WordPress 5.0 Beta 1 is Now Available!

WordPress 5.0 Beta 1, the initial beta for next month’s big release of WordPress 5.0, was released yesterday on October 24. The Beta 1 update has been released with numerous highlighted features that will definitely excite the users. Major highlights include the default Gutenberg editor, the new Twenty Nineteen default theme and all previous default themes updated to include block editor styles.

WordPress 5.0 Beta 1 has arrived five days after its expected release on October 19. Last month, a minor release roadmap for WordPress 4.9.9 was released. However, the Core team shifted their focus to the next major release of WordPress 5.0 instead. One of the many reasons for this change was that Gutenberg is nearly ready to be considered for merging into the Core. And since WordPress 4.9.9 won’t be shipping out, the changes prepared for version 4.9.9 will be included in version 5.0.

The software is still in development, so the development team recommends you not run it on a production site. Consider setting up a test site just to play around with the new version. If you are using an existing testing site, be sure to update the Gutenberg plugin to its latest version – 4.1. To test WordPress 5.0, try the WordPress Beta Tester plugin (you’ll want “bleeding edge nightlies”). Or you can download the beta here (zip).

Highlights in WordPress 5.0 Beta 1

The new editor for WordPress, the Gutenberg Editor has been introduced as the default editor in WordPress 5.0 Beta 1.  The block editor provides a modern, media-rich editing experience. You can create flexible, beautiful content without writing a single line of code, or you can dive into the modern programming APIs that the block editor provides.

And if you’re not ready for the change, you can install the Classic Editor Plugin. It will keep the classic editor as the default editor even after upgrading to WordPress 5.0.

Another interesting update in WordPress 5.0 Beta 1 is that you will now see a new default theme, Twenty Nineteen. The new theme is simple, clean and easy-on-the-eye. With its simplicity and sophisticated typography, the theme sure looks elegant and fresh. The theme’s aesthetic is minimal and non-prescriptive, allowing the theme to work well in a variety of applications. It sure is ideal for simple blogging websites, however, it is also suitable for static business websites. Twenty Nineteen theme comes with full Gutenberg support. The theme includes both front and back-end styles. With that, you will be able to present your website’s appearance gracefully.

In this newly introduced Beta phase, all the previous default themes have been updated to include block editor styles.

WordPress 5.0 is scheduled for release on November 19 and the development team can surely use all the help they can get. If you think you’ve found a bug, you can post to the Alpha/Beta area in the support forums. If you’re comfortable writing a reproducible bug report, file one on WordPress Trac, where you can also find a list of known bugs.

 

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