Don’t Panic!

A Simple Guide to the Block Editor

Today’s post was written in response to the concerns of several blogging colleagues. PLEASE NOTE: Comments are enabled on this post, and a downloadable and printable Guide to the Block Editor is available at the end of the page.

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First, you should know that the Classic Editor is not disappearing yet, all that is happening is that the Gutenberg, the Block Editor, will become the default editor on June 1st. At the same time, WordPress will provide a link to the Classic Editor. Presumably, we will need to open a new page to access the link. 

My background is IT, and in the past, I edited a website that used similar Blocks. Nevertheless, I previously gave up on the WordPress Blocks because it slowed me down, and it didn’t appear stable. However, WordPress appears to have ironed out a few of the faults, don’t get me wrong, it’s not perfect, but neither is the Classic!

Should you wish to try the Block Editor, it’s easier than it looks. There are loads of blocks, but you won’t need them because just like the programs on our washing machines and dishwashers, most of us bloggers will only ever use a couple. And guess what… it even has this Classic Editor Block!

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This post has used two block types, Text block and Image block.

Update: Sept 2020 – Our Weekly Prompts How-To section has created step-by-step guides – to the three WordPress text editors. Default Blocks Editor – Classic Block and WP Admin Classic – Access Here 

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Please Note: Normally on Weekly Prompts, our Challenge pages have Comments disabled in favour of Pingbacks. On this post Comments are Enabled.

Challenges published Wednesday and Saturday – 07:00 AM (UK) – 00:00 EDM (CA)

Site owners – GC, themainaisle.com and SueW, nansfarm.net

58 thoughts on “Don’t Panic!”

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  1. Reblogged this on Nan's Farm-Inside Out and commented:

    From next Monday, the 1st June, the Block Editor will become the new WordPress default editor. After reading the comments from blogging friends and colleagues, it became clear that for some, there is still a degree of uneasiness and hesitation. Therefore, Nan’s Farm is re-blogging our Weekly Prompts post where we have attempted to alleviate some of the concerns. Included in that post is our simple guide to the Block Editor.

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      1. Several of my own contacts have griped about the old editor being taken away. Maybe this will help them? I suspect that if the Classic editor is still available, they will go out of their way to use it. But it seems to me that the writing is on the wall. Actually the Block editor is a nice editor, imo. Anything up from Notepad is a big plus!

        Liked by 2 people

      2. It’s that old ‘Comfort Zone’ isn’t it? We just don’t like being taken out of it.
        It’s like everything else, it’s bound to take longer at first, but we’re in Lockdown and time is on our hands, what else is there to do? !! 🙂

        Liked by 2 people

      3. actually I had never realised that we could create a paragraph of type “classic”, but then I never looked. The one thing your guide doesn’t contain (does it?) was word count. I guess some people use if for their 3-word-story prompts. Under ℹ️.

        Liked by 1 person

      4. I never thought that! The last time I used a word count was at university! 😂 Right then, my next task is editing the guide. Any other ideas please let me know Thank you for this one. 🙂

        Liked by 1 person

      6. I know just what you mean, I always use a dozen words when half a dozen would suffice!
        I’m intending to write a Part Two to extend the guide, so if you can think of any other useful tips I would love to hear them, thank you 🙂

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      7. I came over from Blogger a year ago, Blogger’s editor struck me as more functional, but now that I am used to blocks, I’m not so sure. As long as I have a way of accessing the raw html I have the fine control that I want, but I can imagine lots of people roll their eyes at that point.
        Reusable blocks are a good one, just because there is no explicit way of maintaining them. But the concept is powerful.
        Every now and then I like to add a separator, too, but I would assume that something similar has always been available.

        Liked by 1 person

      11. funny enough they added a great load of blocks since the last time I looked! I just made a contact form with, like, 3 clicks. I looked into this when I first foined and it said I needed a higher subscription level… I almost posted a “live” timer just before of the number of days to christmas! Counts down as you’re watching it.

        Liked by 1 person

  4. I’ve tried the Block Editor a couple of times and hate it. I’d rather write my own markup than use the Block Editor. Given the increasing number of gremlins that seem to be plaguing WordPress these days I’m looking at alternatives.

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    1. I hated the Blocks too. But after coming back to it a few times to give it a fair go has made me realise I’ve warmed to it. And it has become more stable.
      If you do leave, please let me know your new site address. Thank you David 🙂

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      1. Oh it’s better than it was but one of the things I like about the classic editor was that I can flip over to the HTML and edit that. I find the blocks to simplistic. The last time I used it for a post I gave up looking for the categories and tags editor and went back to classic.

        Liked by 1 person

      2. Categories and tags will be in Part 2. But I have an hour this afternoon I might add to the guide. I’m still not sure which editor I will end up using.

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      3. My thinking at the moment is use the Block Editor for the simple posts, one photo and little or no text and use classic for the more complex posts where I may want to tweek the HTML.

        Liked by 1 person

  7. I’ve been using the block editor for aboout six months, and really like it now although it took a while to get used to. I also use Canva for pictures. Together the block editor and Canva have simplified my blogging.

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    1. You had more patience than me, Maureen! I found Blocks easy to use but far too slow. I’m happier now that WP has got its act together.
      Canva, don’t they do templates for greetings cards etc? How do you use it for your images, do you use a template first?

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  8. I am going to keep Classic as long as I can but, that said, I have saved your handy guide for Block just in case. I just want to be able to write a few words and post my photo. The thing for me is hyperlinking and typing text. That presented a problem for me in Block as I could not find the box for Link Text. I should play around with this so I am not shocked when Classic disappears. Thanks so much for the guide, Sue. Very much appreciated.

