I Hate Change, WordPress!

Book Blogger, Book Coffee Happy Update, My Life 4 Minutes

I HATE CHANGE. I also hate technology. Combine the 2 and well…this is why I haven’t posted a new blog post in over 2 weeks. WordPress has officially launched it’s “Block Editor” to replace it’s “Classic Editor”. They have been warning of this change (note my use of the word “warning” and not “announcing”) for months but now…IT’S OFFICIALLY HERE. Clearly I’ve been ignoring this foreshadowing for months and pretending like it was never going to happen. Note to self: not the way to deal with change.

I hate the new editor. If you follow me on Instagram, I have been documenting my saga with emailing WordPress, their responses, and all that I have been doing to fight this change kicking and screaming. For those of you who are not bloggers, the “editor” is basically the entire layout of how your blog posts are written. Change the editor and basically it changes the entire way you write your posts. I SHOULD have been spending my time over the past few months researching this and trying to learn all that I could so this change wouldn’t have been so sudden. #hindsight. Instead I simply clicked the “DO NOT SHOW THE NEW EDITOR LAYOUT” button that was presented many months ago, figured I would worry about it later, and just kept blogging the only way that I knew how. Oops.

The first person at WordPress who responded to my complaint told me that I could easily go back to the old editor. Lovely! However, what he told me to do didn’t work. Dammit. The second person at WordPress who responded to my complaint told me that there isn’t a way that I can go back to the old editor and that the new editor is here to stay. He apologized for the misunderstanding. I did not accept his apology.

I immediately started thinking of a different way to word yet ANOTHER email asking to help me find a way around this new editor…and then I took a deep breath.

Change is hard, change is scary, but sometimes…change is necessary. I think it’s time for me to put on my big girl panties (that’s an expression, right? Seeing it in print is making me second guess that, lol) and figure out this technology stuff on my own. This afternoon I watched a YouTube video on how the new editor works, I googled how the new editor works, and I wrote an entire page of notes in my blog notebook on what I’ve learned. I’m so ridiculously Type A and the fact that I suddenly have no idea what I’m doing is awful for me. BUT I miss blogging! This is my favorite hobby and not doing it because I’m scared of change is silly. Time for those big girl panties…

Man do I hate technology.

Like so many other things in life, I think the only way I am going to actually learn this and feel comfortable will be to just DO IT. I somehow figured out how to start and maintain my blog all this time, right? When I started blogging, I knew NOTHING about any of this and I learned every single thing on my own. I worked so hard! I researched, I asked questions, I filled page after page in my notebook of things that I learned. It will forever be an accomplishment that I’m so proud of.

If I did it once, I can do it again….right?

So this is my “test” post to see how it goes. My first post in this stupid new editor.

Change is Hard

Although I clearly haven’t been blogging, I absolutely HAVE been reading! I have 4 book reviews for you just sitting and piling up waiting for me to blog about them. This includes a VERY exciting review of an AMAZING book with a special guest blogger’s review, my review, AND a question and answer portion with a very popular author! Truth be told, it’s that post which is killing me the most not to share and what ultimately prompted me to suck it up and just figure all of this stupid technology stuff out on my own.

My library books were so overdue that they library has been calling me EVERY. SINGLE. DAY. I’ve debated telling them that I’m a book blogger resistant to change and I need these books to write my posts…but then I remembered that they wouldn’t care 🙂 So today, I snapped photos of each book for upcoming posts and returned the overdue books that I had already read.

Alright, let’s try to insert a picture….here goes nothing…

Ok I think I did it! I think it actually worked! (That photo would be the current situation at my desk. I’ve got coffee, a calming candle, and a gold sparkly notebook with my notes on how to do this post. Deep breaths).

So that’s where I have been! Thank you to those of you who have reached out asking where I’ve been. Just hiding from my computer and saying nasty things about WordPress on my Instagram stories, no big deal 🙂

How does this post look to you? Normal?

Now that I have done 1 post….maaaaaaaaybe I’ll try to attempt another one at some point this week??? I really want to get these book reviews posted for you guys because some (not all) of these books that I have been reading were so amazing.

I. HATE. CHANGE.

Do you do well with change? Clearly I do NOT 🙂 Any advice for me on how to overcome this???

Xo,

Jenny

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Published by bookcoffeehappy

I'm the blogger behind www.bookcoffeehappy.com!

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39 thoughts on “I Hate Change, WordPress!”

  1. LOL. I can feel you on the change. I blogged years ago and back then the classic editor is what I used. I quit for a number of years and finally came back. I never could figure out how to go back to the classic editor so I had to learn the block editor. It took a while but I’ve actually grown to like it. There’s a lot less html for me to mess around with so it’s been fairly easy going. Hope the transition goes smoothly for you!

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  2. I also hate the new editor… a LOT. However, I got an email from WordPress a week or so ago that said that I could either switch the new but then choose the “Classic Block” option which would look just like the old one OR continue using the Classic editor – which I’m doing for now. My understanding is that the Classic will remain available indefinitely, it’s just that WordPress will eventually stop “support” for that version – so if you have an issue, you’re on your own. I can forward the email to you if you’re interested in seeing it. It had links to show how to both use the Classic Block or to revert Block Editor to Classic. Good luck!!

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      1. I will send it your way!! One difference may be – I just use the free version of WordPress. It may be different for those who pay to use it (which I don’t know if you do)? It’s possible that paid subscribers “have” to upgrade so that you will still have access to the technological support that your upgrade entitles you to?

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      2. Ahhhh yes I do pay for my site. That makes sense. UGH I hate all of this! It’s nice to hear that other bloggers are upset, too. I was researching online and apparently there are MANY of us who are not happy…Grrrrr….

