Why is WordPress a great blogging platform? There are many reasons, out of which ease of use is probably the primary one. WordPress blog can be set up in a jiffy and someone with miniscule technical knowledge can get going.
In addition, the variety of themes and plug-ins makes this platform attractive. However, while selecting themes you must first decide whether you are developer or mere a user. What do I mean by this?
Difference Between Theme and Theme Framework
To begin with, you must understand that all WordPress themes are built using php which means that you are allowed to modify, change and adapt a specific theme to your requirements.
Since php is easy to learn, many bloggers eventually learn to use it. I have been following the trend closely and find that blog owners usually have multiple blogs. In such circumstances, they either use the same theme or a variation. Buying a theme framework and then personalizing it makes sense.
Do you have to be a developer to use Theme framework?
By developer I mean having knowledge of the software. In the case of WordPress theme framework you must know php and MySql. A bit of Linux can do no harm. At first, you may wonder if it’s possible to learn all this stuff. Let me assure you that you need to spend a bit of time and you can master the stuff. If you have some knowledge of these software you can easily opt for a Theme framework.
Examples of WordPress Theme framework
Two WordPress theme frameworks immediately spring to my mind – Thesis and Genesis. Both are quite popular with the blogging community. I suppose the simplicity of frameworks combined with extensive documentation are main reasons for their popularity. If you plan to maintain many blogs, you will do well to choose any one of these Frameworks.
Another reason why these may be popular is because once you buy the framework, you can pay a nominal price to buy themes based on them. The overall cost of ownership goes down with this strategy. Moreover you can yourself tweak the code to create your own themes.
Who is a user?
You must remember that bloggers are expected to blog and not become software ninjas. I know many blog owners who don’t want to go near any software, even by mistake. Why spend your time learning this stuff when you can easily buy themes? I agree with them. After all, your time is better spent writing content and promoting your blog rather than get bogged down by lines of code. You are better off blogging and leaving the messy bit to those who love to wade into the mechanics of code.
Conclusion
Ultimately it all depends on you. If you own a single blog, there is not much you need to think about. You can just pick up a theme, free or paid and get on with it. For bloggers who own multiple blogs, I would advise them to spend a little time thinking about purchasing a theme framework. This would save a considerable amount of time later when coming out with a new blog.
Disclaimer: The author has no commercial interest  in  either Genesis or Thesis framework .
This is a guest post by Victor Solovey.