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    1. It’s all a matter of personal choice and comfort. I think Gerry will probably stick with Classic too.
      Oh, and Hyperlink appears in a small menu box above your text as soon as you begin typing. I am also planning a part two. Thank you Lois

      Liked by 1 person

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  9. Thanks for this, Sue. I blog exclusively on my iPhone and when I tried using the block editor earlier this year, I found it difficult, intrusive, and cumbersome on the limited screen real estate available on a smartphone. I’m not typically averse to change, but I think, if it’s available and not too difficult to find, I will continue to use the classic editor.

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    1. I found it okay on the iPad but I’ve never used my iPhone to write a post. I use it as I am right now because it’s convenient to answer comments.

      Too often I find pushy people insist on urging us to try something when we really don’t want to, and I find that really annoying. Why should we? The choice is ours alone. Thank you for your input, it’s appreciated.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

  11. Reblogged this on THE MAIN AISLE (c) 2020 and commented:

    This article was written by my partner Susan in response to the concern many bloggers are expressing about a new Word Press “BLOCK EDITOR”. It is an informative article and may help to alleviate your own personal concerns about this issue.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  12. I never used the editor they’re getting, anyway, no matter how much they tried to cajole me into it. I’ve tried the block editor and am underwhelmed by it. Of the hundred or so blocks they’ve given us, I only found five or so to be of any use for my purposes. I’m happy the Classic Editor, which I’ve used all along (in text mode, by the way; I mix HTML and Markdown almost at will), will remain. It will continue to be my editor of choice going forward.

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    1. John, I think you’ve echoed the thoughts of the majority.

      If it’s not broken, then why fix it?
      As I understand it, the Block editor is less time consuming for the back end developers when it comes to maintenance.

      I’ll probably take it day by day, where ever the mood takes me. I do like the image blocks so I imagine I’ll end up using a mixture of both.
      Thank you for your input, John.

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      1. I’m an old programmer, so I can see where it would be easier to maintain. I figured a workaround in case they do away with the classic editor. Everything’s cool…

        Liked by 1 person

  13. This is so helpful, Sue. Your teaching career is so evident. The document is reassuring, clear, and in the language of your readers. I particularly like the washing machine analogy. Thank you very much

    Liked by 1 person

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    1. It’s frustrating when people say something is easy, isn’t everything once we know how to do it? Until then, it’s as you say – painful and time-consuming! I’m happy to answer any questions if you get stuck.

      Guide Two is coming out shortly. The next one includes the Classic Editor Block. Thank you so much for your comments Rosaliene, I appreciate them. 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

    1. Were you thinking of giving it up? If I remember correctly from Derrick’s blog you were intending to stick with the Classic Editor?

      Tomorrow I’ll publish Part Two, this one features a few Pros and Cons and includes using the old previous Classic Editor which is now a Block.
      Thank you so much for commenting GP.

      Liked by 2 people

      Reply

      1. I am basically computer illiterate. I’ve done my blog for over 7 years and have put up with WP’s “progress” changes and glitches during that time, but yes, you understood me correctly, I am thinking of ending my blog early over this.

        Liked by 1 person

      2. Oh, no! Don’t do that. As my dad used to say ‘Don’t let the buggers win!
        and I promise you that it’s not as bad as it looks. I am more than happy to be your go to person instead of WordPress. I’m on Derrick’s UK time zone so you might have to wait a few hours for replies.

        Liked by 1 person

  16. Pingback: Getting to grips with block editor – The life of B

  17. Becky pointed me in your direction so I can have a look at your guide. As an ex IT teacher/trainer/software engineer I am aghast at the new editor. So many blocks that are unnecessary to the hobbyist blogger. Maybe WP want us all to be business clients and pay for business sites where a lot of the gizmos might be useful. Just a thought. MY first thought was oh, no, it’s like the “beep beep boop” scenario of a few years ago! Remember that? I see that in the block manager that we can select the blocks we might want to use so that could be helpful. I’ll stop now and read your guide before making any further comments.
    Jude xx

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    1. Hello Jude, lovely to meet you, and I see you also live in England.
      And – What a coincidence, I also managed and taught ICT!

      I agree with you about the blocks, most are unnecessary for most bloggers and very off-putting.

      I began our audio-visual guides a couple of days ago after my partner remarked that WordPress should make a podcast for the partially sighted. I felt visual guidance, as well as audio, would be more useful and I hoped that mine would be easier to follow than the fast-moving videos and long-winded guides that WordPress put out.

      Creating these has taken me back to when our school acquired its first learning platform, where getting the staff to come on board and understand how to get the most out of the platform was becoming hard work, so I began creating basic audio-visual guides to help them along until they found their sea legs!

      I will eventually replace the guides with the new ones.

      Thank you, Jude 🙂

      Liked by 2 people

      Reply

      1. Oh, goodness, yes! I put together all the ICT resources on the school Moodle site back in 2007-8 and found it very difficult to even get other teachers in the IT dept to use it as it was intended. I also taught other teachers in the use of the site; hopefully they are a lot better nowadays! Good luck with the guides – I have written many user guides in my time working in IT – they are constantly having to be updated as things alter!

        Liked by 2 people

      2. Ha ha… Oh, yes that sounds so familiar teachers do not like change!
        Looking back on the guides from just last week I can immediately see how they can be improved and that’s without any WordPress changes to the blocks!

        Liked by 1 person

    1. Margaret, Hello!
      I’m in the process of re-doing guides one and two and adding audio. Part three is a condensed version of parts one and two and includes audio. But I doubt you’ll need that. Thank you for your comment it’s appreciated.

      Liked by 1 person

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