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gutenberg Article

April 2022 is already behind us. And when it rains... it pours. 
As bad news befalls the globe – from a persistent conflict in Ukraine to stumbling stock markets – CMS and DXP vendors continue to slug it out. How will tech fare in the coming months with the specter of recession on the horizon? Tough to say, but we'll be watching.  
By most measures, last month was relatively quiet. We saw announcements from <a href="https://www.cmscritic.com/hyland-releases-new-content-services-and-intelligent-automation-product-enhancements/">Hyland</a>, updates from <a href="https://www.cmscritic.com/sitecore-announces-updates-to-product-suite-enhances-composable-features-and-innovation-from-acquisitions/">Sitecore</a> around its composable features, and a new partnership between <a href="https://www.cmscritic.com/woocommerce-and-pinterest-announce-partnership-offer-new-integration-for-connecting-with-shoppers/">WooCommerce and Pinterest</a>. We followed a few additional stories in April and wrapped them up (as we always do). 
Enjoy the scoop. And you might want to keep an umbrella handy. You never know if the forecast might change. 
<h2>WordPress.com changes pricing and rattles users </h2>
Speaking of rain, WordPress.com has been gathering a few storm clouds by adding some significant <a href="https://wordpress.com/pricing/">price changes to its plans</a>. To add salt to the wound, the changes were apparently <a href="https://rootprivileges.net/2022/04/03/what-are-you-doing-wordpress-com/">unannounced,</a> and many people have been expressing their disappointment. The biggest sly: replacing all its paid options with a single Pro plan. The platform also slashed the storage on its free tier from 3GB to 500MB. Ouch.
Dave Martin, the CEO of WordPress.com, took to <a href="https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=30896807">Hacker News</a> to address the concerns. As he noted: "You're right to call us out. I did a poor job of sharing context around why we are making change, so I can see how they could come as a shock. I'm sorry! That's on me."
Martin went on to say that more changes were in the works and that this was the first of several phases. He also clarified that no legacy sites or blogs have been affected by these new price changes – so if your site is on an older plan, there should have been no changes to your billing. He mentioned that many of the existing plans were haphazardly added to WordPress.com with no real strategy, making it hard for customers to see at-a-glance why they should choose one plan over another.
That said, it's a classic lesson in the need for transparency. 
<h2>WordPress releases version 6.0, Gutenberg 13.0</h2>
When <a href="https://www.cmscritic.com/updates-on-wordcamp-2021-wordpress-5-8-beta-details-and-gutenberg-enhancements/" target="_blank">WordPress 5.8</a> was released in July 2021, it introduced some major features that would pave the way to <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/design/handbook/focuses/full-site-editing/" target="_blank">Full Site Editing (FSE)</a>. <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/5-9/" target="_blank">WordPress 5.9 Josephine</a> took that to the next level, putting users in control of the whole experience of the FSE’s visual editing capabilities. 
Now, WordPress 6.0 is almost here, making it the second<a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/handbook/about/release-cycle/releasing-major-versions/" target="_blank"> major release</a> of 2022. While the 6.0 beta version arrived in mid-April, it is expected to be<a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/6-0/" target="_blank"> released on May 24, 2022</a>.
While we’re waiting for the release of WordPress 6.0, WordPress released another update to Gutenberg on April 14.
<img style="max-width:900px" src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2022/05/featured-image-in-cover.png" alt="Featured Image in Cover" />
The major updates include text selection across blocks, cover blocks with feature images, new responsive layouts for the Groups, Rows, and Stacks, and customizable borders to make your blocks stand out. 
There are also many other<a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2022/04/14/whats-new-in-gutenberg-13-0-14-april/" target="_blank"> notable improvements</a> that are worth checking out. 
<h2>WP Engine accelerates headless WordPress innovation with launch of new plans and Atlas Blueprints</h2>
<img style="max-width:900px" src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2022/05/wp-engine-atlas-blueprint.webp" alt="WP-Engine-Atlas-blueprint" />
WordPress has always been a traditional monolithic CMS. While it still maintains its crown as the most popular CMS in the world, it's been playing catch up in the move to headless.
But that's starting to change as <a href="https://wpengine.com/" target="_blank">WP Engine</a>, the world’s most trusted WordPress technology company, as they announced the launch of Atlas – its award-winning headless WordPress solution. It's now available to businesses of all sizes with four new headless WordPress plans, ranging from $49 to $499, allowing developers to learn, build and grow their sites on Atlas. 
WP Engine also announced the launch of Atlas Blueprints, which are free, professionally-designed templates allowing anyone to get started fast with headless WordPress. Developers can also try out Atlas by signing up for a free Atlas Sandbox account, which allows developers to learn more about developing with headless WordPress and create prototype projects.
<h2>Postman API platform surpasses 20 million users, driven by vision for API-First world</h2>
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2022/05/20-million-postman-users.jpg" alt="20-million-postman-users" />
<a href="https://www.postman.com/" target="_blank">Postman</a>, the world's leading API platform, <a href="https://blog.postman.com/celebrating-20-million-postman-users/">announced</a> that more than 20 million developers and builders have adopted its platform to build and use APIs, strengthening the company's reputation for simplifying the API lifecycle and streamlining collaboration. Postman's public API hub is the world's largest, with workspaces from Microsoft, Stripe, Meta, Notion, Intel, Oracle, and more.
In <a href="https://www.cmscritic.com/postman-releases-2021-state-of-the-api-report-shows-global-trend-towards-api-first-digital-era/">Postman's 2021 State of the API Report</a>, 67% of survey respondents ranked themselves a five or higher in terms of embracing an API-first philosophy – a five-point increase from 2020. Furthermore, the "API-first leaders" who ranked themselves highest produced APIs more quickly, deployed more frequently, had fewer failures, and recovered more swiftly when failures occurred.
<h2>Hyland expands infrastructure to deploy new OnBase and Brainware customers on AWS</h2>
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2021/09/e0030_thumb_big_media.png" alt="Hyland OnBase" />
<a href="https://www.cmscritic.com/hyland-releases-new-content-services-and-intelligent-automation-product-enhancements/">Hyland</a>, recognized as a leading content services provider with more than 1,700 cloud customers, has expanded its work with <a href="https://aws.amazon.com/">Amazon Web Services (AWS)</a> to support its customer base and their increased cloud deployment and migration needs. 
Working with AWS, Hyland will expand its <a href="https://www.hyland.com/en/innovation/hyland-cloud" target="_blank">Hyland Cloud</a> infrastructure to deploy new <a href="https://www.hyland.com/en/onbase" target="_blank">OnBase</a> and <a href="https://www.hyland.com/en/platform/product-suite/brainware" target="_blank">Brainware</a> cloud customers and cloud migration environments in North America on the appropriate AWS Region – fully supported and managed by Hyland's technical experts.
The strengthened relationship with AWS delivers an expansive infrastructure footprint for the Hyland Cloud, allowing Hyland to meet customer requirements with agility and scale while providing a more flexible architecture that supports customers' evolving information technology (IT) and business challenges. Backed by innovative technologies, security-driven policies, and dedicated support from knowledgeable technology experts, customers deploying Hyland's software-as-a-service (SaaS) and platform-as-a-service (PaaS) offerings on AWS benefit from its continued focus on cloud innovation and support for next-generation cloud solutions.
"Our work with AWS gives customers and prospects greater confidence and agility when deploying their cloud content services solutions, which are optimized for their unique needs and requirements," said Will Milewski, Senior Vice President, Cloud Infrastructure and Operations at Hyland. "With organizations continuing to evolve their business strategies to support remote work, cloud-based solutions are becoming the default and our relationship with AWS will ensure we're exceeding our customers' requirements from their content services platform."
Gartner has recognized Hyland as a content services industry leader for 12 consecutive years, and the winner of our own <a href="https://www.cmscritic.com/introducing-the-winners-of-the-2021-cms-critics-choice-awards/" target="_blank">Critic's Choice Awards</a> for ECM in 2021. 
<h2>Concrete CMS 9.1.0RC1 is now available</h2>
Solid as a rock.
That was the news from the <a href="https://www.concretecms.com/" target="_blank">Concrete CMS</a> team as the company announced the availability of its first release candidate for Concrete CMS 9.1.0 – featuring a multitude of improvements, new features, and bug fixes, including:
<ul>
<li>Enhanced compatibility with PHP 8 and PHP 8.1.</li>
<li>Improved appearance and functionality when editing block, area, layout, and container styles inline in the page.</li>
<li>Express improvements like the ability to mark attributes as unique, handle re-use across objects, and much more.</li>
<li>Much improved version comparison features that can compare the HTML of two-page versions and highlight the differences.</li>
<li>Improvements to Dashboard listing screens and the file details screen.</li>
</ul>
Additionally, there are many behavioral and performance improvements included. The boulder-sized list is far too large for this blog post. <a href="https://documentation.concretecms.org/developers/introduction/version-history/910-release-notes" target="_blank">Click here</a> to read more of the details.
Concrete CMS was also recognized as a 2022 Leader in Content Management Systems by <a href="https://sourceforge.net/">SourceForge</a>.

