Footer Widgets Seemingly Impossible
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I am getting very frustrated with WordPress blocks. I’m using Canard. The footer blocks are not sizing themselves properly in desktop mode. I checked the forums. I have tried so many options that I fear I ‘broke’ the Canard CSS layout. I am not a newbie, not expert, but experienced using WordPress. So what is wrong with Canard? Or what must I do to get the footer widgets working properly?
WP.com: Yes
Correct account: YesThe blog I need help with is: (visible only to moderators and staff)
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Hi there,
This is on https://florydance.wordpress.com/, correct?
It appears that your Tag Cloud widget is added at the bottom of multiple layers of column blocks. To see what I mean, you can visit the Widgets page at https://florydance.wordpress.com/wp-admin/widgets.php
Click the three horizontal lines at the top to expand the list view column. Like the post/page editor, that shows all the blocks you have added to the widget area:
Move your tag cloud block and the paragraph block containing it’s title, up to the first-level column block highlighted in that screen shot (you should be able to drag-and-drop them directly in the list view), and then delete the extra column blocks that should now be empty.
That should fix things, but if it still doesn’t look right, let me know and I can take another look for the next steps from there :)
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Hi Kokkieh,
Thanks for your astute and quick support (and exact illustration).
I’m afraid I am still on a learning curve with the Canard theme.
While I cleared out all my widget ‘debris’ (in all widgets), started over, and made a *little* progress, the footer widgets still don’t align properly (as shown in the demo of the theme). They go into a spread out array, rather than ‘normal’, keeping widget headers above their corresponding blocks.
I am simply trying to create the basic footer layout, as seen in the live demo. I have literally tried almost everything. [Good practice working with blocks.]
Wondering if I have put each ‘set’ in a *group* design layout, to keep them together? [For example, so that: Tags header stays *above* tag cloud.] *Any* column design layout seems to break the design in desktop view.
Footer widgets seem persnickety in this theme. It is a bit maddening. Should I switch to Varia?
Any advice would be appreciated.
Thanks (in advance).
Christopher
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Hi Christopher,
I am simply trying to create the basic footer layout, as seen in the live demo. I have literally tried almost everything. [Good practice working with blocks.]
Okay, I can tell you the problem isn’t you, it’s us (or Canard, rather) :)
Canard is an older theme, and more specifically, it was made before block widgets were introduced into WordPress (which only happened last year). Canard automatically spreads out widgets you add over four columns, adding each new widget to the next column, starting again at column 1 once you add widget number 5.
With the block widgets, it’s treating each block as a new widget, so if you have a heading block and a tag cloud block, Canard things it’s two widgets, and places them next to each other instead of in the same column.
Wondering if I have put each ‘set’ in a *group* design layout, to keep them together? [For example, so that: Tags header stays *above* tag cloud.]
That’s exactly what I would do, yes, group each widget and its respective heading together using the Widget Group block:
To do this, hold Shift and select all the blocks for the particular widget, then convert the block type as shown in the screen shot. You’ll see the Header block will disappear, with the heading content then being set as the block title instead.
I took the screen shot on the Widgets page again so I can show the list view, but if you make this change in the Customizer instead, you’ll see the widgets starting to arrange themselves in columns as you go.
*Any* column design layout seems to break the design in desktop view.
That’s because the columns block conflicts with Canard’s dynamic column creation – Canard is essentially seeing the top-level Columns block as one widget, no matter how many individual columns you add under that block, so it ends up squashing everything into the first column. I didn’t realise this when I replied to you on Wednesday, but having played around with this some more I can now see this is the issue.
Should I switch to Varia?
Varia, and the various other themes we have that were based on Varia, were all created for the block editor, and have good support for block widgets, so it’s definitely something you can consider. But with the Widget Group block you should be able to get Canard looking the way you want.
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Hi again Kokkieh,
Just want to thank you for helping out. Thanks!
Yes, as (we both) suspected; the answer for Carnard footer widget issues is: Use the group settings. It solved it. I post this so others may possibly save time (and frustration).
In my humble opinion, Carnard is a very useful template, and most worthy of a ‘blocks-able refresh’, and maybe a few tweaks. So, please pass that on.
Two last (tangential questions), if you don’t mind:
1. I notice the Varia theme is the basis for many originally (newer) block-oriented themes. Is Varia the underlying base theme for most or all themes now?
2. User privacy settings are quite layered, which is good. Is there any level/layer of privacy where WP.com staff do NOT have access? And if not, would that universally apply to other hosts of WordPress, where the administrators of the host service would be in the same ‘keep best privacy yet access’ bind?
[I offered my suggestion to privacy staff at WP.com to remind and/or inform users/clients, ON the initial support pages, to make sure users know accounts will be accessed, in order to get real support. NOTE: My suggestion was a general one, and in no way a reflects support staff, like you, who are doing a great job. It is simply an ‘awareness of policies/methods in action’ issue. I have only good things to say about support staff.]
If you get a chance, I would to learn more about Varia and themes and the privacy levels.
Thanks again.
Christopher
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Hi there,
I notice the Varia theme is the basis for many originally (newer) block-oriented themes. Is Varia the underlying base theme for most or all themes now?
It’s typical for our theme team to use a “starter theme” as the basis for many of the themes we create, and this has been the case for many years. Varia was used as the starter theme for a long time, but based on some of the most recent releases, they may be using something newer.
The short answer is that it’s changing all the time, especially true now that the Full Site Editor has been released and will continue to see refinements and new features (and new themes will be launched to make use of those)
2. User privacy settings are quite layered, which is good. Is there any level/layer of privacy where WP.com staff do NOT have access? And if not, would that universally apply to other hosts of WordPress, where the administrators of the host service would be in the same ‘keep the best privacy yet access’ bind?
By mentioning other hosts, you may be aware that there is also a self-hosted version of the WordPress platform, which allows you to create sites on a “traditional web host” like Bluehost, GoDaddy, etc.
In instances where total privacy is preferred, we recommend this self-hosted option, as traditional hosts will not have access to your site. The downside is that it’s a very DIY version of the platform, where you need to provide your own security, software updates, and support (which hosts do not offer)
By contrast, we are a fully managed service, so we provide all of those things (security, updates, login protection, and in-house support) that you would typically need to handle yourself. To do that, though, requires that we maintain at least some level of access to sites we host, so we do not offer that as an option here.
Hope that helps. Please let us know if you have any more questions.
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