Why I moved my blog

Unfortunately, there is a war going on within the WordPress community. To stay as far away as possible from it, I have moved my blog to a hosting provider that is not related to what is happening. I wanted to talk a little bit about what is going on and why I moved.

Introduction

There is a public battle going on between Automattic and WP Engine. Both provide managed hosting services for WordPress sites.

Some of the things I would like to say, I cannot at this stage. Whilst I am not directly associated with either party, I am indirectly associated. So, for the most part, I shall not be making my opinions public.

This website was hosted on WordPress.com, which is owned by Automattic. I have moved it to Hostinger. That isn’t to say I was unhappy with WordPress.com, but I do not want to be a part of funding either side of the battle. As for why Hostinger? It seemed like a sane choice at the time, it is difficult to know who is a good provider now that I’ve been out of the hosting game for so long. So, this isn’t an advert for anyone, but so far, I am happy with my decision.

I am also in no way advocating others to move away like I did. I think people should look into what is happening and make their own decisions.

The fight

I am not going to discuss who started what, who is right or wrong, or anything like that. I will say that innocent friends from my past have been named and dragged into it, and I am concerned for them.

The phrase going “nuclear” has been used as part of this battle. I don’t think this is wise.

WordPress at its core is made up of a huge community of enthusiasts. They are open source advocates, they are ahead of the curve when it comes to things like inclusivity, translations and documentation. It is clear that people have a real passion for what they do. Sure, there are problems and disagreements, but it is quite a mature open source community.

Over the past couple of years, the people of the WordPress community have been incredibly friendly to me as someone new to the community. They have helped me navigate it, and I hope I’ve helped them a little along the way in return.

Going nuclear will inevitably have collateral damage. Innocent people will get hurt, it will cause community rifts. I suspect the next large WordCamp event might be an uncomfortable affair for some people.

Conclusion

I wish I could say more, but what I will say is that I hope my friends in the WordPress community are OK. I hope these tensions are resolved quickly, and the community can heal.

Also, if you spot any part of this blog that I broke in the migration (migrating WordPress is something I’ve never tried before), please let me know.