What’s New in WordPress Version 5.6 – Block Editor

Video Transcript

This class is going to cover the changes and additions to the block editor with the update to WordPress 5.6. I got a lot of room to cover.

So let’s go ahead and dive in. I’ve got two different sites going on here. One has already been updated to version 5.6. And I’ve got a page in a post. And this other site has a beige background in the editor window. This is version 5.5. of WordPress, the exact same post and page that I’ve got up here for comparison purposes. Now besides the background color here, oh, by the way, the 5.5 version, this beige color, that’s the 2020 theme, this greenish looking color, that’s the 2021 theme. Again, it’s the exact same content, the exact same page.

But the look is different because the theme, which is normal, I mean, you put in a different theme, you’re going to get a different look, that’s just how it goes. But one of the changes, though, one of the many changes from the version 5.5. In the editor window, this is the page now. And that is the page attributes. With the older version 5.5, we’re able to decide on different templates. Okay, that’s the older version. Also, it’s listed as document. Whereas the page in the new version 5.6. Under page attributes, we do not have the option to select a different template. And it’s called a page, not a document. So the templates in version 5.6 have gone by the wayside. And a little bit of the research I’ve been doing, that appears to be an oversight, and it’s going to be fixed in the next major release 5.7. Don’t hold me to that. But that’s the way I understood it.

Now on the post into things. Again, it’s a post, not a document, because in the older version, both the page and post are listed as document, this is a post, this is a page. And you can see that they’re making the distinction between the two. In the new version, the new version, this is a post. This is a page old version, both of them were listed as documents. So kudos to them to make that change. But again, with the new version, you don’t have a template. As a matter of fact, in the post, you don’t have page attributes at all. So again, that might be changing with version 5.7. Aside from that, the only other minor change you’re not going to read much about is under options. What used to be called options is now called preferences. And if we go to the older version, it was called options. So as I hover over this, you can see is called more tools and options as the older version, the newer version, it’s just called options, not more tools.

And matter of fact, options aren’t even in here. It’s called preferences. So who knows, maybe that’ll change later on to Okay, that’s the oddball changes. Now for the changes that you really want to pay attention to beginning with the cover block. Whenever you use an image in the cover block. It now has the repeat background feature along with the fixed background. And you can also use a video in the cover block. But before I get to that, I want to point out that the video block has a new addition as well. And that is right here in the inline toolbar. You can add text tracks of which can be subtitles, captions, chapters or descriptions.
But we change this from the video to cover. You see, just like any other cover item being an image or a video, you have the ability to add the text right here on the item itself. Click outside of that so that we’re on the actual video, or image in this case video. Why you don’t have the repeat option, you can adjust the focal point, either by moving the mouse inside the image itself or in this case the video or by adjusting it in the percentage boxes either left or top here. Now the heading block has a new addition to its inline toolbar. And that’s the ability to add a wide width or a full width. Now this is theme specific not all themes, you’re going to fully support this leastways not at the time of me covering this, I’m sure that’s going to be changing in the near future.

Another newly added feature is in the inline toolbar. Whenever we select several blocks at one time, go ahead and select the header block and then scroll on up here and then hold the shift key down on my keyboard and then click on the top cover image. Now that I have my cover block with the image and the cover block with the video and my headline block selected. You see this option here in our inline toolbar is our Transform tool which now allows us to transform multiple blocks into a column or group block with one mouse click

so that might come in handy. Next up is this invisible guy right here. There’s a spacer block in here. If we click in there you can see where I’ve got the spacer block now you see up here in the blocks settings. The spacer now allows us to make it as small as one pixel. And you can adjust the size of that spacer bar either here inside of the settings block or by mousing over it. Left click hold and drag your mouse to whatever size you want. The list block is next on my list of additions or changes. Let’s see what I did there. We click on this question only have one item here in my list block. This allows me to point out the fact that it now has in the color settings, a gradient option, as well as the other options that it had prior to version 5.6.

And getting back to the inline toolbar, you’re going to find on all of the inline toolbars. Right next to the up and down arrow, you’ve got these two rows of vertical three dots. This allows you to drag the block and if I left click hold and drag this you see now where that blue line is. That lets me position this a little more quickly than just clicking on the up and down arrows. You might find a use for that also whenever you’re working inside of groups, also new in version 5.6 of WordPress is a change within the block patterns along with even new patterns. I’m going to revisit the pattern stuff whenever I cover the new default 2021 theme in a later class. So you’ll definitely want to check that out.

But for now, that’s going to bring us to the end of this overview of the changes and additions to the block editor within the WordPress version 5.6 upgrade. Thanks for checking it out and you have a great day.