Classic Editor: WordPress Plugin Tutorial

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FreeAll 13 lessons, with captions and chapters. Open the playlist on YouTube →

1. Block Editor vs Classic Editor: What's the Difference?
   From the lesson

   “Welcome to the Classic Editor course. Before we install anything, let's get clear on what this plugin actually changes, who should keep it, and why the WordPress project calls it a bridge rather than a destination. WordPress ships with one editor today, the block editor. The Classic Editor plugin brings back the older screen. Here they are side by side. The block editor is a canvas.” Watch the full lesson →

2. How to Install and Activate the Classic Editor Plugin
   From the lesson

   “In this lesson we install the Classic Editor plugin and watch what it changes. The change is easy to see, because it happens on one menu click. Before the plugin, clicking Add Post opens the block editor. After it, the same click opens the classic editing screen. And nothing gets converted along the way. Here is the plan, in four steps. First, we look at the block editor.” Watch the full lesson →

3. Let Users Choose Their Own Editor in WordPress
   From the lesson

   “This lesson is about the first two layers of the switching model: the site default and the personal preference. The site default is one setting everyone inherits. Once switching is allowed, each person can pick their own editor on their profile. Allowing switching is a trade-off. Let's weigh both sides first. Yes gives a mixed team the screen each person is productive in.” Watch the full lesson →

4. Switch a Single Post Between Classic and Block Editor
   From the lesson

   “Once switching is allowed, the plugin adds controls for each single post in three places. This lesson visits all three. Row actions on the Posts list offer both editors for any post. Inside the block editor, the Options menu can switch to classic. And on the classic screen, an Editor box links back to blocks.” Watch the full lesson →

5. Why Your Post Opens in the Editor It Did
   From the lesson

   “This lesson covers layer three of the model. It's the one that surprises people. Every post remembers the last editor it was opened in. That memory beats both the user preference and the site default. And the row actions can still override it for one visit. We'll prove it with a small experiment. To the screen. First we confirm our own preference is set to classic.” Watch the full lesson →

6. Classic Editor Tour: Title, Permalink, and Saving Drafts
   From the lesson

   “This lesson is a guided tour of the classic Edit Post screen. Once you know where everything lives, the writing lessons that follow will feel natural. At the top sit the title and its permalink. Then the Visual and Code tabs, the toolbar, and the writing area. And boxes to the right and below, every one of them movable and hideable.” Watch the full lesson →

7. Format Text in the Classic Editor: Headings, Bold, Lists, and Links
   From the lesson

   “In this lesson we format a real draft: a heading, a quote, bold and italic, a list, and a link. Then we open the Code tab and fix one thing by hand. The rhythm is simple: put the cursor where you want, then click a toolbar button. The Code tab shows the HTML those buttons produced. And when formatting gets stubborn, you fix the HTML directly. Here's the sequence.” Watch the full lesson →

8. Add Pictures, Captions, and Galleries to a WordPress Post
   From the lesson

   “This lesson is about images. On the classic screen, inserting one image, building a gallery, and picking a featured image all start from a single Add Media button. You insert an image and choose how it sits, how big it is, and where it links. A caption is stored with the picture and shown underneath it.” Watch the full lesson →

9. Schedule, Password-Protect, and Restore Posts in WordPress
   From the lesson

   “This lesson covers the boxes around the writing area, starting with the most important one, Publish. Save Draft keeps a post private, Publish makes it public, and Schedule picks a date. Visibility can protect a post with a password. Categories, tags, and the excerpt decide where and how the post is listed. And revisions let you step back to an earlier version.” Watch the full lesson →

10. Edit Pages and Custom Post Types in the Classic Editor
    From the lesson

    “So far we've only edited posts. This lesson shows the classic screen on pages and on a custom post type, then adds the second half of the classic stack. Pages open in the classic screen too, and they add a Page Attributes box. A post type built without block support always opens the classic screen. And Classic Widgets restores the old Widgets screen.” Watch the full lesson →

11. Set the Default Editor for a WordPress Multisite Network
    From the lesson

    “This is a concept lesson about multisite. We'll use the plugin's real labels, so you'll recognise each screen when you meet it. First, what multisite actually is. A network is one WordPress installation running many separate sites. Each site has its own administrators, and a super administrator sits above them all. And plugins can be switched on for the whole network, all at once.” Watch the full lesson →

12. Fix Editor Plugin Conflicts and Update Classic Editor Safely
    From the lesson

    “Classic Editor isn't the only plugin that can switch editors. This lesson stages the most common collision on purpose, so you can recognise it. Classic Editor is the official one, with two settings. Disable Gutenberg is a popular third-party plugin with rules per role, post type, and template. The rule is simple: pick one. Two of them produce settings that silently do nothing. Here's the plan.” Watch the full lesson →

13. How to Move From Classic Editor to the Block Editor
    From the lesson

    “This last lesson is the exit path. The order matters, so here it is before we touch anything. Back up first. Test the whole sequence on a staging copy. With the plugin still active, set the block editor as the default. That keeps an escape hatch. Only then deactivate the plugin. And the reassurance: nothing in this lesson destroys content.” Watch the full lesson →

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