I once said that full-page patterns were the missing link for block theme development. Theme authors have been able to include such layouts since the patterns feature was rolled out in WordPress 5.5 last year. However, core WordPress has never Continue reading WordPress 6.0 Might Ship a Feature for Picking a Block Pattern on Page Creation
WordPress developer Phi Phan has been making small splashes lately, but in a sea of 1,000s of plugins, it is increasingly tough to make a wave. Over the weekend, he released the Block Enhancements plugin, the first pass on a Continue reading Phi Phan Launches Block Enhancements WordPress Plugin
WordPress 6.0 will attempt to tackle comments lists via the block system. It is an area that has fallen behind other features, which have received the bulk of the work in prior releases. Last week, JuanMa Garrido called for volunteers Continue reading New Comment-Related Blocks Arriving With WordPress 6.0
On its face, Grigora Blocks by Latracal Solutions seems almost pedestrian. It feels like a theme you would use as a starting point to build your own thing. It will not have enough personality for everyone to give it a Continue reading Grigora Blocks Has the Potential To Be a Solid Starter Theme
Over the past year, I have been on a mission. I have eagerly awaited each release of the Gutenberg plugin, followed tickets, and chimed in when I could. I have been holding out some sliver of hope for one feature Continue reading Featured Cover Blocks and the Future of Binding Data to Generic WordPress Blocks
A couple of weeks ago, Rich Tabor announced a GitHub repository that listed all of his block plugins. These were already publicly available. However, some had yet to land in the WordPress plugin directory. As a fan of his simple Continue reading Displaying Post Modified and Reading Times via WordPress Blocks
Anne McCarthy announced round #13 of the FSE Outreach Program on March 31. This call for testing focuses on creating an author template via the site editor. Several of the new features used during this round were only added in Continue reading FSE Outreach #13: Building an Author Template from the WordPress Site Editor
WebMan Design owner Oliver Juhas released the first version of the Abs – Additional block styles plugin on Monday. Unlike many block-related extensions, it does not offer any blocks of its own. Instead, it registers custom styles to enhance those Continue reading WebMan Design Launches Abs, Additional Styles for Native WordPress Blocks
Gutenberg 12.9 landed in the WordPress.org plugin directory today, and it is a beefy release, packed with a little something for everyone. Even after tinkering with new features over the last few days, I have yet to explore everything as Continue reading Gutenberg 12.9 Adds Block Locking UI, Automatic Pattern Registration, and Full Theme Exports
Yesterday, Ella van Durpe merged a long-awaited feature into the Gutenberg plugin that allows users to select and modify text across multiple Rich Text blocks. It should land in version 13.0 of the plugin and WordPress 6.0 in May. Users Continue reading Text Selection Across Multiple Blocks Is Coming to WordPress
The WordPress pattern directory finally opened its gates to the entire community today. Anyone with a WordPress.org account can log in, go to the pattern creator, and start designing. For some of us, this has felt like an unbearably long Continue reading The WordPress.org Pattern Creator Now Open to the Public
The day has finally arrived when a block theme does something interesting with the featured image on single post views. One of my biggest pet peeves is when themers simply dump it at the top of the content and call Continue reading The Archeo WordPress Theme Blends Mayan History With Magazine-Style Block Patterns
Over the weekend, web developer Marie Comet released the Lock Reusable Blocks plugin. Since then, she has published a couple of more updates that polish that initial release. The extension blocks users from directly editing reusable blocks from the post-editing Continue reading Block Accidental Edits of Shared Content With the Lock Reusable Blocks Plugin
Yesterday, DeoThemes’ latest block theme, Ona Creative, landed in the WordPress directory. It is the second child of Ona, a theme I initially showcased here on the Tavern in November 2021. When I first reviewed the Ona parent theme, WordPress Continue reading DeoThemes Launches Ona Creative, Another Well-Designed WordPress Block Theme
I have a new favorite WordPress development-related plugin: Theme YAML. Sascha Paukner released it a mere day ago, and it may find its place in many theme developers’ toolboxes before long. It allows themers to write theme JSON in YAML Continue reading New Plugin for Writing WordPress Theme JSON Files via YAML
Gutenberg 12.8 landed in the WordPress plugin directory earlier today. I have been tinkering with many of the features as they were committed over the last couple of weeks. There are some things that I am excited about. The Web Continue reading Gutenberg 12.8 Launches the Web Fonts API, Improves Group Nesting, and Adds Keyboard Shortcut for Links
I have said it before, but it bears repeating: the next generation of WordPress theme authors will design from the site editor. It seems that Gutenberg project contributors are making good on my promise. Earlier today, I exported a WordPress Continue reading The Dream of Exporting WordPress Block Themes from the Site Editor Is Close to Reality
Rob Howard rocked the boat last week in calling for the deprecation of WordPress multisite in the latest MasterWP newsletter. He argued that “the brave and noble add-on is no longer necessary or valuable to developers.” The responses via Twitter Continue reading WordPress Multisite Is Still a Valuable and Often Necessary Tool
On Wednesday, Anne McCarthy announced Round #12 of the FSE Outreach Program. As always, everyone is free to join by testing features and providing direct feedback on problem areas with the design tools in WordPress. Anyone interested should respond by Continue reading FSE Outreach Round #12: Building a Site Header With Blocks
Automattic’s Skatepark landed in the WordPress.org theme directory on Monday. It was designed for modern events and organizations, but it should work well for many sites with a small amount of customization. For those keeping count, it is number 52 Continue reading Skatepark Is a Bold and Vibrant Block Theme for Events and Organizations