Here is one of those situations in which I am so far out of my depth to really not understand how it might affect my sites or how I can support.

code standards, sniffs, etc.—I’ve never heard of any of it before, and my first experience with WordPress (posting to a blog that others set up) was in 2008. Since then, I have been involved in site maintenance for a number of grassroots groups, but really still consider myself at most an intermediate maintainer; this is WAY above my “pay grade”, but it sounds important; like something of which everyone who maintains a site should at least be aware. I’m not even sure of where to go to learn. . . . .