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      3. Still, it’s possible that the part where you can choose the Classic Block as part of the new editor may work for you! I sent the email, so hopefully there is something usable for you!!

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    2. At some point, you will get a second e-mail and once you do, you will be switched to the Block Editor. There is a workaround that’s a pain. You can go into the WP-Admin section, use the Quick Edit, save it. Then, go back into the WP-Admin section and it will allow you to use the Classic Editor for that post. You have to do that for every post you want to use the old Classic Editor. I decided to go with the new Editor as it was taking way too long to use the shortcut for each and every post. I use the free WordPress as well.

      With so many bloggers, they are rolling out the switch to Block Editor in waves. It was only a few days after I got the first e-mail warning of the change before the second e-mail arrived saying I had been switched over. At some point, they will drop the Classic Editor for everyone. I am not a fan of the Block Editor or the replacement Classic Editor. It’s made my blogging a lot more difficult and time-consuming.

      Many of us are unhappy, but the Happiness Engineers and their corporate bosses don’t care. It would take a substantial number of WordPress bloggers and websites jumping ship to other blog platforms for them to take notice.

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      2. Not your fault. Before I noticed the e-mail, I started a WordPress post and saw it was the new editor so the e-mail wasn’t that big a surprise. In theory, you can use the WP-Admin and use the old Classic Editor, but it sounds like that option will be going away at some point. I am getting used to the quirks of the new editor.

        I know some people love the new editor, but I am tech challenged and not a fan. I will adapt. I saw a few people talk about jumping ship, but I have been using WordPress since 2013.

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      4. I have the app on my phone, but rarely use it.

        My personal opinion is someone at WordPress spent a ton of money on the new editor and decided to force it on everyone. I would hope they chose beta testers who were honest and not beta testers who were tech savvy. The best solution would be for enough WordPress bloggers to jump ship to send a strong message, but I don’t see that happening.

        From those I know who jumped ship from WordPress years ago, they lost a lot of readers and followers and decided to come back to WordPress for the most part.

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      6. I debated leaving, but after reading about those who did and their experiences, I decided to stay. This was years before the new editor was introduced.

        Plus, I would have to learn a new blog platform.

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  3. I totally agree with your thoughts on the new editor. I can’t understand why WordPress felt the need to change, the classic editor worked perfectly. I did see that you can revert back to the classic editor by installing the plugin but at the cost of losing the follow button which doesn’t seem fair to me. I am slowly finding my way around the new editor but I would have much preferred it if they gave us an option to keep the old one as well.

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  4. As Moira would say: I’m proud of you! (Can you hear that in her voice?)
    Change can be so annoying, especially when it comes to technology. Great job figuring things out!
    I can’t wait to see a certain post go up. 😉

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    1. MOIRA!!! I hear your voice!!! Loooove!!! Yes, I’m so thankful for our post because it’s my motivation to figure all of this out. I’ll email you ASAP to get a publishing date on the calendar, Xo

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  5. I am so much like you Jenny! I hate change too. But I try to persevere, especially with technology and not get upset and frustrated and then when I finally get it I am so proud of myself! Jenny, I am so proud of you with all that you do! You are truly amazing and don’t be so hard on yourself!

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  6. I think I’ve been using the block editor for several months now. I couldn’t figure it out, so my daughter had to show me how to do it. I compliment you on self teaching yourself. I rather like it now. What I can’t figure out is how to put a follow button on my blog page. I may have to call in reinforcements – my daughter.

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  7. I can’t stand the new Block editor, although I’m doing my best with it because it seems there is little choice. I’ve established that “Classic Blocks” are not really the same, ie they still have a lot of the disadvantages of just being a blocks in the first place. Have also established if you pay at least the business rate on a wp.com site you can still have the Classic editor but freeloaders (though we do carry their adverts so we’re not really freeloaders) like me would face a big rise in costs to do that. Have also established that I DO have a wp.org site because years ago i was advised to buy the domain name in case someone else did, and it would be much cheaper to build a website around that and THEN I could use the Classic Editor on a blog run from the .org host (but for how long?) Finally, support desk came back to me with some suggestions that did appear helpful and good-natured given the rant I’d subjected them to – but their solutions didn’t really work in practice. My main gripe is that eventually you probably can do most of the things you used to do in Classic Ed, but they all take two or three clicks where they used to take one. (Eg I’d love to be able to place a small illustration wrapped int ext as I used to and the answer they gave me to that was so much more complicated than the process used to be…) So it’s an upgrade for techies and coders, style over substance, but not really for people who just want to post articles with a few illustrations. At present it’s taking a lot of the enjoyment out of blogging because one doesn’t actually write “in blocks”. Any minute now Facebook will “update” too and apparently that’s awful…Anyway – you’re not alone and I wish you lots of courage going forward! Off for some fresh air…

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  8. I hate it too. I use the free site, and I tried to “go back”….that doesn’t work. I can’t even figure out how to put a double space between sections on a blog post. It just creates another block, but if you go to preview, there is not blank block…. However, I have found a way around it by using the WP Admin editor (which is still the old type). As long as they don’t change that, I’m fine. If not, I am considering something other than wordpress 😦

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  11. Hint: To create a new paragraph without creating a new block, press the shift key and then the return key. This works on a Mac, I hope it will work on a PC too.

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  12. I feel your pain and frustration. Blogger has also made changes to make it easier to use/view Blogs on mobile phones. To be fair it hasn’t on the whole proved too much of a hassle apart from one thing … the positioning of photographs/images is proving so difficult. Once upon a time you just dragged the image to where you wanted it but not now. I think the moral of all of this is if it ain’t broke don’t fix it!

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  13. I joined my first book club this year. I was never much of a reader and with covid, I started reading and nit even sure ho i came across your blog. I look forward to your emails and wondered where you were. I checked me email every day.

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