In the most recent update to Glow blogs we updated the version of Jetpack that we use. Jetpack no longer supports Additional CSS. This is no longer available from the customiser or in the Styles of the Site Editor.
CSS already added to sites continues to function. Native WordPress support Additional CSS but not in multi-sites like Glow Blogs. The developers are investigating how to implement this and we hope to enable Additional CSS soon.
Some sites with the Jetpack plugin enabled do not have a link in the Dashboard Sidebar.
Our developers are aware of the problem and are working on a fix.
The Jetpack settings can be accessed from the Plugins screen:
Clicking on the Settings link under the Jetpack listing will take you to the Jetpack settings.
Unfortunatly there is not a link to the Auto Reply page which allows you to reply automatically to contact forms. You can find that by adding /wp-admin/admin.php?page=jetpack_auto_reply_settings to the url of your blog.
Glow Blogs has just had a fairly large update.
Glow Blogs is now using wordPress 6.6.2. This bring quite a lot of new features, especially to the Block & Site Editor.
Quite a few plugins have been updated too. Two of these, Max Mega Menus & SyntaxHighlighter Evolved now provide blocks to make it easier to use these in the Block or Site Editor.
The Site Editor especially has had many enhancements and improvements. If you are interested in spending time customising and designing your site it is worth a look.
The Site editor is now a central area to manage Design, Navigation(menus), Styles, Pages, Templates & Patterns. The Site Editor on Glow Blog now match that in the Site Editor – Documentation on WordPress.org .
There are some new blocks including:
The Gird Block is one of the container blocks that can be used to organize multiple blocks and adjust the height, width, and position of all blocks inside the container.
Grid block – Documentation – WordPress.org
The Grid block will allow you to create very complex layouts.
The Details block displays a text summary and an arrow button: When you click on the text or the button, the block opens and reveals additional content on the page.
and Footnotes1
There is a new Block Theme Twenty Twenty-Four
Twenty Twenty-Four is designed to be flexible, versatile and applicable to any website. Its collection of templates and patterns tailor to different needs, such as presenting a business, blogging and writing or showcasing work. A multitude of possibilities open up with just a few adjustments to color and typography. Twenty Twenty-Four comes with style variations and full page designs to help speed up the site building process, is fully compatible with the site editor, and takes advantage of new design tools introduced in WordPress 6.4. Twenty Twenty-Four | WordPress Theme | WordPress.org
Here is a great video that explains some of the best new features in less than 7 minutes:
Note there are still some issues on Glow Blogs you can keep up to date with them on the Issues page.
An issue with H5P content types has arisen.
If you try to install some content types you will get an error. The problem seems to be because the H5P API has been updated but the version used by theWordPress plugin does not now match it. Technical Details here.
Modules affected: AR Scavenger, Branching Scenario, Document Tool, Game Map & Quiz (Question Set)
If you had already installed these types they will still work and you can create new content with the versions installed.
We hope to have a fix in place by the end of November 2024
This tutorial shows how to make a simple site with Glow Blogs. You can read through the tutorial or follow along on the videos.
The tutorial will use the Twenty Sixteen theme & the block editor.
This will be a Class Blog that a teacher, or teacher & pupils could use to share news from their class.
The tutorial will also help you to understand some of the basics of the Block editor.
You need to logon to Glow when you visit the site. It contains example images and text created with the aid of ChatGPT and other AI tools. This text should not be taken seriously.
This is the one of several tutorials sites that are in the works. We would very much appreciate any feedback.
There is a problem with the display of widgets when editing them. This only happens with a classic theme on newly created sites. It does not affect older sites.
When a new site is created it comes with a pre-installed set of widgets. This is theme dependent.
When you go to edit the widgets in this scenario the pre installed widgets show up labeled ‘block’ in the widget editor. They still work on the front page of the site but may cause confusion.
Adding more widgets to the sidebars and other widget areas is not affected, these show up as expected.
This seems to be a side effect of our transition from the classic editor and classic themes.
We are looking at fixing this but it is a tricky problem.
We are pleased to announce a new release for Glow Blogs, which includes several fixes and updates to plugins and themes.
Embedding Sways: Microsoft recently changed the URLs for Sway embeds, which disrupted the embedding process on Glow Blogs. The developers have now improved this process. We’ve also updated the help documentation to show how to embed a Sway in Glow Blogs moving forward.
H5P Results: If you provide H5P content for your learners, a bug affecting the display of results has been fixed. You can find more information about the H5P results system on the H5P example site.
