How to stop displaying the Id without losing the functionality
the_author_meta displays the data. That is, it echos the data to the screen. From the Codex entry for that function: NOTE: Use get_the_author_meta() if you need to return (not display) the information. So, use get_the_author_meta() instead. There is a somewhat reliable pattern in WordPress function naming whereby functions starting with the_ echo data to the … Read more