Can't edit Permalink

[maddisondesigns]

After publishing the page, there's no option to allow you to edit your permalink. The only way you can edit the permalink is using the Quick Edit link on the page that lists all your Posts.

Sometimes people make mistakes when adding your page title. If you've published the page, you need to be able to edit the Permalink because simply changing the page title wont change it.

[paaljoachim]

An edit button will be added beside the copy permalink button. (I do not know why it is not added yet.) Thanks for bringing it up!

[maddisondesigns]

Great to hear, but where's the copy permalink button? I don't see that anywhere either. I presume that also needs to be added.

[jasmussen]

Discussing in #1042 (comment)

[jasmussen]

The permalink UI shows up when you've saved your post, and click the title.

Considering this seems to be causing some discoverability issues, we should revisit this.

[jasmussen]

Here's a mockup for the current behavior:

Here's an older mockup:

[maddisondesigns]

Ahhh ok. Yeah, that's not very Intuitive. No-one will find that. At least, not on purpose anyway.

It would be much better if the Permalink was on display all the time, in a similar position to what it currently is.

You could show it slightly fainter when people are editing their content.

When hovering your cursor over it, that's when you'd show the Copy & Edit button, and make it slightly darker.

[buzztone]

It would be much better if the Permalink was on display all the time, in a similar position to what it currently is.

Interested to hear why you feel this information should be displayed permanently.

For me it's something I only want to see when I want to edit it. I've always found its display in the current WP UI annoying.

Also showing the Permalink when I click on the Title to edit it seemed natural & obvious to me.

[maddisondesigns]

@buzztone Personally, I like to know the URL that's generated when I save a page. It's annoying that it's been hidden and it's not intuitive, the way it is at the moment. It doesn't even show when you hover your cursor over the page title, you have to actually click on it for it to display. You don't have to click on the Page title on the existing edit screens to be able to view the Permalink. It's just there. I know I certainly didn't think to click on the page title to view it.

From an SEO perspective, plugins like Yoast provide the option to automatically remove stopwords from your slugs. Sometimes though, it's more useful to actually keep these words in as it provides a more user readable URL, depending on the page. These stopwords are obviously only going to be removed once the permalink is generated so it's an extra step that you have to take, clicking on the page title to check the url, rather than just being able to see it there.

Not only that, having the URL on display acts as a convenient link to the page preview (and yes, I realise there's a Preview button. There's also a Preview button on the existing editor screens). Also, the Permalink shows on the current Post/Page edit pages. This new editing experience is going to be confusing for some people, removing/hiding too many of the existing features is just going to make it even more confusing for them.

[buzztone]

It doesn't even show when you hover your cursor over the page title

Showing the Permalink when you hover over the Title would I believe provide a sufficiently strong similarity to the existing UI to avoid confusion among existing users, if that is considered worthwhile.

[maddisondesigns]

@buzztone That would certainly be an improvement, than having to click on it. Interested to know why you don't want it on display all the time.

[buzztone]

Interested to know why you don't want it on display all the time.

I see the Gutenberg Editor creating an entirely new editing experience for WordPress which is very different from the current editor & much more user friendly, particularly for novice users.

In this context I see the permanent display of the Permalink as a historical artifact.

To me it's an ancillary part of the editing process. I don't see it as any more significant than the other overall post info such as Status, Visibility, Published on etc. which are included in Post Settings.

Personally I'd be happy to see the Permalink only in Post Settings but I understand the need to include it in roughly its current location to help existing users find it easily.

[ntwb]

I'm also erring on the side of having the ability to always see the permalink.

An example where I see it being beneficial is with hierarchical post types, the URL makes for a quick visual reference of where a page is located in the the page hierarchy...

[jasmussen]

It seems like there's a wide agreement that we want to find a considered place for the permalink. One that isn't visible in a mystery meat kind of way, but also one that isn't intrusive.

How about we revisit the basic design pattern of the blocks, and look at a different way of surfacing things. Right now the mockups for the block looks like this:

The mover on the left, and the advanced buttons on the right show up on hover. We could leverage that pattern.