CMS Monthly Recap: WP Engine Launches Headless Plans, Postman API Platform Surpasses 20 Million Users, and More

paris-tuzun

Featured image of April monthly recap of an umbrella with raindrops

While some of us are shoveling content across digital channels, others are digging out from record snowfall. 
It's fair to say that "Old Man Winter" has finally arrived, and he's brought a distinct chill to more than the weather. The Nasdaq Composite just <a href="https://variety.com/2022/biz/news/nasdaq-january-drop-covid19-pandemic-1235167945/" target="_blank">experienced its worst start</a> to a January since 2008, with the deepest correction felt across the technology sector. It's hard to know if this is a momentary blip or a trend, but the recent volatility is making things a little less predictable. 
Since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic, tech companies have realized unprecedented growth. If you're not familiar with the <a href="https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/strategy-and-corporate-finance/our-insights/five-fifty-the-quickening" target="_blank">McKinsey study</a> called "The Quickening," it's a stunning piece that codifies the rapid acceleration of e-Commerce from late 2019 into 2020 – when the world experienced 10 years of digital transformation in just 90 days. In the report, they refer to the effect as feeling like "whiplash," and that sounds right. But is the whipping and lashing over?
Despite a light dusting of news, 2022 is already shaping up to be "The Year of the MACH," as evidenced by the continued growth in this burgeoning quadrant of the digital ecosystem. While much of the noise is being amplified by the <a href="https://machalliance.org/" target="_blank">MACH Alliance</a>, there's no question that many organizations are expanding their investment in composable and modular solutions – and looking to power their content strategies with headless CMS and commerce platforms. 
Last month, we covered news from the MACH Alliance as they <a href="https://www.cmscritic.com/aws-joins-mach-alliance-as-enabler-member-reflects-growth-of-cloud-native-solutions/">welcomed AWS</a> as an "Enabler Member" in the ecosystem, reflecting the growth of Cloud-native solutions (hint: we have more MACH to cover in today's recap). We also covered news from Optimizely, as they <a href="https://www.cmscritic.com/optimizely-integrates-b2b-commerce-cloud-and-content-cloud-combines-headless-commerce-with-cms/">announced</a> an integrated version of its B2B Commerce Cloud and Content Cloud products – as well as a recent <a href="https://www.cmscritic.com/new-forrester-tei-study-siteimprove-enterprise-platform-delivers-275-roi/">Forrester TEI study</a> showing some astounding ROI performance from <a href="https://www.cmscritic.com/siteimprove-seo-provides-all-in-one-capabilities-for-enhancing-search-performance/">Siteimprove</a>.
VOTING IS OPEN! Cast your ballot for the 2021 CMS Critic People's Choice Awards, which are open through February 20th! We received a ton of nominations across all our categories, and we're thrilled to share the top three for your consideration. Go on... tell us which platforms deserve the crown! <a href="https://www.cmscritic.com/vote-for-the-cms-critic-2021-peoples-choice-awards/">Click here to vote now.</a>
Ready to hit the slopes for some news? Grab your skis and keep scrolling downhill...
 
<h2>MACH Alliance announces MongoDB and Netlify as first members of new "Enabler" category</h2>
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2022/02/image-6-e1643908103417.png" />
Before the well-hyped news about AWS joining the <a href="http://www.machalliance.org/" target="_blank">MACH Alliance</a> – the group of independent tech companies dedicated to advocating for open, best-of-breed technology ecosystems – the organization <a href="https://machalliance.org/newsroom/mach-alliance-announces-mongodb-and-netlify-as-first-members-of-new-enabler-category" target="_blank">announced</a> its new "Enabler" membership category, along with its inaugural members: MongoDB and Netlify. The news was released just as the MACH Alliance's global <a href="https://machalliance.org/members" target="_blank">membership reached almost 50</a>.
The MACH Alliance's Enabler category is reserved for organizations that MACH platforms utilize to deliver their service or technology. Because they "enable" a MACH provider instead of offering a direct MACH solution, they aren't suited for an Alliance membership in the Vendor or System Integrator categories – but can often be key components in how a solution is delivered. 
A bit more about these two Enabler members:
<a href="http://mongodb.com/" target="_blank">MongoDB</a> is a leading database platform designed to unleash the power of software and data for developers and the applications they build. The MongoDB database platform has been downloaded over 210 million times and is running in systems around the globe. 
MongoDB shares a common belief with the MACH Alliance: that modern software's interoperability and open architecture will propel current and future digital experiences – the kind that requires unprecedented personalized capabilities that are delivered at scale and weave a mesh of complementary microservices drawing data from multiple sources. All of this requires a level of flexibility that both MongoDB and the MACH Alliance share. 
<a href="https://www.netlify.com/" target="_blank">Netlify</a> is a web development platform that was an early advocate of separating frontend design from backend business processes. By unifying the elements of the modern decoupled web, Netlify enables a 10-time faster path to more secure and scalable websites and apps. The company announced in November a $105 million Series D to accelerate the growth of its developer platform and <a href="https://www.cmscritic.com/top-jamstack-static-site-generators-for-2021/">Jamstack</a> ecosystem. 
Originally started by Netlify, the Jamstack "movement" has changed the trajectory of the web. Jamstack technologies provide nearly limitless choices to developers for designing rich customer experiences in web applications. Netlify unites different services to deliver MACH solutions, making it an ideal fit as an Enabler – delivering the workflow, expertise, and choice of tools for building solutions that reflect the MACH principles. 
"Our first two Enabler members are of the highest magnitude," said Sonja Keerl, president of the MACH Alliance. "The ecosystem of the MACH category and the industry direction that it represents is much bigger and wider than just the current 50 certified members. By having Enablers represented within the Alliance ecosystem, we now better cover the spectrum of businesses that fit within our membership guidelines and play a critical part in bringing MACH architecture to life. We're incredibly pleased to have MongoDB and Netlify on board as the first of many Enabler members."
The MACH Alliance has also <a href="https://machalliance.org/newsroom/mach-alliance-announces-eight-newly-certified-companies-as-global-membership-nears-50" target="_blank">announced</a> eight newly certified members in November. 
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<h2>Solodev launches new platform for building NFT Marketplaces to mint and sell digital assets in the metaverse</h2>
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2022/01/solodev-nft-marketplace-featured-image.jpg" />
<a href="https://www.solodev.com/" target="_blank">Solodev</a> – now repositioning itself as Solodev Cloud Services – <a href="https://www.solodev.com/news/solodev-launches-new-platform-for-building-nft-marketplaces-to-mint-and-sell-digital-assets-in-the-metaverse.stml" target="_blank">announced the launch of Solodev NFT Marketplace</a>, a platform that allows developers and organizations to build custom ecosystems for minting and selling NFTs on a fast, secure, and highly scalable infrastructure powered by AWS. 
With Solodev's new solution, users can choose to deploy a custom NFT marketplace on the blockchain of their choice, including <a href="https://www.solodev.com/marketplace/ethereum" target="_blank">Ethereum</a> and <a href="https://www.solodev.com/marketplace/cardano" target="_blank">Cardano</a>, with additional options coming soon. Solodev's advanced marketplace as a Service (MaaS) capabilities will enable organizations to stand up their NFT exchange with greater speed and ease, accelerating their journey to the metaverse. 
"At Solodev, we've always been focused on supporting the builders – and NFT marketplaces are what builders want to build," said Shawn Moore, Chief Technology Officer at Solodev Cloud Services. "There's no doubt that Meta, Amazon, Gamestop, and Walmart are leading the way to the metaverse. Now, with our cloud and blockchain services, anyone can launch an NFT marketplace at scale to reach the metaverse faster and compete."
According to their press release, Solodev Cloud Services is currently developing a high-end NFT gallery in partnership with several organizations, focusing on studio and digital art. The new exchange will be built on Cardano with plans to go live in the coming months, with support for several new blockchains coming soon. In addition, Solodev is also launching a crypto incubator that will leverage smart contracts to govern the creation of high-tech startups.
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<h2>Glassbox and Optimizely partner to accelerate digital transformation for businesses</h2>
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2022/01/press-release-blog-featured-images-16.png" />
<a href="https://www.glassbox.com/" target="_blank">Glassbox</a>, a software as a service (SaaS) company that provides digital experience analytics for web and mobile applications, announced a strategic partnership with <a href="https://www.optimizely.com/" target="_blank">Optimizely</a> – a leading digital experience platform (DXP). The two companies plan to strengthen their joint go-to-market offerings to give customers an unparalleled advantage for transforming the digital customer experience. 
The Glassbox analytics platform provides a single source of truth that captures, visualizes, and analyzes digital journeys. It empowers enterprise organizations to manage and optimize the entire digital lifecycle of their web and mobile customers. Through the Glassbox and Optimizely partnership, the companies will enable customers to unlock their digital potential and drive new levels of insights and innovation. 
"Customer expectations for a seamless digital experience are at an all-time high, so this collaboration will be an ideal fit for all those organizations looking to fulfill this objective more effectively thanks to Optimizely's best-in-class digital experience technology and Glassbox's superior digital experience analytics," said Dror Friedman, VP Channel &amp; Alliances, Glassbox.
One thing Optimizely consistently does well is listen to customers. The company also acquired a number of strategic technologies to help address customer needs in a single platform. This includes <a href="https://www.cmscritic.com/optimizely-acquires-customer-data-platform-zaius/" target="_blank">Zaius</a>, a customer data platform, and <a href="https://www.cmscritic.com/optimizelys-acquisition-of-welcome-signals-expanded-focus-on-marketers/" target="_blank">Welcome</a> – a content marketing (CMP), marketing resource management (MRM), and digital asset management (DAM) platform. 
Optimizely has been challenging the crop of leading enterprise DXPs featured on <a href="https://www.cmscritic.com/key-takeaways-from-gartners-2021-magic-quadrant-for-digital-experience-platforms/" target="_blank">Gartner's 2021 Magic Quadrant for DXPs</a>, as well as the <a href="https://www.optimizely.com/company/press/optimizely-named-a-leader-in-agile-content-management-systems/" target="_blank">Forrester Wave for Agile Content Management Systems</a>. 
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<h2>WordPress releases Gutenberg 12.4 with accessibility improvements, categories reminder, and and A-List of shortcuts</h2>
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2022/01/gb-post-publish-cat-check-2048x1151-1-e1643671781296.jpg" />
If you haven't heard, there's some new stuff on the WordPress block: Gutenberg 12.4 was released right before the long-awaited <a href="https://wordpress.org/support/wordpress-version/version-5-9/" target="_blank">WordPress 5.9</a>, which includes the Full Site Editing (FSE) feature - an upgrade that's been creating quite a bit of <a href="https://toolset.com/2021/08/full-site-editing-future-of-wordpress-and-what-it-means-for-you/" target="_blank">discussion and debate</a> across the WordPress community. 
These new capabilities help reduce the complexities of building websites using dynamic themes and structured components, all with seamless editing. But for developers creating bespoke designs, Gutenberg and FSE are presenting some obstacles.
There are a few other enhancements worth noting:
</div>
<div>
Accessibility improvements
The focus feature now correctly returns to the list view button after closing out of <a href="https://github.com/WordPress/gutenberg/pull/37798" target="_blank">list view</a> – saving a lot of trouble to get back to where you were before opening it. There are also more improvements to the block inserter sidebar, ant the search input now receives focus when it's opened.
Post publish panel categories reminder
Tags and categories make it easier for people to navigate your website, but it can be easy to forget to add them when publishing a post. To solve that problem, the <a href="https://github.com/WordPress/gutenberg/pull/37703" target="_blank">suggestion for assigning a category</a> to the post is added, and it will show up if a category is not already assigned.
There are a few more minor improvements, and you peruse the full list of updates on the <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2022/01/19/whats-new-in-gutenberg-12-4-19-january/" target="_blank">WordPress press release page</a>.
</div>

