Nexcess, a Southfield, Michigan-based managed hosting provider delivering performance-optimized WordPress and WooCommerce hosting solutions globally, has advised WordPress hosting clients to prepare for the forthcoming release of WordPress 5, which will include the brand-new Gutenberg editor.
Gutenberg, which has been under development for several years as a WordPress feature plugin, is a “modern” block-based editing interface. Gutenberg would introduce numerous innovative features and user experience improvements. In WordPress 5, Gutenberg will become the default editor. Websites that are updated to WordPress 5 will be transitioned to the new editor.
Gutenberg is a necessary step in WordPress’s evolution, stated Nexcess but it is possible that the transition to WordPress 5 will bring challenges for businesses relying on WordPress. Many plugins and themes would not be updated for compatibility, so businesses that are using WordPress for their website presence should test their site with Gutenberg to ensure a trouble-free upgrade.
WordPress Compatibility Issues
“We host thousands of WordPress and WooCommerce sites, and we’re excited for the upcoming release of WordPress 5,” said Chris Wells, President and CEO of Nexcess. “The WordPress project has done a fantastic job with Gutenberg, creating a modern, intuitive, and elegant writing interface for WordPress’s millions of users. However, we want to make sure that every business that depends on WordPress is prepared for the change and doesn’t experience any issues when updating to WordPress 5.”
Gutenberg would not cause compatibility issues with most WordPress plugins, but plugins that modify the editor or the ones using shortcodes may cause issues. The best way to test for Gutenberg compatibility would be to create a staging site that is identical to the business’s production site. Once Gutenberg has been installed on the staging site, any compatibility issues should be evident.
