What WordPress users need to know about the Automattic and WP Engine conflict [Video]

A long, long time ago, I built websites by hand using the vi editor to write HTML. It was hard. Then along came NoteTab and Bluefish, which made writing and editing HTML easier but still a pain. 

DreamWeaver, one of the first what-you-see-is-what-you-get (WYSIWYG) tools, was a big jump forward. But, the real game-changer was when content management systems showed up, which combined creation, editing, and production in one package. The first ones, such as Vignette, DotNetNuke, and RedDot, tended to be difficult to use and expensive. Then along came WordPress in 2003 and everything changed. 

Also: The best WordPress hosting services: Expert tested

Invented by Matt Mullenweg and Mike Little, the open-source WordPress runs approximately 43.6% of all websites today. It reached this dominant position because it’s easy to use, simple to customize, and can run on even the lowest-powered Linux server. 

In particular, thanks to its …