All new WordPress 5.0 was released on December 6, 2018. This was one of the biggest updates in that year. WordPress is an ever-growing community and from time to time it keeps introducing many amazing new features. And with this update a new editor Gutenberg has been introduced. This is why this update also has another name WordPress 5.0 Gutenberg. If you have been wondering what this update is all about then not anymore. Here we are going to discuss every important aspect of this update.
A Detailed Overview About WordPress 5.0 Gutenberg:
The most recent versions of WordPress before this one were WordPress 4.8 and 4.9. And WordPress 4.8 (Evans) came with several new widgets and a lot of enhancements. And many enhancements were focused on the betterment of working in the visual editor. WordPress 4.9 (Tipton) was one step ahead in its offerings. It provided a more user-centric way to customize and manage websites. There were many amazing improvements in the Customizer. Along with this, a lot of extra functionalities were given to the widgets. And most importantly, it provided a powerful text editor in which you can edit the code.
After these two, there were a few updates but they were relatively minor. This latest version of WordPress is entirely focused on the following two things:
- The all-new Gutenberg Editor
- Twenty Nineteen WordPress theme
This does not mean that this version includes only these two things. There are a few minor changes and bug fixes for sure. But at last, this version still revolves around the all-new Gutenberg editor.
At first, you might start thinking that even with this major update, nothing is really going to change but this is not the case. With WordPress 5.0, you will see this website builder in a completely new way. Now it has entered a much wider space of website building. With this recent update, the WordPress community is even planning to change the entire release cycle. They plan on releasing many minor updates, instead of releasing just a few major ones. It is also being said that they are planning to keep it in a way that a minor WordPress update is released twice a month.
What is Gutenberg?
Gutenberg initially started out as an alternative to the WordPress editor. It came with a completely new interface that you can use to add, edit and also manipulate the content on your website. With the help of this editor, you will be able to create attractive and flexible content layouts. It requires no extra effort as it has a block-based user interface. And this is also the reason why it called the block editor. All the different page components are in the form of modular blocks. You can access all of them from a unified block menu. And if you want you can pick a block and also drop it anywhere on the page. There is also an option to directly edit a block so that you can present it the way you want.
The Gutenberg Editor changes the entire experience of WordPress. With this, there are many new things and opportunities to experiment. This also introduced several new frameworks, interaction patterns, functionality, and user experiences for WordPress. In other words, this WordPress version will have an all-new block editor instead of the old classic WordPress editor or WordPress text editor. This is completely different from what you have been using for all these years. This block editor will make things like adding and editing the content easier than ever.
How to Start the update?
After knowing all these amazing things about WordPress 5.0, you must be feeling eager to check WordPress 5.0 and Gutenberg out. But while doing this you also have to make sure that all your existing plugins and themes are compatible with this update. If you have configured WordPress in a way that updates all the major releases automatically then you can rest assured. But if the case is different and you have no such configuration then you will have to perform the update manually. By default, WordPress does not perform automatic updates that are not of its own branch. For example, it will only auto-update from 4.9.7 to 4.9.8 not 4.9.8 to 5.0.
Auto-update of your WordPress version also depends on the web hosting service you are using for your website. By default, WordPress core does not do this. To install the update, the steps you have to take are very simple.
- The all-new WordPress 5.0 is available in your admin dashboard.
- Now click on Updates.
- After that, click on ‘Update Now’. button.
- Now your website is installing the update. And during this time your website will be put in maintenance mode.
- And it will get back to normal as soon as your updates are complete.
- After this, you will get a prompt to update your WordPress database.
- And if everything goes well with the update you will see the ‘What’s New’ screen.
You have upgraded to WordPress 5.0. It was this easy and simple!
Wrapping Up!
WordPress 5.0 and Gutenberg is a major update introduced by the WordPress community. It influences everybody, from how clients collaborate with the editor and then create content, to how designers code plugins and themes. The truth will surface eventually how effective the Gutenberg project is. Be that as it may, regardless, we recommend you to check out the all-new WordPress 5.0 only on a staging environment. And if everything goes well, you can install the update.
By now a lot of things became clear in your mind about this. But no matter what you might also have a few doubts flooding your mind. To get appropriate answers for all of your queries, you should definitely take some expert assistance. For your convenience, we have a large team of WordPress experts. They will be more than happy to help you with your queries. We are available on 1-866-332-O276. We work round the clock.
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