CMS Monthly Recap: MACH Alliance Announces New Enabler Category, Glassbox and Optimizely Partner, Gutenberg Updates and More

cms-critic-staff

Image of CMS Critic Monthly Recap logo against a photo of a man shoveling snow

Rarely does a week go by without a noteworthy update from WordPress, the heavyweight champion of CMS platforms.Much of the recent focus has been on enhancing the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.cmscritic.com/gutenberg-2-years-later-is-wordpress-better-off/">Gutenberg</a> framework and providing users of the open source platform – which powers roughly 64 million websites – with a stable and rewarding experience. Gutenberg, known in some circles as the “WordPress block editor,” was introduced in WordPress 5.0 in late 2018. It was the platform's answer to the next wave of low-code site builders like <a target="_blank" href="https://www.cmscritic.com/wix-announces-wixstores-wixjet/">Wix</a> and <a target="_blank" href="https://www.cmscritic.com/squarespace-a-diy-website-builder-1/">Sqaurespace</a>, as well as WordPress community apps like <a target="_blank" href="https://www.cmscritic.com/elementor-hits-3-million-sites/">Elementor</a> and <a target="_blank" href="https://www.elegantthemes.com/gallery/divi/">Divi</a>.While Gutenberg struggled to find terra firma in its early days (everyone hates change), it found more adoption as developers tapped its ability to create custom blocks and minimize shortcodes.In the latest update, WordPress Gutenberg 11.7, users will see some really nice enhancements and, as usual, a collective of bug fixes. Global styles and full site editing have been improved, the navigation editor experience has been made more intuitive, and you now have more control to adjust the spacing between columns.<h2>A more intuitive and lighter navigation experience</h2>The navigation block underwent a series of changes intended to provide a more intuitive navigation management experience. <img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2021/10/design.png" alt="plus icon to add link" />Now, you can add links simply by <a target="_blank" href="https://github.com/WordPress/gutenberg/pull/34899">clicking on the “+” icon</a> without an additional block selection step. Additionally, you can use a <a target="_blank" href="https://github.com/WordPress/gutenberg/pull/35196">slash inserter</a> to add a link. This is all part of the <a target="_blank" href="https://github.com/WordPress/gutenberg/issues/34041">lighter navigation block experience</a> efforts.Navigation links can <a target="_blank" href="https://github.com/WordPress/gutenberg/pull/34978">now be transformed</a> into other block types such as site logo, home link, or social icons. <img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2021/10/navigation-links.png" alt="navigation links" />The navigation link now <a target="_blank" href="https://github.com/WordPress/gutenberg/pull/35324">supports custom font size and line height</a>. Link labels, such as “previous post,” may now be a <a target="_blank" href="https://github.com/WordPress/gutenberg/pull/34952">part of the link to the post itself</a>. Mobile menus also <a target="_blank" href="https://github.com/WordPress/gutenberg/pull/35077">reflect the justification settings</a> of the desktop menus. <h2>Global styles and full site editing</h2>Global styles extend the capabilities of full site editing by bringing a higher level of customization to Gutenberg and WordPress. Together, these features enable users to have improved control over layouts and aesthetics beyond the context of single pages and posts. Global Styles also provide consistency across a website without having to edit individual blocks or pages.The site editor experience gets a full "spit and polish" in this new release. For example, the template editor now features a <a target="_blank" href="https://github.com/WordPress/gutenberg/pull/34732">convenient back button</a> to ease returning to the site editor. <img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2021/10/back-button-e1634763932360.png" alt="back button" />Switching between editing different template parts was made more accessible by listing the available areas in the <a target="_blank" href="https://github.com/WordPress/gutenberg/pull/35202">template details</a>.<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2021/10/template-switching.png" alt="template switching" />The site editor was also equipped with <a target="_blank" href="https://github.com/WordPress/gutenberg/pull/35241">padding settings for specific template parts</a>. Color palette settings are also available in a <a target="_blank" href="https://github.com/WordPress/gutenberg/pull/35109">separate panel in the global styles sidebar</a>. Another cool feature: duotone support was extended to the <a target="_blank" href="https://github.com/WordPress/gutenberg/pull/35344">site logo block</a> for rendering logo elements in a duochromatic fashion.<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2021/10/global-styles.png" alt="color palettes" /><h2>Columns block support for tweaking the gaps and margins</h2>Personally, we think this is the most exciting feature that Gutenberg 11.7 brings. The columns block now <a target="_blank" href="https://github.com/WordPress/gutenberg/pull/34630">allows you to adjust the space between the columns</a> and the margins surrounding the block. Combined with <a target="_blank" href="https://github.com/WordPress/gutenberg/pull/35241">customizable template part padding</a>, it is the most flexible layout-building experience Gutenberg has ever had. <img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2021/10/column-spacing.gif" alt="column spacing" /><h2>Other notable highlights</h2>11.7 adds the <a target="_blank" href="https://github.com/WordPress/gutenberg/pull/35083">ability to create pages</a> directly from the link popup. Up to this point, it was only possible via the Navigation block – but now this feature is exposed on every link.The popup also <a target="_blank" href="https://github.com/WordPress/gutenberg/issues/35143">underwent subtle visual adjustments</a>. In addition, <a target="_blank" href="https://github.com/WordPress/gutenberg/pull/35060">empty links can no longer be added</a>, making adding one by mistake even harder. <img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2021/10/empty-link.png" alt="empty link checker" />You can see the complete list of new Gutenberg 11.7 features and bug fixes <a target="_blank" href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2021/10/14/whats-new-in-gutenberg-11-7-october-13th/">here</a>.