Hover over the title:

Click the link icon:

Alternately if we want it still more visible, we could just always show the link icon next to the title. This is what we do on WordPress.com, and it's working well:

[maddisondesigns]

@jasmussen I like the suggestion of showing the link icon next to the title. It keeps a clear indicator of the page link visible, whilst also keeping it fairly minimal and unobtrusive.

[buzztone]

The link icon makes its purpose very clear but is also minimal and unobtrusive.

Showing the link icon permanently next to the title also has the advantage of distinguishing the Title block from other blocks.

I personally found the visual similarity with Header blocks confusing. I initially thought it was a Header and was confused by what I saw in Post Settings.

I do think its important to make clear to users that this block is the Title.

[jasmussen]

Seems like we have some consensus here. Let's try this pattern then.

[aduth]

Related: #577

[paaljoachim]

I agree having the link icon to the left of the title show up on hover seems nice and non-obtrusive. It creates a clear difference from the title and a regular block.

[GaryJones]

I like the link icon, but also feel the slug may better be changed within the context of the Post Settings tab, rather than floating somewhere in the editor (easier for mobile users?).

[jasmussen]

The only problem with moving it to post settings is that it removes it for people who decide to dismiss the post settings box on desktop (for immersivenes), and hides it behind a cog on mobile.

[GaryJones]

The only problem with moving it to post settings is that it removes it for people who decide to dismiss the post settings box on desktop (for immersivenes), and hides it behind a cog on mobile.

Right - but this is a value that is:

• automatically set to a usually somewhat sensible default by WP.
• only typically changed, if at all, once per post.

This occasional action, doesn't need to be permanently displayed. To me, it falls under the same type of ready-to-publish settings as changing the publish date, or status, or author, or setting a password.

[tonyzeoli]

I'm running a multisite network with one test site. I see the Permalink hover over the Post Title, however, I do not see the Edit button.

https://cloudup.com/cOr7M0eQfNB

Also, the Permalink itself does not display the resulting words in the URL. It still displays the query ID.

[folletto]

I like the link icon, but also feel the slug may better be changed within the context of the Post Settings tab, rather than floating somewhere in the editor (easier for mobile users?).

The only problem with moving it to post settings is that it removes it for people who decide to dismiss the post settings box on desktop (for immersivenes), and hides it behind a cog on mobile.

I'd consider too in adding it to the sidebar inspector when no item is selected or the publish panel dropdown.

This because:

1. The URL is a "page-level" thing, not related to a specific block. It's higher in the IA hierarchy.
2. The title might not be there in the future (as it's going to be "just a block" for title-less posts, so we shouldn't tie it to the title.
3. It's an advanced feature: a user that just posts without the sidebar open can just write and publish.
4. It's not something one should care while writing, it's more related to publishing.
5. As others said, doesn't have to be permanently displayed.

[jasmussen]

What would it look like if the permalink was in the sidebar? Would it be its own panel, or could we put it in another?

[folletto]

It's a good question. A new "URL" panel (with field, copy, and maybe a link to the permalink configuration page) seem making sense (as also could be extended by plugins to provide shortening features) — but I see also reasons for it to be inside others. "Discussion" as the URL is often shared, "Status" as it's a form of status.

Thinking again, it seems making more sense inside the Publish dropdown (#708) once it gets built?
(see also the more advanced proposal I mocked up a while ago for customizer here).

[jasmussen]

I like the permalink in the dropdown idea very much.

[GlennMartin1]

@themightymo As of Gutenberg 2.4, not yet.

Here's the active PR: #5756

[themightymo]

@GlennMartin1 Thanks so much for pointing me there!

[parkercreates]

Would it be possible to have a Gutenberg config menu that allows users to choose what information to be "permanently displayed" such as permalink info custom fields etc...? I am enjoying writing within Gutenberg so far.

[TechRemarker]

Trying out Gutenberg for the first time, and clicked around on the sidebar, and the "..." and didn't find the edit/view permalink option anywhere. Thankfully searched here and found it. In it's current implementation certainly not intuitive location but hopefully changes are still being made in this regard to make it more intuitive for new users while also keeping the interface minimal.

