Coraline: The WordPress Theme
August 9, 2010
Coraline is the story of a girl who finds herself in a different reality. I like the original Neil Gaiman novel, and the movie (and this photo, by origami_potato, of a Coraline doll).
Another Coraline story concerns WordPress.com users who find themselves with a different theme. Coraline is a new theme at WordPress.com, where it has replaced Cutline. I think that this is the first time that WordPress.com has removed a theme and switched all sites from that theme to another, without prior warning.
Is it surprising that this particular theme – Cutline – has been retired from WordPress.com? Yes and no. Yes, since Cutline was one of the most popular themes at WordPress.com. No, given the recent controversy involving Cutline designer Chris Pearson.
I’m not the only person who thought that Cutline might have been retired because of its designer. This thought is expressed in one of the many forum threads protesting the abrupt replacement of Cutline with Coraline. Other such posts include: YOU changed my theme without my knowledge; Cutline is Gone!?@(!(!(; WordPress deleted my theme w/out notification.
I note that there is another popular WordPress.com theme designed by Chris Pearson: PressRow. If I were using PressRow at WordPress.com, I’d be wondering how much longer I’d have it for, and what might replace it.
August 10, 2010 at 12:13 am
[...] See the article here: Coraline: The WordPress Theme « Changing Way [...]
August 10, 2010 at 8:02 am
I am one of these people who is outraged at WordPress just going ahead and replacing my carefully chosen tuned and adjusted theme for a vastly inferior one. I am definitely going to switch to a different blog provider. My blog is mission critical – it’s what I do.
August 10, 2010 at 8:08 am
Michael,
Thanks for your comment. It is the first “the Coraline switch will make me leave wp.com” remark I have seen (although I haven’t been scouring the blogosphere for such remarks).
August 10, 2010 at 8:17 am
Oh, there’s no doubt. I am scouring the ‘web for good recommendations as we speak.
You see, my blog is what I do for a living. Having it changed for the worse with no discussion by a bunch of californian teenagers (who are offsite for a week) is a rude wake-up call that this is totally unacceptable.
So now I need to find a host. And one who can offer cutline, and more, who can transfer my blog ( a lot of IP in its 1,000 posts). Including the 1000+ photos. No idea how to even start with that.
August 10, 2010 at 9:27 am
I am half way through setting up my own.
Bye bye, WordPress. Customer loyalty is ephemeral. Mess with your users in such an unthoughful and dare I say it, incompetent way, and we’re outtahere.
August 10, 2010 at 9:36 am
Pressrow is definitely going, and I would imagine will be replaced by another Twenty-Ten mod.
August 10, 2010 at 1:07 pm
@TGA, as always, it’s good to see you commenting here, and interesting to read your take on things at your own site.
August 10, 2010 at 2:43 pm
[...] to this bit of early 1990′s Silicon Valley/MIT politics/feud/pissing match, WordPress replaced, essentially without warning, Cutline from all the blogs using it and replaced it… (They must have picked that name because you’d need to have buttons for eyes to not be able [...]
August 10, 2010 at 6:11 pm
Well, I am now on http://www.speedlighter,ca – now to tune the layout, and then I kill the old site. WordPress perhaps ought to have thought this out, before doing. I’ll get my own advertising revenue from now on.
August 10, 2010 at 6:12 pm
Oops, that URL is http://www.speedlighter.ca with a period, not a comma. Perhaps i should think before doing, too
August 11, 2010 at 9:01 am
[...] not the only one who thinks it’s too much of a coincidence (see Cutthroat for coraline, and Coraline the changing way). Way to keep it classy [...]
August 11, 2010 at 12:54 pm
[...] not the only one who thinks it’s too much of a coincidence (see Cutthroat for coraline, and Coraline the changing way). Way to keep it classy [...]
August 11, 2010 at 4:54 pm
I am pissed that Cutline is gone. My next choice was Press Row… I don’t want to switch it to that just to have it snatched out from underme… I thought WP folks were supposed to be cool, less militaristic… WTF?
August 11, 2010 at 5:56 pm
Yes, PressRow is the worst choice of WP.com theme for those who miss their Cutline. I fear that some will go that way, though, since PressRow is similar in style, as well as in popularity, to Cutline.
August 11, 2010 at 10:09 pm
[...] not the only one who thinks it’s too much of a coincidence (see Cutthroat for coraline, and Coraline the changing way). Way to keep it classy [...]
August 12, 2010 at 4:43 am
[...] hat das bisher von mir verwendete Theme Cutline einfach so mir nichts dir nichts gegen das Theme Coraline ausgetauscht. Ohne Vorwarnung oder Begründung. Auch die Konfiguration der Sidebar wurde quasi [...]
August 12, 2010 at 10:27 am
[...] with yesterday’s switch from Cutline to Coraline on WP.com the debate has been revived once more. While in the latter case nothing can be done and I will resist to mention that Splashpress Media [...]
August 13, 2010 at 12:16 am
[...] with yesterday’s switch from Cutline to Coraline on WP.com the debate has been revived once more. While in the latter case nothing can be done and I will resist to mention that Splashpress Media [...]
August 13, 2010 at 12:54 pm
[...] Posting on the replacement of Cutline with Coraline, I closed with a thought on another theme. If I were using PressRow at WordPress.com, I’d be wondering how much longer I’d have it for, and what might replace it. [...]
August 14, 2010 at 4:45 am
[...] When I googled “WordPress changed my theme without my knowledge,” I discovered that apparently everyone using the classy pared down Cutline theme had been changed over to the unattract… because of some sort of feud with the Cutline designer, Chris Pearson. I am, to say the least, [...]
August 18, 2010 at 3:32 am
[...] not the only one who thinks it’s too much of a coincidence (see Cutthroat for Coraline, and Coraline the changing way). Way to keep it classy [...]
August 26, 2010 at 9:00 am
[...] not the only one who thinks it’s too much of a coincidence (see Cutthroat for Coraline, and Coraline the changing way). Way to keep it classy [...]
October 8, 2010 at 12:14 pm
beautiful theme, thanks for the share
December 23, 2010 at 12:18 am
I’m not leaving WordPress, but I am surely finding the Cutline theme and putting it back! They have some nerve!