WordPress Gutenberg 11.7 Enhances Site Editing, Navigation Blocks, Column Spacing and More

Ah, the bliss of early autumn. Can you feel it in the air?
As September ends and nature's majestic foliage blooms across the Northern hemisphere, our editorial staff is catching its collective breath. It's been a summer like no other, with a pandemic still stoking uncertainty in most parts of the world. But one thing is still certain: digital transformation is exploding – and shows no signs of slowing down. 
In the CMS and DXP territories, we've been following the continuous saga of consolidation and the rabid race to expand features. This month alone, we saw <a href="https://www.cmscritic.com/adobe-acquires-video-collaboration-platform-frame-io/" target="_blank">Adobe acquire Frame.io</a>, <a href="https://www.cmscritic.com/sitecore-acquires-ai-powered-search-platform-reflektion/" target="_blank">Sitecore purchase Reflektion</a>, <a href="https://www.cmscritic.com/duda-snaps-up-snipcart-to-boost-e-commerce-capabilities-qa-with-ceo-itai-sadan/" target="_blank">Duda snap up Snipcart</a>, and <a href="https://www.cmscritic.com/acquia-widens-its-dxp-stack-with-widen-acquires-dam-and-pim-capabilities/" target="_blank">Acquia buy Widen</a>. The game is getting tight at the enterprise level, and we'll be monitoring activity across our sector as we approach the end of the year. 
In the meantime, here are some other snippets we've been following in September. 
 
<h2>Cloudways releases Top 9 WordPress page builders based on performance</h2>
<img style="max-width:750px" src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2021/09/best-wordpress-page-builders-banner.jpg" alt="Best WordPress Page Builders Banner" />
<a href="https://www.cloudways.com/en/" target="_blank">Cloudways</a>, the managed cloud hosting platform, has selected the top 9 WordPress page builders based on active installations and positive user reviews. The company vetted each entry through a rigorous testing and review process, giving us their top choices based on a variety of criteria. 
So what is a WordPress page builder, anyway? Quite simply, it's a plugin that replaces the classic WordPress editor with a third-party UI. In most cases, this interface lets you drag and drop elements like buttons, social icons, galleries, and images onto a template. There's no code or complexity involved, and almost any user can be successful without a steep learning curve. 
That said, most drag-and-drop builders do bring a modicum of frustration and compromises to the experience (translation: you don't always get exactly what you want). There's often more complexity than you bargain for, and page builders do lock users into their own unique, non-standardized code - so you're stuck with it. They also have a tendency to <a href="https://pagely.com/blog/wordpress-page-builders/" target="_blank">slow down a website</a> with added bloat.
Then why use page builders? Well, in the early days of the web, deep development expertise was needed to build almost any kind of website. Although WordPress was initially designed to give people the ability to publish websites without creating and coding from scratch, the leading open source content management system has become more and more complex over the years – evolving into a platform that is vastly different from its origins. 
Today, it's getting easier to design and develop websites thanks to the evolution of more reliable website builders, and that's why Cloudways has invested in their assessment. And without further ado, here are their top 9 picks:
<ol>
<li><a href="https://www.brizy.io/" target="_blank">Brizy</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.wpbeaverbuilder.com/" target="_blank">Beaver Builder</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.cmscritic.com/10-best-plugins-for-elementor-page-builder/" target="_blank">Elementor</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.seedprod.com/" target="_blank">SeedProd</a></li>
<li><a href="https://wordpress.org/plugins/wp-pagebuilder/" target="_blank">WP Page Builder</a></li>
<li><a href="https://siteorigin.com/" target="_blank">SiteOrigin</a></li>
<li><a href="https://oxygenbuilder.com/" target="_blank">Oxygen</a></li>
<li><a href="https://zionbuilder.io/" target="_blank">Zion</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.boldgrid.com/" target="_blank">BoldGrid</a></li>
</ol>
The Cloudways page builder review is jampacked with information, including which speed testing tools they used, the number of active installations and star ratings of each page builder, and their performance analysis results according to GTmetrix, PageSpeed Insight Performance Analysis, Pingdom Performance Analysis, and K6.io Performance Analysis. Click here to <a href="https://www.cloudways.com/blog/wordpress-page-builders" target="_blank">read the review</a> and dig into the details. 
<h2>UserWay and Duda partner to make professional websites more accessible</h2>
<img style="max-width:800px" src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2021/09/usw_duda-60460a9263e4c180db740dd2b08cfba0.jpg" alt="UserWay and Duda logos" />
<a href="https://www.cmscritic.com/duda-snaps-up-snipcart-to-boost-e-commerce-capabilities-qa-with-ceo-itai-sadan/" target="_blank">Duda</a>, the professional website builder, announced the addition of <a href="https://userway.org/" target="_blank">UserWay's</a> AI-powered accessibility widget to their Duda App Store. 
A nearly ubiquitous fixture on websites, Userway's cloud-based widget provides accessibility solutions without refactoring your website's existing code – helping to ensure a comprehensive legal and regulatory compliance framework covering ADA, Section 508, WCAG 2.1 AA, and much more.
There are currently <a href="https://www.who.int/en/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/disability-and-health" target="_blank">one billion people</a> living with disabilities worldwide, and over the last decade, digital accessibility has become one of <a href="https://www.cmscritic.com/why-your-website-has-to-be-just-as-ada-compliant-as-your-office-building/" target="_blank">the most important and talked-about issues</a> in the web and digital industries. UserWay is helping to address that with a simple, elegant solution that makes accessibility more attainable. For Duda, adding the UserWay feature helps provide their customers with more assurance that their digital experiences are more accessible. 
"We are constantly looking for ways to better serve our customers," said Itai Sadan, Duda's founder and CEO. "Adding UserWay's accessibility technology to our platform allows web professionals the freedom to design their websites without having to worry about the effects their choices have on accessibility. Some web professionals fear that being accessible will be limiting, but UserWay's solutions change that. We're proud that sites created on our platform will now be more accessible for those with disabilities."
Duda customers will be able to quickly strengthen the accessibility of their websites by quickly and easily installing UserWay's Accessibility Widget – which works perfectly out-of-the-box on any website built with Duda. This includes both purchased and premade templates as well as hand-crafted templates and designs.
You can learn more about it on Duda's website at <a href="https://www.duda.co/signup" target="_blank">https://www.duda.co</a>
<h2>Hyland launches OnBase in AWS Marketplace</h2>
<img style="max-width:720px" src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2021/09/e0030_thumb_big_media.png" alt="Hyland OnBase" />
<a href="http://www.hyland.com/" target="_blank">Hyland</a>, a leading enterprise content management (ECM) and process management provider, is now offering their <a href="https://aws.amazon.com/marketplace/pp/prodview-pt2svfcpfgiga?sr=0-1&amp;ref_=beagle&amp;applicationId=AWSMPContessa" target="_blank">OnBase platform in the AWS Marketplace</a>, supporting the evolving needs of organizations to better manage digital information from anywhere and support their shifting work environments.
Hyland is best known for its <a href="https://www.onbase.com/en" target="_blank">Onbase</a> and <a href="https://www.hyland.com/en/perceptive" target="_blank">Perceptive</a> content management products, which securely centralize enterprise content and deliver relevant information to users across a wide variety of industries – including healthcare, finance, insurance, higher education, and manufacturing. Hyland commands the second-place position in the Leader Quadrant of <a href="https://www.hyland.com/en/explore/gartner-magic-quadrant-for-content-services-platforms" target="_blank">Gartner's 2020 Magic Quadrant for Content Services Platforms</a> and has been <a href="https://www.hyland.com/en/learn/it-programs/forrester-wave-content-services-Q2-2021" target="_blank">named a content platform leader</a> in the Forrester Wave Report for Content Platforms, Q2 2021.
Designed to efficiently manage content, processes, and cases, OnBase connects and centralizes business-critical content in one secure location. As more organizations choose cloud technology to run their operations, Hyland's cloud-first vision and development methodology set the foundation to support evolving business practices – delivering relevant information when and where users need it to increase productivity, improve customer experience, and reduce risk across the enterprise. 
The addition of OnBase in AWS Marketplace with further Hyland's cloud-first vision – providing organizations across the globe with the business dexterity they need, leveraging content management, business process management, and intelligent automation solutions with the scalability, reliability, and security of Amazon Web Services (AWS).
"Our <a href="https://www.hyland.com/en/company/partner-program/strategic-alliance-partners/aws" target="_blank">work with AWS</a> has never been stronger, and we're proud to leverage its infrastructure to power OnBase in the Hyland Cloud," said Ed McQuiston, EVP and Chief Commercial Officer at Hyland. "With joint customer success stories spanning the healthcare, government, insurance, and financial services industries, Hyland and AWS are better together, providing leading cloud-based content services solutions to help organizations thrive in the next normal."
Hyland had been on a buying spree in the past few years, acquiring both <a href="https://www.cmscritic.com/hyland-acquires-alfresco-focuses-on-cloud-and-global-expansion-of-enterprise-cms/" target="_blank">Alfresco</a>, an open-source content services platform, and <a href="https://www.cmscritic.com/hyland-enters-agreement-to-acquire-nuxeo/" target="_blank">Nuxeo</a>, a content services and digital asset management (DAM) platform.
<h2>WordPress Gutenberg 11.5 achieves a full site editing milestone</h2>
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2021/09/headings-framecap-2048x1152-1.jpg" alt="WordPress Headings framecap" />
Did Gutenberg ever take a break from his printing press? Not likely. Once books could be printed at scale, the demand was never-ending. 
 The same holds true for the folks at WordPress – who seem to never pause on their updates and improvements the <a href="https://www.cmscritic.com/gutenberg-2-years-later-is-wordpress-better-off/" target="_blank">Gutenberg editor</a>. Just two weeks after releasing 11.4, <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2021/09/17/whats-new-in-gutenberg-11-5-16-september/" target="_blank">11.5</a> hit the streets with a host of new features. Busy bees to be sure.
Here are a few noteworthy additions:
<ul>
<li><a href="https://github.com/WordPress/gutenberg/pull/33991" target="_blank">Block Gap support</a> now provides opt-in to control for users to choose the distance between items within a block. This feature has also been added to the <a href="https://github.com/WordPress/gutenberg/pull/34456" target="_blank">Columns</a>, <a href="https://github.com/WordPress/gutenberg/pull/34570" target="_blank">Title</a>, and <a href="https://github.com/WordPress/gutenberg/pull/32367" target="_blank">Navigation</a> blocks.</li>
<li>Following the <a href="https://github.com/WordPress/gutenberg/pull/33359" target="_blank">introduction of Flex Layout</a> in <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2021/08/05/whats-new-in-gutenberg-11-2-0-4-august/" target="_blank">11.2.0</a>, now Flex Layouts are supported within the <a href="https://github.com/WordPress/gutenberg/pull/34493" target="_blank">Social Links</a> and <a href="https://github.com/WordPress/gutenberg/pull/34535" target="_blank">Group</a> blocks. </li>
<li>The Social Links block now has a "Flex" justification option for automatic best-fit. </li>
<li>There's a <a href="https://github.com/WordPress/gutenberg/pull/34535" target="_blank">new variation of the Group block</a> that allows for Flex Layout. You can try it by choosing "Row" from the block inserter.</li>
<li>The Heading Levels menu has been redesigned to a vertical orientation, making it easier to visualize the hierarchy.</li>
<li>There's also a new setting to <a href="https://github.com/WordPress/gutenberg/pull/33656" target="_blank">customize the Next and Previous Page indicators</a> in the Query Pagination block, allowing the addition of an arrow or a chevron to your designs.</li>
</ul>
To see the full list of updates and fixes, check out the <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2021/09/17/whats-new-in-gutenberg-11-5-16-september/" target="_blank">WordPress 11.5 release notes</a>.
<h2>Canva Raises $200 million at $40 Billion valuation, fueled by the global demand for visual communication</h2>
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2021/09/canva_cofounders_ltr_cliff_obrecht_melanie_perkins_cameron_adams-scaled.jpg" alt="Canva cofounders" />
<a href="https://www.cmscritic.com/canva-button-gives-cms-users-integrated-graphic-design-tools-for-visual-content/" target="_blank">Canva</a>, the graphic design and collaboration platform, is now officially a "unicorn" valued at $40 billion. This comes after the company raised another $200 million in funding led by the investment management firm <a href="https://www.axios.com/canva-200-million-billion-valuation-t-rowe-price-8ace330a-2b17-403f-9d9f-97efdc223885.html" target="_blank">T.Rowe Price</a>.
Melanie Perkins, the CEO and the co-founder of Canva, launched the first version of the platform in 2013 to make graphic design accessible to everyone. The Canva platform can be used for many things, from designing resumes to creating a wide array of marketing materials including social media images, logos, posters, business cards, presentations, cards, reports, reports, infographics, and more. 
With 60 million monthly active users across 190 countries, there are now 7 billion total designs created on Canva at a rate of more than 120 designs every second. Canva also boasts over 500,000 paying teams on their platform, with their latest release catering to large teams and enterprises across the globe.
The latest funding round will be used to expand Canva's team of more than 2,000 employees, which the company expects to double in the year ahead.

