Around 20 years ago, it was shown there exists an intrinsic problem from fabrication-disorder-induced scattering for slow-light photonic crystal waveguides, which has now been observed in various experiments worldwide. After nearly two decades this problem remains a significant one, yet many claims have been made in the literature about ways to mitigate this, including “topological protection”. This talk will review this general problem, then present some emerging ideas related to using correlated disorder and topological waveguide modes to possibly create more practical devices.