WordPress 5 8 update coming July 20

WordPress is one of the most widely used ways to create a website, so every update to this software is of course interesting to keep track of whether you are using WordPress or not. In this update of WordPress, a lot of things are added and shaken up again. So let's quickly start with all the highlights of this update.

WordPress does not stand still, over the years this has been demonstrated several times with major changes released and exciting developments. In this update a number of smaller updates have been incorporated again, some things have been changed to the layout and look. And a foundation is also being prepared for expanding the blocks builder in WordPress. To a full-fledged theme builder already woven into WordPress. This doesn't come out in this update yet, but already shines through in a number of features.

Webp images

An important step in switching to a new image format is also on the way and with the next update, webp images can also be used by default in addition to png and jpg images. This is a fairly recent format that was already possible for a long time by various plug-ins to use. But now it is also supported for use directly with WordPress. This format has the great advantage that it retains the quality better than other compression methods and uses a much smaller footprint than a png or jpg image. This not only saves on storage space on your web hosting. But also in the loading speed of your website. Images here also remain available in jpg and png of course, so any kind you prefer can continue to be used.

PDF viewer in block editor

Furthermore, it is now also possible to embed PDF files on your website with a block functionality. This is obviously a better user experience than the old method. Where the PDF was opened on a new tab within the browser. This way you don't lose the functionality of, for example, Google Analytics.

Theme builder still in development

In addition to the relatively smaller developments, the WordPress team is also working to integrate a theme builder within WordPress. This has of course been possible for a long time with plug-ins and themes. But not yet within WordPress itself. An integrated theme builder will make a lot of difference in the design and creation of WordPress websites. And it will suffer less from the disadvantages of a glued-on theme builder. Such as the creation of spaghetti code in the website, or the boosting of loading times. An integrated theme builder can reduce a lot of such complaints. And also ensures that a heavy plug-in is no longer needed for this.

Updating WordPress

As always, updating WordPress is highly recommended. This ensures that your website is more secure, and also runs faster and more stable. It is therefore wise to install updates as soon as they come out, and of course to observe the backup process before installing an update. As soon as you install an update and it has a conflict with a plugin this can cause problems in your website. With a backup from before the update you can always return to a working website.

Making a backup of WordPress can be done in a number of ways, the most obvious one is using a backup plugin. However, we often recommend setting a manual scheduled task for this. This is because it is scheduled at the server level and therefore more reliable. This can easily be set up in the control panel of the hosting package. It can also run automatically with two tasks. One for the WordPress website files and one for the database. You can then have this written to a separate folder in your hosting package. So that this can be written in a logical place.

Are you looking forward to working with the latest update of WordPress? Make sure you already have a backup of your website in order to be able to update to the latest version on the 20th! Also check your PHP version via the customer panel and set it to the highest available version. PHP 8 also provides a lot of improvement in your WordPress website!