CMS Monthly Recap: Canva Raises $200 million at $40 Billion Valuation, Hyland Launches OnBase in AWS Marketplace, and More

CMS Monthly Recap text lockup with image of autumn trees and foliage

More WordPress in the press – and the operative word is headless. 
We're covering a couple of big announcements today that are certain to have lasting impacts on the WordPress community. What's clear is that <a href="https://automattic.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Automattic</a>, the company that owns WordPress, seems to be listening intently to its users – and gearing up to challenge the <a href="https://www.cmscritic.com/top-free-headless-cms-platforms/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">headless CMS marketplace</a>.
Without further ado, (don't) stop the presses...
<h2>The Classical Editor isn't being laid to rest – yet</h2>
It's not hyperbole to say that the introduction of <a href="https://www.cmscritic.com/gutenberg-2-years-later-is-wordpress-better-off/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Gutenberg</a> in 2017 caused widespread uproar across the WordPress community. And why not? The Classic Editor allowed you to create and manage your content in an ultra-simple way, almost like a word processor. This simplicity is also what powered WordPress to market dominance. 
In a race for parity with other page editors such as <a href="https://www.wpbeaverbuilder.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Beaver Builder</a>, <a href="https://www.elegantthemes.com/gallery/divi/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Divi,</a> and <a href="https://elementor.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Elementor</a>, WordPress <a href="https://www.cmscritic.com/gutenberg-2-years-later-is-wordpress-better-off/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">released Gutenberg</a> – their answer to a block-based editing experience. Unfortunately, the Classical Editor was destined for demise, and WordPress scheduled an official sunset on December 31, 2021.
The Gutenberg release has been a bumpy road for users as they struggled to adapt. That said, things are improving: over the last few years, WordPress has worked steadily on Gutenberg, releasing updates every two weeks with <a href="https://www.cmscritic.com/cms-monthly-recap-salesforce-completes-acquisition-of-slack-contentsquare-accelerates-ml-capabilities-and-more/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">cool new features</a>. 
While many WordPress users appreciate the evolution of Gutenberg, the Classical Editor retains a fierce and loyal following. Now, it seems that the voice of the community is driving change. In a bold move, WordPress has agreed to <a href="https://wordpress.org/news/2021/08/an-update-on-the-classic-editor-plugin/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">continue supporting the Classical Editor for another year</a>. They said it was" the right call for the project as well as the community." 
Personally, we think it's the right call as well. Change can be challenging, and users have the most valuable voice in defining a product's horizon. Perhaps WordPress could have metered their timetable based on community input, allowing them to better read the tea leaves. That said, if there's one constant to change, it's that people will always resist it on some level. 
We'll be monitoring the community feedback as things unfold.
<h2>Frontity joins WordPress, goes headless</h2>
<a href="https://frontity.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Frontity</a>, the open-source <a href="https://reactjs.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">React</a> framework for WordPress, has been acquired by Automattic, the parent company of WordPress. Their team will contribute to the WordPress open-course project and focus on the Gutenberg editor – improving the blocks and themes in addition to making the WordPress sites more performant.
In 2019, Frontity launched their open-sourced Frontity Framework as a way to ease the integration between WordPress and React for building websites. This doesn't mean they will push React to WordPress; rather, the unification will help improve the <a href="https://www.cmscritic.com/updates-on-wordcamp-2021-wordpress-5-8-beta-details-and-gutenberg-enhancements/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">full-site editing</a> developer experience and contribute to WordPress' front-end tooling, performance, and UX. 
There's no question that <a href="https://www.cmscritic.com/tag/headless/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">headless CMS</a> has exploded in popularity. With traditional (or coupled) CMS platforms, the content management back-end is completely tied to a website's front-end. This effectively limits content creators and developers just to the website pages and templates that are managed and rendered in the system itself. 
With a headless CMS, you are truly "channel agnostic." That means you can manage content via the <a href="https://www.cmscritic.com/top-jamstack-static-site-generators-for-2021/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">JAMstack</a> (JavaScript, API, and Markup) with different front-end static site generators using <a href="https://reactjs.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">React</a> or <a href="https://vuejs.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Vue</a>. But the omnichannel only begins at the website layer: with a headless CMS, you can manage content on a wide range of endpoints, from <a href="https://www.storyblok.com/mp/headless-as-digital-signage-software" target="_blank" rel="noopener">digital signs</a> to <a href="https://www.luminary.com/blog/serving-content-to-iot-devices-with-a-headless-cms" target="_blank" rel="noopener">wearable tech to IoT devices</a>. The possibilities are endless. 
When we think of a traditional CMS, the first thing that comes to mind is WordPress. While it powers more than 40% of all websites on the internet, it's still considered a traditional CMS as its architecture links the front-end (HTML templates, Javascript) to the back-end via a database (MySQL). However, in recent months, WordPress has signaled a deepening investment in headless delivery, particularly with their Gutenberg initiatives. The Frontity acquisition codifies this mission by introducing a static site generator with serverless pre-rendering to the WordPress ecosystem.
"I believe there's still a lot that we can learn from decoupled systems, and we can incorporate those learnings into WordPress itself as we emphasize performance, flexibility, and ease of development," <a href="https://ma.tt/2021/08/frontity-to-join-automattic/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said Matt Mullenweg,</a> founder of WordPress. "I look forward to Frontity joining WordPress and channeling their efforts into the WordPress APIs, documentation, and Gutenberg's full-site editing tools." 
<a href="https://frontity.org/blog/announcing-frontitys-e1m-funding-round-with-automattic-and-k-fund/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Automattic's 2020 investment in Frontity</a> opened the door for this opportunity, helping both organizations to realize the alignment around their vision. The unification will shift things towards decoupled architectures in the coming years, and React will play a key role in WordPress to build modern digital experiences.

