $87 for personal use and $164 for developers, and there’s a thriving marketplace for Thesis skins. The default Thesis skin is shown in Figure 4-9.

Figure 4-9. The rock-solid Thesis framework

Thesis drives a number of popular blogs; check out some of its high-profile users in Figure 4-10 and Figure 4-11 below.

Figure 4-10. Cute Overload—for the finest in cute imagery

Figure 4-11. The compelling content of CopyBlogger

4.4.2.2. Genesis

StudioPress’s Genesis framework provides a plain, serviceable theme with numerous included layouts, and requires only a little CSS loving to really shine. Some Genesis-specific widgets help extend this theme well beyond alternative offerings. It’s US$59.95 for your own use, and there’s an official Genesis theme marketplace to sell your child themes. Figure 4-12 and Figure 4-13 show some of the cool variations you can achieve with the Genesis framework.

Figure 4-12. Viewing the Genesis theme demo

Figure 4-13. This Genesis child theme is truly enterprising

4.4.3. So which framework is the best?

C’mon, SitePoint, just tell us which is the best!

Well, the best theme framework for you to use is, of course, entirely up to you and your needs. In fact, you might decide that none of them are right for you, and that you’d rather roll your own. Whatever works for you!

For our part, we will work through the next four chapters using the free Thematic framework. It produces some terrific markup full of semantic classes to help you work wonders with CSS, and has an SEO-friendly presentation and plenty of possibilities for adding your own custom code. It’s been created especially for the child theme method we have recommended in this book, and it is designed with theme developers in mind. It’s also free, which makes it easy for you to play along at home with the examples from this chapter.