The WordPress Popular Posts block has been around since version 5.3.4 -released on July 2021- and so far the general reception seems to have been positive.
The classic WordPress Popular Posts widget, on the other hand, has been semi-broken ever since the release of the Block-based Widgets Editor. While it still works on the front-end, on the new(ish) block-based Widgets screen it's just not that functional.
Also, people using it with page builders such as Elementor and Divi have reported that there are some compatibility issues (eg. inability to set a widget theme, popular posts list not rendering as expected on the Post/Page Edit screen when using these builders, etc.) and while it does mostly work I'd rather have a solution that works just as well as the block.
This will also simplify development as changes related to rendering popular posts would only happen in two places (block and shortcode) instead of three (widget, shortcode, and the block).
So, things to do (in no particular order):
[x] Work on a notice to let people know that the classic widget is going away, and maybe explain in detail (eg. via a blog post) how to migrate from the classic widget to the block.
[x] Decide on the best way to deprecate the widget (eg. render a "This widget has been deprecated, please use the block instead" message on both the front-end and the back-end?)
[x] During the next 6.x.x release(s), display a deprecation notice on both the changelog and on readme.txt to give this change as much visibility as possible for as long as possible.
[x] Research potential solutions for Divi/Elementor to give their users more alternatives other than "please don't update to X version of WordPress Popular Posts for the time being" if possible.
The WordPress Popular Posts block has been around since version 5.3.4 -released on July 2021- and so far the general reception seems to have been positive.
The classic WordPress Popular Posts widget, on the other hand, has been semi-broken ever since the release of the Block-based Widgets Editor. While it still works on the front-end, on the new(ish) block-based Widgets screen it's just not that functional.
Also, people using it with page builders such as Elementor and Divi have reported that there are some compatibility issues (eg. inability to set a widget theme, popular posts list not rendering as expected on the Post/Page Edit screen when using these builders, etc.) and while it does mostly work I'd rather have a solution that works just as well as the block.
This will also simplify development as changes related to rendering popular posts would only happen in two places (block and shortcode) instead of three (widget, shortcode, and the block).
So, things to do (in no particular order):