WordPress Keeps Classical Editor Alive, Acquires Frontity to Expand Headless Capabilities

WordPress, Frontity, and React logo icons

It's almost officially summer in the Northern Hemisphere. And while some outdoorsy types are packing their Airstreams to do a bit of camping, WordPressians made the virtual hike to <a href="https://europe.wordcamp.org/2021/" target="_blank">WordCamp Europe 2021</a> last week. 
As one of the largest community events in the WordPress ecosystem, WordCamp Europe attracted nearly <a href="https://torquemag.io/2020/06/wordcamp-europe-2020-report/">10,000 registrees from over 140 countries</a> to their first online forum in 2020 (2021 figures are not yet published, but we're anticipating even bigger numbers). Now that we're emerging from Covid, it will be interesting to see how WordCampers migrate to these meetings worldwide in 2022. 
Our staff had a chance to peruse a number of the sessions, and there were some definite standouts. One of the most interesting talks we caught was called <a href="https://europe.wordcamp.org/2021/speaker/robert-jacobi/">"Invisible CMS" by Robert Jacobi</a> (of Joomla fame). There was also a great interview with <a href="https://europe.wordcamp.org/2021/session/conversation-with-marieke-van-de-rakt-of-yoast/">Marieke van de Rakt of Yoast</a> that was timely and relevant. You can catch a lot of the content on the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCaYQGYDpXpU4A17kxN-AgJQ">WordCamp Europe YouTube channel</a>.
During a packed schedule of fireside chats and presentations, attendees were treated to an update on WordPress 5.8, which is currently in Beta. As of right now, the current target for the final release is July 20, 2021. 
WordPress 5.8 is expected to deliver a host of new features, including more powerful blocks, enhanced editing capabilities, and other <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/updates/2021/01/21/big-picture-goals-2021/" target="_blank">big picture goals</a> like Full Site Editing – which was a focus area at WordCamp. We've covered some of the features we're expecting to see below. 
<h3>What is Full Site Editing?</h3>
OK, so <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/design/handbook/focuses/full-site-editing/">Full Site Editing</a> (FSE) may not be a game-changing new addition to WordPress, but it's another clear signal that WordPress is moving on from editing PHP templates to building websites entirely out of blocks. Full Site Editing is more akin to a "collection" of features that allows you to edit (quite literally) everything on your site. The collection isn't 100% complete, but it's a work in progress for the second phase of Gutenberg. 
FSE involves three main components: Template Editing, Block Themes, and Global Styles.
<h3>Template Editing</h3>
Page Templates are the building blocks of a WordPress site, and they’re composed using PHP. Every theme has its own custom templates such as “Single Page,” “404”, or “Header,” “Footer,” and so on. If you know some HTML and PHP, you can also edit these templates.
WordPress 5.8 is making a bold move by giving users the ability to create their own custom Page Templates by editing their theme template directly. Imagine creating templates entirely out of blocks without having to deal with PHP code. 
Don't imagine it: watch it here in this <a href="https://youtu.be/IdLGO-PzNJ0?t=8896" target="_blank">WordCamp Europe online video</a>. 
<h3>Block Themes</h3>
WordPress 5.8 features new blocks for Page Lists, Site Title, Logo, and Tagline. A powerful Query Loop block offers multiple ways to display posts and comes with new block patterns that take advantage of its flexibility and creative options.
Among the new block features, there is one notable one: the Lists View. This is a panel that can be easily toggled, allowing you see all the blocks in a list form and navigate complex blocks and patterns:
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2021/06/block-list-view.png" alt="Gutenberg Block List View" />
<h3>Global Styles</h3>
Global Styles extend the efforts of Full Site Editing by bringing a higher level of customization to Gutenberg and WordPress. Together, these features enable users to have improved control over aesthetics and layouts beyond the context of single Pages and Posts. Global styles also bring consistency across your website without having to edit individual blocks or pages.
For example, you can select a body background color or change the line-height of all their headings from one place. Styles added to individual blocks will still override the global styles.
The first version of Global Styles has been ported to WordPress core and will be part of the WordPress 5.8 release. Any relevant update will be posted in <a href="https://github.com/WordPress/gutenberg/issues/20331#issuecomment-848685044" target="_blank">this GitHub issue</a> on demand.
<img style="max-width:327px" src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2021/06/global-styles-sidebar.png" alt="Global Styles" />
<h3>Additional Highlights in WordPress 5.8</h3>
Here are some other cool features we're expecting from 5.8: 
<ul>
<li>An all-new Widgets screen and updated Customizer, which lets you use any block in your theme’s widget areas</li>
<li>A new template editor that allows you to create custom page templates using blocks</li>
<li>Themes that can control and configure styling with a .json file, including layout configuration, block supports, color palettes, and more</li>
<li>New design tools and enhancements to existing blocks, including more color, typography, and spacing options</li>
<li>Drag and drop features for Cover backgrounds</li>
<li>Additions to block transformation options</li>
<li>The ability to embed PDFs within the File block</li>
<li>Improvements to how the editor is rendered to resemble the frontend more accurately</li>
</ul>
The new Duotone filter is a noteworthy addition to 5.8. It allows you to change the color of an image and add various effects. If you love to use filters on your photos, you’ll get a lot of use out of this:
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2021/06/duotone.gif" alt="Duotone Filter" />
You can read the complete list of new features on the <a href="https://wordpress.org/news/2021/06/wordpress-5-8-beta-2/" target="_blank">WordPress news release</a>.
<h2>What’s new in Gutenberg 10.8?</h2>
Gutenberg 10.8 focuses on stability and performance while also introducing enhancements to the Template Editor that enables more design tools for blocks.
<h3>More Typography Options</h3>
Gutenberg 10.8 comes with more typography editing functions, including <a href="https://github.com/WordPress/gutenberg/pull/27510" target="_blank">font-weight for the heading block</a> and <a href="https://github.com/WordPress/gutenberg/pull/27510" target="_blank">custom fonts for the List block</a>. As with other design tools, you can configure them in your theme.json file.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2021/06/font-weights-edited-1.png" alt="Font weight options" />
<h3>Template Editor Enhancements</h3>
Gutenberg 10.8 also introduces a few enhancements to the Template Editor, improving the overall user experience. Now, the <a href="https://github.com/WordPress/gutenberg/pull/32037" target="_blank">title area in the Template Editor corresponds to the current post title</a>. Also, the appearance of the <a href="https://github.com/WordPress/gutenberg/pull/32042" target="_blank">template details popover</a> has been enhanced with more detailed information and an improved layout. 
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2021/06/template-editor-enhnancements.png" alt="Template Editor enhancements" />
You can see the complete list of new Gutenberg 10.8 features and bug fixes over <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2021/06/10/whats-new-in-gutenberg-10-8-9-june/" target="_blank">here</a>.
<h3>Internet Explorer 11</h3>
Ah yes. Our update wouldn't be complete without discussing Internet Explorer. It is, as they say, the end of an era. 
Or <a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/05/22/999343673/internet-explorer-the-love-to-hate-it-web-browser-will-die-next-year#:~:text=Microsoft%20is%20officially%20pulling%20the%20plug%20on%20Internet%20Explorer%20in%20June%202022.,-Alexander%20Hassenstein%2FGetty&amp;text=Internet%20Explorer%20is%20nearing%20the,%2C%20buggy%20net%2Dsurfing%20option.">as NPR so elegantly noted</a>, it's "nearing the end of a long and slow death." 
As Microsoft continues its planned retirement of this storied browser – a journey that began 25 years ago – support for IE11 is slowly waning. While the final sunset is planned for <a href="https://blogs.windows.com/windowsexperience/2021/05/19/the-future-of-internet-explorer-on-windows-10-is-in-microsoft-edge/" target="_blank">June 15, 2022</a>, WordPress is deprecating its support for IE this year. So if you haven't already, say your goodbyes. 
<h3>More to come for WordPress in 2021</h3>
The WordCamp world is still abuzz from days of drinking the open source kool-aid, particularly in anticipation of the official 5.8 launch. 
In the meantime, if you’d like to test the new 5.8 Beta, you can install the <a href="https://wordpress.org/plugins/wordpress-beta-tester/" target="_blank">WordPress Beta Tester plugin</a> and activate it. You can find the full set of instructions on how to use the latest Beta version <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/handbook/testing/beta-testing/" target="_blank">here</a>. 
Like everything in the world of WP, it bears repeating that the new features like Full Site Editing are still a work in progress. After all, Rome wasn’t built in a day – and for a CMS that powers over 40 percent of the web, changes need to be carefully tested for mobile performance, security, accessibility, and so on. 
What's clear is that the various page-building plugin options for WordPress – such as <a href="https://elementor.com/">Elementor</a>, <a href="https://www.elegantthemes.com/gallery/divi/">Divi</a>, and <a href="https://www.wpbeaverbuilder.com/">Beaver Builder</a> – have ramped up the innovation and certainly inspired WordPress to improve its own block editor. It's important to remember that when Gutenberg first arrived, it was <a href="https://www.cmscritic.com/gutenberg-2-years-later-is-wordpress-better-off/" target="_blank">very green</a> and met with an abundance of criticism. WordPress is definitely listening, and working to make content editing even easier for the non-coding folk who don’t want to rely on a developer. While the editor still has a steep learning curve and is clunky in some areas, it seems that Gutenberg is heading in the right direction.
Now, forget the code and fire up your Coleman grill. It's summertime!