[luc122c]

I've just had my first proper play with Gutenberg today and this stumped me. I looked all over to try and change the slug.

Surely this is something that could go on the cog menu under document somewhere along with the Post Status and Visibility? Not once did I consider clicking the title, because it wasn't the title that I wanted to edit!

[jaclyntan]

I too could not figure out where the permalink feature was until I came here. Even then there's no option to alter the slug once the post is published? Or has the feature not been implemented yet? (nvm figured it out...)
Design-wise it makes no sense to make it appear when you click on the title. Can the permalink block just be visible on all pages above the title?

[ernilambar]

I had to Google How to change permalink in Gutenberg and came here to find out about editing permalink.

[maddisondesigns]

For those that have added a comment recently about not being able to find where to change the permalink, you might want to add a comment to #8949 as this issue that you've commented on (#1285), is currently closed.

[syamsulalam]

I had to Google How to change permalink in Gutenberg and came here to find out about editing permalink.

Me too, i had to google "gutenberg slug quick edit" to arrive here to find ways to quick edit my slug. Anyone thinking to hide it must be so crazy he/she had to be tied down & slapped silly.

[asangam]

Had to come here just to edit the permanlink. Clicking the title after saving didn't work for. I had to manually go to
to make the changes. Any better way to quick edit? The most is i want to see what URL Wordpress gives after a page has been published.

[ICeZer0]

When I click on the title, the permalink displays without an edit button. I can only open in new tab or copy the url

[paaljoachim]

@ICeZer0
Open a new issue and share some screenshots. Browser your using, Gutenberg plugin version, WordPress version etc. Go through the steps mentioned. It might be a plugin or theme conflict issue. We need information to be able to figure out what is going on so we can help you in the best possible way. Thanks.

[CharisaL308]

@ICeZer0 I had the same issue. I could fix it by changing my permalink settings to
"post name". That way the slug actually had an effect on my url and enabled me to change it. Suddenly all the edit options and settings for the URL became available.

Here is the link where I got the solution. https://wpdeveloper.net/change-permalinks-wordpress/?unapproved=221903&moderation-hash=07ac4091caccec45322cceb9f9bb4dfd#comment-221903

Hope it helps you too.

[maddisondesigns]

@paaljoachim Is the Edit Permalink option (on the Page title) being removed from a future version of Gutenberg? I really hope not because that would be a horrible decision.

In WordPress 5.4.1 you can see the Permalink and get an Edit button

With the Gutenberg plugin (v8.2.1) enabled, you don't get a single thing. It doesn't even display the Permalink when the title is clicked!

Is this a bug or just a really poor decision that's been made?

[paaljoachim]

Hey Anthony. @maddisondesigns

The issue (I linked to a comment) : #5494 (comment)

Reasons why to remove it.
The post/page title will become an optional block. Title will be moved to the top bar #22621

There are also accessibility concerns in relation to how editing permalink by selecting the post/page title worked. (See the above issue comment which links to a discussion in accessibility.)

There is now a permalink section/panel in the sidebar. Which from my limited experience works well.

[maddisondesigns]

@paaljoachim Is the Post/Page title block going to be a new Block Type (i.e. one specifically for the Page/Post title), or will we be using the existing Heading Block to add Page/Post titles? If it's going to be a new Post/Page Title Block, then there's no reason why you can't also add an 'Edit Permalink' icon to the Block toolbar. The Permalink Panel in the Settings Sidebar is hard to find at the moment because most times when editing a page, a block is selected, so you rarely see the Document tab, so few people know that Panel even exists.

Moving the Page title to the Top Bar is another horrible idea as it's just going to make that area more cluttered than what it currently is, especially for users that don't have large screens. If it's moved to the Top Bar, does that mean it'll be removed from the appearing in the actual content area of the page? If it's not removed, is it just going to be displayed on the Page twice, leading to even more confusion? Moving it to the Top Bar is also going to make the average Page/Post title unreadable as they aren't two or three words long and they'll need to be truncated to fit into the available space.