Glow Analytics: A bug that affected viewing analytics on very old Glow Blogs has been resolved.
Accessibility: Various accessibility improvements have been made across the service, including updates to the “Create a Site” page.
The following plugins have been updated to newer versions:
3D flipbook, Akismet, Event Organiser, H5P, Userway Acessibility, WordPress Importer, WP Accessibility, WP Draw Attention, WP Postratings and Youtube Embed Plus
These themes have been updated
Twenty Twelve, Twenty Thirteen, Twenty Fourteen, Twenty Fifeteen, Twenty Sixteen, Twenty Seventeen, Twenty Nineteen, Twenty Twenty, Twenty TwentyOne, Twenty TwentyTwo and Twenty TwentyThree.
Please note that the Make and Agama themes have not been updated by their designers for some time. These themes are often used for more complex site designs. To ensure longevity, it may be advisable to use the Site Editor and the Twenty Twenty-Two or Twenty Twenty-Three themes for more complex site designs.
We hope to upgrade the WordPress version used on Glow Blogs soon and add the Twenty Twenty-Four theme. The improvements to the Site Editor in that version of WordPress may assist you with site design beyond what you can achieve with classic themes.
There are currently many Glow Blogs that haven’t been used or updated for some time. To improve performance, we will conduct a housekeeping exercise before the end of the year to remove old and unused Glow Blogs. This will only affect blogs with no users and no recent updates. These blogs will be archived first, allowing people to check if they are still needed. More details and dates for the Glow Blogs Housekeeping will be shared soon.
Digital Tidy Up of Glow Blogs – Glow Connect
A few quick tips that might help at the start of this new session.
Your RM Unify Admin, who may be in your establishment or Local Authority will be able to help.
An Admin of the blog should be able to add you. Adding Users, Setting Roles | Glow Blog Help
You need to get your Local Authority to raise a call with the RM help desk.
Make sure you include the usernames you want added to a blog and the URL of the blog.
If you have just be added to the blog, get an admin for the blog check you have been added in the right way. If you are showing as NOT LOGGED IN YET, see this FAQ. If that doesn’t help you need to get your Local Authority to raise a call with the RM help desk.
Make sure you include your username and the URL of the blog.
News from the last year on Glow Blogs:
The Blocks Editor is a new way to edit posts and pages. It allows a lot more flexibility as to content and layout. We have a blog that explains more: Using the Blocks Editor in Glow Blogs.
The site editor is a new way to edit the look and design of your site. It goes much further than changing themes. More improvements should come to Glow Blogs in the session, when we wil provide more information.
Accessibility they are new ways to make you sites accessibly to different visitors. Accessibility is becoming even more important in web design and should be considered for all public blogs.
H5P is a plugin that allows you to create & display on your site a whole range of interactive content, from quizzes, multi-choice and close exercises all the way to 360 tours. H5p examples
We have developed a few more help sites in addition to the main Glow Blogs help. Here is a list of other help sites on Glow Blogs.
We hope to have more help material and tutorials up very soon. These may be accompanied by some help sessions online.
As always ideas and suggestions for improving Glow Blogs and the support are very welcome.
Glow Connect has some advice on Back to School Glow Housekeeping including advice on doing a Digital Tidy Up of Glow Blogs.
Susan Sey, Education Scotland Product Manager ran a Glow Blogs Webinar last week.
This session provided an overview of how Glow Blogs could be used by practitioners and students to capture and exemplify learning.
Glow Blogs Webinar – Glow Connect
There was a live demo showcasing how you can build pages using the new block editor.
We also looked at how you can embed interactivity by using the H5P plugin.
You can download the presentation, follow links and watch a replay on Glow Connect.
This tutorial shows how to make a one page site with Glow Blogs. You can read through the tutorial or follow along on the Video.
The tutorial will cover using the block editor, patterns & the document overview.
This will be a Links in Bio type of page or site that is common on the internet now, sometimes called Link Trees sites. There are several services that will help you create such a site but it is pretty easy with Glow Blogs.
You could add a page like this to an existing site or create a a one page site just for sharing a set of links.
The tutorial will also help you to understand some of the basics of the Block editor.
The site will be a simple list of links. I might use it to provide a set of resources, or list different places on the internet I’ve got a presence.
You can view the completed one page example site.
This is the first of several tutorials sites that are in the works. We would very much appreciate any feedback.
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