Updates on WordCamp 2021, WordPress 5.8 Beta Details, and Gutenberg Enhancements

Reid Hoffman, the serial tech entrepreneur and founder of LinkedIn, once said: “If you are not embarrassed by the first version of your product, you've launched too late.”
Of course, in the world of open source software like WordPress, it’s hard to know exactly when anything will launch. And when it does, there’s certain to be a lot of bugs.
That was the case with Gutenberg, the long-awaited upgrade to the WordPress visual editor that was first introduced in late 2017. At the time, the WordPress editing experience had grown stagnant, and content managers were hungry for new page building capabilities. There’s no question that the impetus to develop a more robust editor was a reaction to the rise of authoring platforms like Medium and easy page-building competitors like Wix and Squarespace.
But as is often the case in software, things don’t always go according to plan. And when they don’t, end users are the first ones to let you know.
Time flies, and it’s hard to believe that it’s already been over two years since Gutenberg’s launch. Much like the printing press of its namesake, the first edition was fraught with issues and drew a lot of negative feedback. Nonetheless, it brought the promise of more modular page building capabilities within a modern, React-based UI. This helped circumvent some of the massive tech debt and backward compatibility challenges that exist with WordPress, favoring a more forward-leaning solution over fixes to the core software.
Over time, users have adapted to the good, the bad, and the unpredictable. Now, Gutenberg has graduated to a core role in the WordPress platform. In fact, the WordPress 5.0 release in 2018 <a href="/the-first-release-candidate-for-wordpress-5-0-is-now-available-and-sadly-it-brings-gutenberg-with-it/">featured Gutenberg as the default editor</a>, cementing its place in version history. But fear not: the WordPress Classical Editor is still available and supported, although it should be officially sunset on December 31, 2021.
Change is always scary – especially for long-term users. While some of the early adopters have grown to prefer (or even love) Gutenberg, the general reaction continues to be tacitly negative.  So far, Gutenberg has amassed more than 3,000 reviews with an <a href="https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/gutenberg/reviews/">average rating of 2/5.00</a>. Considering two years have passed since Gutenberg was released, the reviews indicate the major issues with Gutenberg – specifically the UX – have yet to be resolved.
<figure class="kg-card kg-image-card"><img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/gutenberg-reviews.png" srcset="/wp-content/themes/cmscritic/img/cmscritic/content/images/size/w600/2020/07/gutenberg-reviews.png 600w, /wp-content/themes/cmscritic/img/cmscritic/content/images/2020/07/gutenberg-reviews.png 626w" /></figure>
When it comes to WordPress reviews, users seldom hold back (just read a few of the posts and you’ll see more rants than raves). While Gutenberg hasn’t garnered a lot of stars, the picture isn’t all bad. The most common reactions are that it’s slow, not intuitive, and requires a lot of extra mouse clicks to get where you’re going. But many users agree that it’s heading in the right direction and addressing persistent issues like accessibility.
After two years of pressure-testing in the real world of web development and CMS, we’ll look at what Gutenberg gets right – and where it misses the mark.
A Brief Overview of Gutenberg
If you’re not at all familiar with Gutenberg for WordPress, it’s a visual editor with a dynamic drag-and-drop interface. It fully replaces the WordPress TinyMCE editor (aka the Classical Editor) as the default editor within the package. Most of this is being spearheaded by <a href="https://automattic.com/">Automattic</a>, the open source development company behind WordPress.com
Unlike the Classical Editor, Gutenberg uses “blocks” rather than text fields to manage content. In fact, everything in the experience is represented as a block: the paragraphs, buttons, images, quotes… everything. By using the inherent drag-and-drop functionality in the editor, you can arrange the order of your blocks around your specific content needs.
The block-based model is nothing new. Visual editors such as Wix and Squarespace are similarly designed, helping users create and manage content faster and easier. In addition to these platforms, there are also page builder plugins for WordPress such as Divi, Elementor and Beaver Builder, which use drag-and-drop functionality with a simplified UI. All of these feature embellishments have empowered content editors to be more productive with less coding.
With more than 74.6 million websites using WordPress, including major brands like Disney, TechCrunch, BBC America and more, the platform’s pervasiveness is undeniable. But this level of market penetration is understandable: content managers and editors want to focus on content, not code – and from the beginning, one of the main selling points of WordPress has been its low-code/no-code experience. It abstracted most of the complexity with building and managing websites by relying on libraries of pre-programmed themes and plugins. These widgets, both diverse and abundant, enabled any user to add functionality to their website – from schedulers to lead forms to shopping carts – with just a few clicks.
There was, however, one big exception: the TinyMCE editor. It still required editing HTML for deeper customizations. 
Open source platforms struggle to provide a roadmap that is both complete and reliable, and WordPress is no exception. While the market waited for improvements to the visual editor, other plugins emerged to address the challenges. When assessing the pros and cons of Gutenberg, it’s easier to compare it to these alternatives to see where the opportunities and issues exist.
How does Gutenberg differ from the Classical Editor &amp; How it Compares to Page Builders
So how does Gutenberg stack up against the Classical Editor and other page builder plugins? Well, the rise of these new block-based options has certainly stoked innovation. That said, it’s important to keep in mind that while Gutenberg is quite similar to these other WordPress page builders, it’s currently not a good replacement. In fact, WordPress doesn’t even classify Gutenberg as a “page builder” per se. While it might evolve to one in the future, WordPress more appropriately refers to it as a “block editor.”
Let’s compare just a few of the more notable features between Gutenberg and other page builders:
1.     Drag &amp; Drop Capabilities
Traditionally, to type text, insert content, or write code using the Classical Editor, you would have to manually shift your content around by cutting and pasting. With Gutenberg, you can assign each content component as its own block – such as a paragraph – and re-arrange the order of your blocks by simply dragging them up and down. 
<figure class="kg-card kg-image-card"><img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/gutenberg-dragging.png" srcset="/wp-content/themes/cmscritic/img/cmscritic/content/images/size/w600/2020/07/gutenberg-dragging.png 600w, /wp-content/themes/cmscritic/img/cmscritic/content/images/2020/07/gutenberg-dragging.png 737w" /></figure>
Paragraphs aren’t the only content blocks types. With Gutenberg, you can define headings, rows, columns, images, buttons, symbols, custom boxes, and even templates as blocks – and use the same drag-and-drop features to reorder your content. 
Although Gutenberg offers this slick drag-and-drop block feature, you’ll be compromising on customizations. For example, you can’t adjust the height and width of elements or add custom margins and padding, and elements can only be aligned to the left, right, and center. You can get around some of these limitations with additional CSS classes, but that means more coding and complexity. It all comes down to how much control you want over the details. 
