WordPress

Gutenberg’s logic, escapes me.

~ Ron Walker ~ 21 Comments

How many of you are using the Gutenberg editor. I have been using it for a few months now. I have watched it with fascination. While it goes through iterations of changes, like food through a goose. Like many, I feel it was rushed out as the new editor, sometimes even unusable for some projects. It has matured more, but there are things that still leave me scratching my head. The mobile app for it was not even ready for prime time, when they released the editor to the masses.

How many of you are using it? Are you having trouble with figuring out how to do something? I have had a few things crop up

How to add a graphic to your post, and wrap the text around it, is not intuitive for new users.
Also, for some odd reason, and I admit I don’t know how long it has been changed, but to schedule a post for publishing later, has changed from a simple task, to one that makes no sense at all.
Before, you had a blue “edit” link next to the schedule label, this let you set when you wanted to publish your post. Now that is gone, and the only option you see is “immediately”.

I’m sorry. If I want to publish something tomorrow, at a certain time, Immediately is not the option I would comfortably click on. What in heavens name, was wrong with leaving the edit link. But I guess they thought it was less cluttered, and we could read their minds.

So now, you click immediately, even though your not wanting to publish it at the moment, and it brings up a window to set the date and time in the future. Is that logical?

Maybe it’s just me. The new editor is getting better, but still a long way to go. Oh, and while we are here. Anyone know how to change one word, or selected words to a different color? All I get it to do, is change ALL the text in the block to the color.

Comments welcome.

“Like and Share” Buttons: I solved my problem.

~ Ron Walker ~ 7 Comments

First, let me say that I am self-hosted. I use Jetpack for additional options such as the like and share buttons. The problem I was having, was the like and sharing buttons were not showing on my first page, or any single type page. They were showing properly on every post. I tried everything I could think of, to solve why the share and like buttons were missing. I read dozens of Google search leads. Checked every setting I could find over and over again. Different themes, I even set up a fresh test site.

My solution

I assumed, and we all know what that action can do, that Jetpack overrode all settings of my WordPress installation and provided the like and share buttons. It turns out, that in the WordPress controls, under Settings, there are options that control the like and share buttons. Either I had changed them recently, or something else threw a monkey wrench in. Below you will see the options I chose. My problem was I found the top box ” Front Page, Archive Pages, and Search Results ” unchecked. Checking that box, set everything right with the world. I hope this helps someone else with the same problem.

Comments always welcome,

Change is a’ coming to WordPress.

~ Ron Walker ~ 16 Comments

If you haven’t heard, WordPress is getting a new editor called “Gutenberg”. It will be in the WordPress 5, whenever they roll it out.

Many of us dislike change. Especially when it’s not asked for, but thrust upon us without much input. Windows 10  was that way, and I fought it, and won. At least in my mind I won.

This change, while very different, is fresh, and needed. WordPress has had the same editor for ages. While I don’t need a full suite of fancy tools to make a post, I do hate when you try to do something nice, and you have to spend your time untangling the mess made by the current editor. Such as the “center” option wanting to center everything close to the area you’re working in, and you have to find out where it went wrong. Wrestling with photo plugins so you can do an album display.

I have tried the new Editor. I hate change, but I actually found myself liking this. It is almost as if you’re using a WYSIWYG web page editor. Drag and drop, one click options, photo gallery using just drag and drop. I’m sure many of us will dislike it, many will love it, either way it’s coming down the pipe.

Over the years, blogs have gone from our personal, interactive sharing sites, to commercialization, with huge splashy pictures that take up the entire monitor screen, greeting you. Business, and websites are shifting to Blogs, even forums. For good or bad, change is a’ coming. Only problem? No one seems to know when.

This is but one link, of many that you can check out for more information.
https://wordpress.org/gutenberg/

Comments welcome,

How hard can it be? It’s just a theme change (said no one ever).

~ Ron Walker ~ 35 Comments

I thought I would change up the appearance of my blog some. I had been using the same theme, since 2011. Components on it were not working as smoothly as they once had. The comment button, extended out side of the comment area as if it were trying to escape, I would tweak it, then it would break again on the next upgrade.

I literally spent hours looking and testing themes. Most had hideous super large pictures on the main page, or tons of the popular sliders. The blog was either too wide, or too narrow. Then most of the time, the text was hard to read due to poorly matched colors. Sadly most of them seemed to be for commercial interests. There were many for blogging, but none of them quite fit what I was looking for. My 2011 theme just seemed to have the right layout and handy items. After testing, and searching, I settled on a theme that sure looks a lot like the one I am replacing.

It was much too narrow, but a bit of adjustment in the css widened it to where I wanted it. I had to opt for a subscribe button in the bottom of the screen, instead of the original email subscribe section I had at the top. The search has ended finally, and the tweaking is pretty much done. This is  “Catch Box” a free theme I found in the theme gallery.

It was just so hard to find the right look for the comments, a comment link at the top and bottom of the post, and more control over text and color when and if wanted. I’m satisfied, and I hope I am with this theme for the next 6 years! Have any of you changed your theme? what items do you look for in one.

Now, if I can just find out why my dang notification icon no longer works, I’ll be happy, as a bug in a rug.

Comments welcome,