The instance of hiding/obfuscating so many items and elements within the editor is just mind boggling! The Add block icons between each block, no longer display when hovering over each block. You have to actually hover the cursor between the blocks for 2-3 seconds before it appears. Block outlines no longer appear which makes it incredibly difficult to select some items/blocks as you have no idea where to click, and in turn, make it hard to determine where one block ends and another begins so it's hard to display the aforementioned Add block icon. Trying to add a block to the end of your content is now more difficult because there's no indication of where you need to click since you only show a tiny + icon. I could go on and on.

Each version of Gutenberg gets worse and worse, and harder to use because you insist on hiding so many elements. Then there's elements that you do want to hide that you now can't, like the various Block sections within the Block Inserter. Now, instead of being able to browse the different types of blocks, you have to scroll pages and pages of icons to try to find the block you want. There are usability issues that are 2 and 3 years old that still haven't been resolved, but sure, lets keep adding new features which in turn will just add a whole bunch of new issues that make it harder for people to use.

[paaljoachim]

Hey @maddisondesigns

I will answer to the best of my knowledge.

Is the Post/Page title block going to be a new Block Type (i.e. one specifically for the Page/Post title), or will we be using the existing Heading Block to add Page/Post titles?

Post/Page title will become a new Block. One that can only be added once per page/post.

The Permalink Panel in the Settings Sidebar is hard to find at the moment because most times when editing a page, a block is selected, so you rarely see the Document tab, so few people know that Panel even exists.

That is a good point. You might need to raise a new issue for this, or if your around in 4.5 hours you could ask about this during the Core Editor Meeting in the core-editor channel on Slack.

Moving the Page title to the Top Bar is another horrible idea as it's just going to make that area more cluttered than what it currently is, especially for users that don't have large screens.

Check this issue: #20877

....does that mean it'll be removed from the appearing in the actual content area of the page?

The page/post title becomes a block making it optional for a user to add it to the layout. If the user does not want the title visible on the frontend then he/she will not add the title block to the layout.

The Add block icons between each block, no longer display when hovering over each block. You have to actually hover the cursor between the blocks for 2-3 seconds before it appears.

There is a new issue for this to shorten the amount of time before the inserter appears.
#22801

Block outlines no longer appear which makes it incredibly difficult to select some items/blocks as you have no idea where to click, and in turn, make it hard to determine where one block ends and another begins so it's hard to display the aforementioned Add block icon.

I agree.

Each version of Gutenberg gets worse and worse, and harder to use because you insist on hiding so many elements.

G2 the new visual style used is still being worked on and is gradually being improved.

Then there's elements that you do want to hide that you now can't, like the various Block sections within the Block Inserter. Now, instead of being able to browse the different types of blocks, you have to scroll pages and pages of icons to try to find the block you want.

I see what you mean. One has to scroll the blocks sections because there are no accordions to open and close.

There are usability issues that are 2 and 3 years old that still haven't been resolved...

There are over 2000 issues. There are also different view points to what one feels is important. There is also an overall goal of the forward movement of Gutenberg. Regarding the issues. Do you happen to have links for these?

Thank you very much for your comments Anthony!

[maddisondesigns]

@paaljoachim Thanks for those detailed explanations. I appreciate that.
That issue for the Top Bar header has some good explanations regarding the current thinking for that particular change. Thanks for the link. I'm also glad to see there's an issue to reduce that 'Add block' inserter icon delay. Re usability issues, there's no actual Usability label used within the Gutenberg repo so the closest thing I can perform searches on is the Accessibility (a11y) label, a lot of which pertain to usability as well. I wasn't referring to any specifically, but there's pages and pages outstanding, going all the way back to Apr 2017.

[paaljoachim]

You're welcome Anthony!

Some issues in a sense get stuck, and can stay that way for a long time. For various reasons such as the time was not right to work on the issue, or it did not have high enough priority to be worked at at the time, or no one had the time to work on it or any other reason.

The oldest issue "Improve "Visibility" and "Publish" labels in Post Settings" has finally lately received additional attention. #470 We got a design in place and now a developer needs to find time to work on it.

[afercia]

Is the Edit Permalink option (on the Page title) being removed from a future version of Gutenberg?

The Edit Permalink UI is now in the Document sidebar.