<figure class="kg-card kg-image-card"><img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/gutenberg-image-aligning.png" srcset="/wp-content/themes/cmscritic/img/cmscritic/content/images/size/w600/2020/07/gutenberg-image-aligning.png 600w, /wp-content/themes/cmscritic/img/cmscritic/content/images/size/w1000/2020/07/gutenberg-image-aligning.png 1000w, /wp-content/themes/cmscritic/img/cmscritic/content/images/2020/07/gutenberg-image-aligning.png 1499w" /></figure>
2.     Front-end Visual Editing
There’s no question that Gutenberg does a better job than the Classical editor of displaying your front-end styling within the visual editor. That said, it doesn’t provide the same level of accuracy as when you’re using a page builder like Elementor or Divi. With other page builders, you can see all of your changes rendered in the back-end – so you know exactly what your page will look like when published. With Gutenberg, you still need to manually click on the “Preview” button to see a draft page, which can be limiting from a content management perspective. For example, here is how a page looks in back-end editor versus in the preview mode:
<figure class="kg-card kg-image-card kg-card-hascaption"><img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/preview.png" srcset="/wp-content/themes/cmscritic/img/cmscritic/content/images/size/w600/2020/07/preview.png 600w, /wp-content/themes/cmscritic/img/cmscritic/content/images/2020/07/preview.png 650w" /><figcaption>Back-End view of the page</figcaption></figure>
<figure class="kg-card kg-image-card kg-card-hascaption"><img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/backend-editor-2.png" srcset="/wp-content/themes/cmscritic/img/cmscritic/content/images/size/w600/2020/07/backend-editor-2.png 600w, /wp-content/themes/cmscritic/img/cmscritic/content/images/2020/07/backend-editor-2.png 885w" /><figcaption>Preview of the page</figcaption></figure>
3.     Design and Styling
While Gutenberg is a big step up from the TinyMCE Classical Editor, it still falls short of page builder plug-ins when it comes to customizing styles. The Gutenberg editor will reflect any specific theme you’re using, which is quite useful – but that’s the extent of it. Page builder plug-ins not only offer complete control over styling from the ground up, but you also have the ability to override your theme’s visual settings.
We’re just scratching the surface on the pros and cons, but does this mean you should ditch Gutenberg for a page builder? Not necessarily. It all depends on what you want to accomplish. If your website has a simple layout and you want your content to fit harmoniously into a theme, going with Gutenberg might be a good idea. But if you crave more control over your page layouts and styles, a page builder is likely your best bet.
To Gutenberg… or not to Gutenberg?
That is the question! The answer? Well, that’s a little more complicated…
The real Gutenberg could never have imagined the evolution of his printing press. If only he could marvel at the invention of four-color digital presses that can instantly print thousands or even millions of impressions – all with a few mouse clicks. Sadly, innovation is sometimes slower than we would like it to be, and mistakes are all part of the process.
Much like these digital presses, the Gutenberg editor is a milestone in the evolution of the WordPress platform. It continues to demonstrate the commitment of the open source ecosystem to serve the needs of millions of web developers and content creators, each with their own set of goals – from managing a basic blog to crafting a custom experience.
Making things more “user friendly” is key to any software’s growth, and that’s where Gutenberg is endeavoring to shine. Unfortunately, it’s still not at a point where page builders like Divi or <a href="/elementor-hits-3-million-sites/">Elementor</a> compete. But that’s the beauty of WordPress and its ecosystem of plug-ins: there’s an incredible amount of choice, and that only seems to be expanding.
Custom is always the costliest commodity, and even the real Gutenberg knew that. That’s why his first books were simple and limited in their scope. But over time, the block components became more elaborate and decorative, and font styles more abundant. Eventually, it all felt “custom.”
The same might happen for the modern digital incarnation. The real question is: when?

Gutenberg, 2 Years Later: Is WordPress Better Off?

The latest beta of the upcoming WordPress 5.0 release is now available for testing.
The upcoming 5.0 release brings with it the terrible Gutenberg editor that Automattic feels they need to try to cram down the throats of WordPress users everywhere.
<figure class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/gutenberg-3_nn5asp.png" /><figcaption>Fear the Gutenberg!</figcaption></figure>
This editor basically takes normal tasks that were / have been easy to perform and adds unnecessary extra steps in an attempt to make WordPress' editor look more like that of Squarespace (not that theirs is terrible but it's definitely not as easy as the existing WP one.
If you want to hear real world experiences with Gutenberg, just look at how many bad reviews are coming in daily over at the WordPress plugin database: <a href="https://wordpress.org/plugins/gutenberg/#reviews" target="_blank">https://wordpress.org/plugins/gutenberg/#reviews</a>
In a nutshell, it's full of bugs and really ticking off users:
<blockquote>If you type, you have to wait for ages just to see it appear on screen. 
If you delete, you have to wait at least 2 seconds for it to go away. 
If you highlight, you have to hold your mouse button down for like 5 seconds at the place you want to highlight to until the highlight actually appears so you can release.</blockquote>
The response from the Gutenberg team to this review was “it's a known bug” however this is just ONE of a huge number of complaints about the editor.
To perform a simple task such as using bold, what was once a single click process has been turned into a two to three click one, reducing productivity of users by a large margin for what should be a simple task.
To give you an idea, here's how the editor looks when editing a post:
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2021/07/screenshot_20181128_092915_mgn8wq.png" />
In the above example, I wanted to show you the process to get to bold. It shows up like this with a bunch of expandable categories and a search. Want to bold your text? Well to make that intuitive, we've made it harder for you to find the bold button! Now you get to search for it in a menu instead of just clicking on it.
Sense my annoyance in this post? That's the intention. I don't understand how a company so focused on ease of use and intuitiveness can stray so far from them.
<h2>Can you keep the classic editor?</h2>
Yes, you can. Thankfully the WP team is smart enough to include it as an installable plugin so that you don't have to be forced to use Gutenberg and for those who are currently on WordPress, I'd recommend installing and activating it now to prevent Gutenberg from taking over when WordPress 5.0 comes along.
For those who want to try this beast out, you can actually install the Gutenberg editor on your blog now (as a plugin) but I'm not sure why you'd want to do that. The best bet, test it in a dev environment  first and make your decision. Fortunately, you can still use the classic editor even when this 5.0 release hits so you won't be stranded in a desert full of frustration.
Wanna learn more? Go here: https://wordpress.org/news/2018/11/wordpress-5-0-release-candidate/
For those who are tired of this and want to just be able to write a blog post without the mess, try one of these great WordPress alternatives instead:
<ul>
<li><a href="https://write.as/">https://write.as/</a></li>
<li><a href="https://withknown.com/">https://withknown.com/</a></li>
<li><a href="https://ghost.org/">https://ghost.org/</a></li>
<li></li>
</ul>
Good luck out there!
~Mike

The first release candidate for WordPress 5.0 is now available (and sadly it brings Gutenberg with it).

mike-johnston

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