[wp-hackers] fixes for old versions

[Steve Taylor]

> However, to answer the larger issue a complex system that is fragile to
> upgrades is a system that probably needs re-factoring. And while new
> versions of WP can break existing sites, in my experience its rare, and has
> usually not been related to WP but some other issue that the upgrade just
> revealed.

I'm not too concerned about my theme code - it's pretty well
structured, and in the face of any upgrade issues, I know it
inside-out and have total control.

Past that, the concern is the unknown quantity of plugin
compatibility. Most sites of mine get by, but there's always something
that crops up - and the more plugins, the more chance of that
happening. They can be hacked until the author catches up, and I never
feel there's a real brick wall to be faced in upgrading WP. It's just
the unknown quantity as to how much time might be spent upgrading (and
thanks for everyone's input on the business / client management side
of this).

To me, though, the real larger issue is the lack of official, public
clarity on how older versions might be maintained to an extent with
security fixes. The reality may or may not be ideal, but it's good to
know what that reality is.

I'm saying this with no resentment to WP whatsoever - I'm not a
dabbler putting it down, I'm someone who is hugely grateful to make a
living from WP at the moment, and has a *big* vested interest in
trying to highlight shortcomings in order to overcome them :-)  I
resent the fact that so many people are ready to blindly attack WP
when a security hole is exposed, not accepting the realities of
popular software development (and ignoring the speed of WP's
responses). But on the other hand, it's correct that security should
be a primary issue - which is why I've been surprised that I've had to
dig and dig to get an idea of the situation on this.

Anyway, Pete's explanation (with minor corrections ;-) was crystal
clear - it'd be great to see this confirmed clearly soon in or around
wp.org/download