WordPress 2.8 – Editing sidebar widgets
Previously I had written about the changes in 2.8 which is do to go live next week on the 10th (always subject to change 
). The big things was the ability to add themes but I missed another big change in the widgets.
This is a great change for those that use mult sidebar themes like Flexibility that I use here.
It used to be a real pain to set the widgets for each sidebar. You had to choose each one separately then add what you wanted and save. It was tough to remember (at least for old bald guys) which item I had placed on which sidebar when you have 4 choices.
Now you can see all of them at once and drag and drop to the appropriate area. This old bald guy is loving this feature.
The other thing they have added here that is nice is the ability to keep inactive widgets.
Let me explain. You set up an opt in box for a specific product, do all the html and graphics and want to try a different one. Before you would lose all the html unless you copied it saved it on your computer then could remember where you saved it.
Now you drag that text widget to the inactive area and it saves all the original information there. No need to copy and paste and no need to remember where you saved it or take the time to recreate it.
So you can save all your settings you have edited on any widget while testing other items.
Looking forward to the release of 2.8 on Wednesday.
Mike Paetzold
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14 comments
Abi Carmen
Twitter: http://emeraldpaymentsolutions.com
on June 5, 2009 at 9:50 am
Mike,
Great post once again, always informative and timely. The widget upgrade alone does it for me.
Will you be updating the current folder for the membership at that time since it would make sense to upgrade everything all at once.
Best,
Abi
[Reply]
Mike
Twitter: thewpmaven
Reply:
June 5th, 2009 at 9:55 am
Yes I will wait til Wednesday for the new upgrade so Power WordPress Users will have what is working.
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Lyndon Irvine on June 5, 2009 at 2:40 pm
Hi Mike,
Thanks for the great info as usual.
I’m definitely eager for the new version now.
The ability to keep inactive widgets its just
awesome.
Thanks for the excellent and timely info as always
[Reply]
Doug Champigny
Twitter: CaptnAffiliate
on June 5, 2009 at 6:59 pm
Thanks for the heads-up on the widgets, Mike – certainly makes it easier to test and tweak for us old-school hard-coders, eh?
The way you’re always on top of WordPress changes before the reach the general public makes it easy to see why everyone is raving about your Power WordPress Users site!
[Reply]
Fred Lotgering on June 5, 2009 at 8:23 pm
Can hardly wait for 2.8
This widget management is what I have been waiting for!
Fred
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Andre Arnett on June 5, 2009 at 9:11 pm
Another great post about some good information. I was considering doing a theme change and now it looks like WordPress has made it even easier. Thanks.
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Lonnie Minton on June 5, 2009 at 11:35 pm
Thanks for keeping us updated on WordPress. It sounds like the changes to the way widgets will be handled will be a great improvement. I never was sure how many times I was suppose to click done and/or save with the current version.
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Brett McEllhiney on June 6, 2009 at 9:33 pm
Wow! These are both great features and can’t wait to use them.
I love the ability to be able to move widgets to an inactive area and then be able to move them back at a later date. I can’t count the number of times that I have made the mistake of removing a widget and forgetting to copy the original info that was in the widget.
Can’t wait for the release!
[Reply]
Earl Netwal
Twitter: EarlNetwal
on June 7, 2009 at 11:03 am
Its nice to have a heads up on the upcoming changes in Word Press. Looks like this time everything is going smoothly which is great. It nice to have someone breaking trail for us, and helping us keep up with the changes in the Word Press platform we all depend on so much.
[Reply]
Wynter on June 11, 2009 at 10:53 pm
Ok, I just upgraded my blog to 2.8. I cannot install any new plug ins. I click on the INSTALL link next to a new plug in and nothing happens.
I go to my active plugins page and try to click and drag some plugins to my sidebar and I see the plugin being dragged to the sidebar but it does not stay there, once I let go of the mouse, the plugin is not there.
Help!
Wynter´s last blog ..Sarah Palin to Attend GOP Fundraiser with Newt Gingrich Tonight! Go Sarah!!
[Reply]
Mike
Twitter: thewpmaven
Reply:
June 11th, 2009 at 11:55 pm
Two things..
Do you mean widgets not plugins?
Plugins are uploaded not drug.
If it is widgets (they control the sidebar) you do need to save each one you drag over. When you drag it they open and you save it.
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Aleksandra on June 21, 2009 at 12:02 pm
my widgets do not respond to being clicked on so I can’t drag them anywhere…Any suggestions? Any help appreciated it.
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Eric on June 23, 2009 at 8:30 am
@Aleksandra – Enable accessibility mode in Screen options so you can “Add” widgets to the sidebar without having to “drag ‘n drop”.
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Greeny on December 24, 2009 at 3:03 am
I just try validate my WP blog and I see Text widget give validation errors even is empty, even it have inserted a piece of code inside. I use WP v2.8
W3C Validator verify the same HTML source code which I view in the my browser and indicate me the place of them, but I dont know where is the code which I have to corect.
What is/are the name of file(s) I must fix?
All that “li” and “ul” are part of WordPress code not mine.
Thank you.
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