WordPress 5 is here and it has the potential to radically change how websites are created. At Nicely Done Sites we know that change can be hard to accept and that now you are going to have to get used to lots of new stuff and learn new features. Unfortunately that is standard with any technological product and WordPress does need to do this to keep the product fresh and usable. If you haven’t updated yet you will need to do so yourself or Nicely Done Sites offers maintenance agreements that will let us handle updates like this for you.
Gutenberg
The feature generating the most buzz is the new Gutenberg Editor. It will change the way that people create content for their page completely. First, don’t panic, the old editor will still be available via the installation of a plugin (and will be supported until at least 2021). The new Gutenberg editor allows for new plugins to add all kinds of new features like content blocks, charts, Google Maps, pricing, testimonials, sharing icons, a click to Tweet option and much more. Development should be much easier and much more powerful.
With Gutenberg it will force many themes to become Gutenberg-friendly or risk extinction. New themes will be designed with Gutenberg in mind so it is quite possible that within a few years only themes that are compatible with it will be available. The same can be said for plugins as well. This could mean that you may need a new theme at some point down the line so just keep that in the back of your mind.
Other improvements and changes
WordPress has been working towards making a more intuitive web building experience and many of the other updates are designed to improve on that so that WordPress can continue to stand out. The WordPress API is being updated so that developing new apps and features will be easier.
Developing your own theme may also become easier, thanks to some of the new improvements used for Gutenberg. It could be possible that anyone, regardless of technical skills, can develop their own custom theme.
Some current plugins may begin to lose usefulness, particularly page builder plugins. While they will be superior to Gutenberg to start as Gutenberg improves these plugins will begin to fall by the wayside. Some of the more common ones that are used are Divi, Upfront, Elementor, Beaver and WP Bakery. This could require some changes down the line to your WordPress site so it is something to keep an eye on.
When should you update?
For anyone that updates their WordPress themselves you will determine when you update it. There had been a lot of negative press in the developer community regarding it so many people are certainly concerned. While WordPress 5 is advertised as being more stable there have been numerous bugs found by beta testing and many users feel that it was scheduled to be released too soon so it could coincide with the yearly WordCamp in Nashville, TN (taking place this weekend) rather then after working out the bugs.
The launch has been a long time coming with the original date being set over the summer in August and the next in November until finally being released on December 6. When you update though is your choice, but it will need to be done at some point. Or you could let Nicely Done Sites handle the updating through a Maintenance Agreement. Let us handle the updates and we’ll let you know when something changes and help you out with it.
You may have questions. Feel free to give us a call if you do. We may not have the answers just yet but we will try our best to get an answer. With any major update it can take time to work some of the problems out and the solutions may not be known just yet. With some of the features understanding how they work means using them and that takes time as well.