Embed YouTube Block – Fast Loading Videos, Shorts & Playlists vs Ollie Menu Designer

The default embed block for YouTube videos sucks. It slows down your site. The more videos on the page the more it slow. This single-block plugin fixes that. Why this block is better than the default one: Instead of loading the entire iframe, only the video thumbnail is loaded, resulting in significant performance improvements Ability to play multiple different videos as a custom playlist or input a playlist ID to play the whole playlist Ability to use a custom image as the video thumbnail Ability to set a custom aspect ratio value for displaying any kind of YouTube videos Ability to loop continuously once it finishes playing Ability to show related videos from the same channel as the initial video Automatically load the video title as the caption The same UI as the default core/embed, and you can use the video title as the caption of the block with one click It can be transformed from/to the core embed block. Automatically convert all default core embed YouTube blocks to this block with one line of code. This plugin also provides a PHP API for developers to render a YouTube video URL as this block; or to automatically transform core/embed YouTube videos into this block. The simplest example is: better_youtube_embed_block_render_block( ['url' => 'https://youtu.be/paSXmpHU9K4'] ); The example with all the parameters is: better_youtube_embed_block_render_block( [ 'url' => 'https://youtu.be/paSXmpHU9K4', 'aspectRatio' => '16/9', 'isMaxResThumbnail' => false, 'thumbnailFormat' => 'jpg', 'caption' => 'My awesome video', 'caption_kses' => false, 'customThumbnail' => 'https://example.com/bg.jpg', 'settings' => ['loop' => 1, 'rel' => 0], 'echo' => false, ] ); To automatically transform all core/embed YouTube videos on your site to this block, you need to put the following code to the wp-config.php file or your theme/plugin: define('BYEB_SPEED_UP_YOUTUBE_VIDEOS', true); or add_filter( 'byeb_speed_up_youtube_videos', '__return_true' ); On iOS, browsers like Safari and Chrome require two clicks to play videos. If you want to allow users to play videos with a single click, you need to add the following code to the wp-config.php file or your theme/plugin: define('BYEB_FORCE_IFRAME_ON_UNSUPPORTED_BROWSERS', true); Please check out this page to see how fast it helps. The page contains around 30 embedded YouTube videos but they don’t slow down the page. If this plugin is useful for you, please do a quick review and rate it on WordPress.org to help us spread the word. I would very much appreciate it. Please check out my other plugins if you’re interested: Content Blocks Builder – Build custom layouts and blocks visually in the Block Editor without needing a code editor, using only core blocks and native Gutenberg features. Meta Field Block – A single block to display custom fields in the Block Editor without coding. It supports ACF, MetaBox, WooCommerce, meta, rest field, shortcode and more. Works everywhere: in the Site Editor (FSE), the Block Editor, inside Query Loop, WooCommerce Product Collection, Term Query blocks, and even in template files. SVG Block – A block to display SVG images as blocks. Useful for images, icons, dividers, and buttons. It allows you to upload SVG images and load them into the icon library. Icon separator – A tiny block just like the core/separator block but with the ability to add an icon. Breadcrumb Block – A simple breadcrumb trail block that supports JSON-LD structured data and is compatible with WooCommerce. Block Enhancements – Adds practical features to blocks like icons, box shadows, transforms, etc. Counting Number Block – A block to display numbers with a counting effect The plugin is developed using @wordpress/create-block.

Create stunning, content-rich dropdown, mobile, and mega menus using the WordPress block editor and full site editing. Ollie Menu Designer lets you build beautiful dropdown menus and mobile navigation with images, buttons, call-to-actions, and any other blocks – giving you the same creative freedom you have when designing your pages. Menu Designer puts you in complete control of how your menus look and function. Best of all, if you’re using the free Ollie theme, you’ll get access to a collection of beautifully pre-designed menu templates to help you get started quickly. Design Freedom Create dropdown menus and mobile menus that match your vision using any WordPress block you can imagine. Whether you need multi-column layouts, featured images and galleries, rich text with custom typography, or buttons and call-to-action elements, Menu Designer gives you complete creative control. You can even include recent posts, product grids, search bars, forms, custom HTML, and literally any other block to build exactly the navigation experience your site needs. Multi-column layouts with images, text, and buttons Rich content like galleries, forms, and product grids Complete creative control with any WordPress block Mobile-First Options Your menus look great on every device with Ollie Menu Designer’s mobile-optimized approach. Design custom mobile menu experiences that replace default navigation with beautiful, touch-friendly interfaces. You have complete control over responsive behavior, including the ability to disable dropdowns on mobile with fallback URLs, set custom breakpoints, and ensure optimized performance across all devices. Fast, beautiful mobile menu designs with touch-friendly interactions Choose from several pre-designed menu patterns Optimized performance across all devices Build faster with Ollie Get started instantly with the free Ollie block theme, which comes packed with beautiful pre-designed menu templates and patterns built specifically for Ollie Menu Designer. Instead of starting from scratch, you’ll have access to professionally-crafted mobile menus, dropdown designs, and mega menu layouts that seamlessly integrate with Ollie’s design system. Simply install the theme, browse the menu pattern library, and customize the designs to match your brand – no design experience required. Pre-designed menu templates and patterns included Seamless integration with Ollie’s design system Professional designs ready to customize for your brand Adding Mobile Menus with Ollie Menu Designer We’ve created a full video tutorial on creating mobile menus. Navigate to Appearance → Editor → Patterns and edit your Header template part Click the Navigation block In the Navigation block Settings tab, find the Mobile Menu panel Click “Create a new one” or select from existing mobile menu templates Choose from pre-designed Ollie patterns or build custom with blocks Save your menu and select it in the Mobile Menu panel Customize background colors and menu icon in the mobile menu settings Adding Dropdowns and Mega Menus with Ollie Menu Designer We’ve created a full video tutorial on creating drop down and mega menus. Navigate to Appearance → Editor → Patterns and edit your Header template part Click Add Block and search for “Dropdown Menu” Name your dropdown and position it in your navigation In the Dropdown Menu block Settings tab, find the dropdown menu panel Click “Create a new one” or select from existing dropdown menu templates Choose from pre-designed Ollie patterns or build custom with blocks Save your menu and select it in the dropdown menu panel Configure additional customization settings Adding Starter Patterns You can create custom starter patterns for menu templates to give users quick starting points for their menus. This is especially useful for theme developers who want to provide pre-designed menu layouts. How to Add Starter Patterns Create a /patterns folder in your theme or plugin directory Add your pattern files (PHP format) to this folder In each pattern file, ensure you include the following in your pattern header: Block Types: core/template-part/menu This ensures your pattern appears as an option when creating new menu template parts. Requirements WordPress 6.5 or higher A WordPress block theme like Ollie that supports the WordPress navigation block