I’m trying to add a column element to a page but when I click the Plus sign and type in “Column” in the search bar, it’s telling me “Nothing Found”.
There isn’t a column element. The ‘columns’ that are added when you choose a layout is actually just a block element with a specific width already set.
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Thanks for replying, but your answer makes no sense to me. I just wanted to know how to insert a column into say a container. You can do this in every other builder and it’s really basic stuff.
You’re saying columns don’t exists but I installed a template which lists columns in the structure panel and lists it as an element - see image. These columns must have got there somehow but it’s a mystery to me how. I did a search to insert and nothing came up for columns.
In Gutenberg (actually every builder) for example, you can type “columns” in search, a column icon apears and its an ultra simple 1 click install. But you can’t insert columns in Bricks?
I’m saying they’re ‘block’ elements. You’ll find them by typing in block.
The columns you’re seeing are just block elements, that have been named ‘columns’ and given a specific width because of how you added them to the page (using the column shortcut).
But there’s no element called a ‘column’.
Bricks isn’t really column-based, apart from that column layout part, it’s mostly flexbox and grid you’d be using for creating the layouts.
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Thanks for taking time to reply, I really appreciate it in the nicest way possible. if you can’t give a simple straight answer then please don’t waste my time with replies like this that lead to even more replies and head scratching. No other builder is “column based” and I shouldn’t need to type “block” to find “column”. That’s like telling someone to type “cat” in Google when they are searching for a “dog”.
I’m capable of working out the semantics. I just need to know the simple way to insert a column like you can do in every other builder.
Respectfully, @wplit’s answer was very simple and straight to the point:
there’s no element called a ‘column’
We have an academy article that goes through the different layout elements, explains the differences, and also has a section about creating multi-column layouts: Understanding The Layout – Bricks Academy.
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Respectfully, it really wasn’t. It made no sense to me, which led to more questions and more frustration.
I wanted a simple answer “how to insert a column”. A simple answer would have been “there is no column element in Bricks but you can add a column by doing this”. Your link to the academy article is straight to the point, helpful and saves me time. Thank you for this.
Please understand my frustrations. Bricks makes the claim of being a “developers dream” with “No complicated build/compile process required” This isn’t my experience at all and I’ve been building sites for 10+ years. I’m finding it extremely confusing, extremely frustrating and extremely time consuming. Other experienced developers have told me the exact same and said Bricks takes simple, tried & tested stuff and makes it confusing. Adding a column is case in point. Everyone from beginners to experts knows what columns are and adding them is a piece of cake.
It’s only natural for anyone coming from another builder to Bricks to expect the process of adding a column to be simple but it is defintly not. Even your academy artcile goes about it in a strange convoluted way. I just found out by pure accident that if you hover over the container icon and click the top left, it opens a a column layout on the page. It would be a lot simpler if a column icon was available like in every other buider.
Well, we can agree to disagree…
IMHO this is pretty intuitive:
And I think that we have to make some compromises if we want to use new tools. Can’t expect that tool would be to everyone’s taste…
Best regards,
Goran
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Interesting. For the sake of my own sanity, I asked 5 colleagues this afternoon who have never used Bricks, to tell me how intutive they thought it was. I set up blank test pages and asked them to do one task - insert a “column”. I didn’t give any guidance. Four emailed me back and said they used the search form but got “nothing found”. The other managed by clicking various icons.
Thanks for taking the time to reply.
Your impressive ten-year background in web development holds significant value. Nevertheless, it’s important to acknowledge the substantial evolution in the web development field. While you previously worked with builders that employed sections, rows, and columns, contemporary tools like Bricks utilise a different structure, featuring sections, containers, blocks, and divs. Despite this shift, it’s essential to recognise that you can achieve similar functionalities as traditional columns within this new framework.
Instead of seeking to make Bricks replicate the tools you used in the past, I would recommend considering the advantages of mastering Bricks’ capabilities. It could prove to be a more efficient approach to adapting to this innovative platform and exploring the benefits it offers for modern web development. Embracing Bricks may open up new possibilities and elevate your web development skills.
In addition to adapting to Bricks, it’s crucial not to succumb to frustration and ranting. Remember, every builder comes with a learning curve, and encountering such challenges is common in the world of web development. Instead of letting frustration take over, consider setting aside some time to learn the ins and outs of this new tool. Taking the time to familiarise yourself with it will likely prove to be a more productive and less stressful approach to embracing the changing landscape of web development.
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Edit: Sorry, I misread some comments in this thread at 2 in the morning. 
Disregard removed rant.
Short Answer:
- @wplit is right, there are no column elements. You would use a section, container, block, or div element to achieve this, like if you were coding the page in raw HTML code yourself.
- As @wplit said, you use CSS flex or CSS grid to make column like layouts with those elements. Watch the following videos to understand how to do that.
In my opinion grid is preferable to flex in most situations, because it gives you more control of the “column” widths.
You could suggest to the developers about having a column shortcut in the elements section if you want. However, not having a column element is true to the HTML code the pages are made up of. Having a developmentally-correct/HTML-correct builder is generaly what bricks aims to achieve, as I’ve seen it, and it’s what I admire bricks for.
I believe the real issue here, for anyone learning bricks for the first time, is lack of good documentation. I have suggested, and still believe, having a wiki with community support would greatly help future bricks users learn faster. It would be great for the bricks ecosystem.
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It’s just a matter of naming. The same concepts simply have a different name. I am struck by how much tension has been created for something so simple. If something doesn’t agree with our way of thinking, it doesn’t mean it’s useless. Neither this nor those who understand it.
Just calm and enjoy building sites!
Isn’t there already a shortcut? Just look at the Container element and it has a little icon. Click that to see a number of layout options.
The only problem here is the target audience of Bricks. The bricks are designed for those who know the basics of web development.
Those who are not familiar with web development are completely unfamiliar with the values of flexible blocks for them.
They need simple widgets without complicated settings. If we talk about columns and sections, we need a Column widget where there is a setting of the number of columns, etc.
I know that well. I have described the reasons for misunderstanding among beginners above.
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For what it’s worth, for a while, when I initially got introduced to Bricks, I couldn’t get why the structure panel said ‘columns’ for certain elements when there was no ‘column’ widget
Then I went through the academy articles.
‘Column’ is an unnecessary terminology introduced, and it just creates confusion.
Unless there is a column element, there must not be a column terminology is a good rule of thumb IMO.
The ‘block’ element should have been called ‘column’ and it would instantly make sense to everyone.
Alternatively, get rid of the column terminology from the builder altogether.
For better or worse, Elementor resolves this confusion by calling everything a container, and Bricks exaggerates this confusion by having terminologies for non-existent elements like ‘columns’.
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Column is an important word when describing how the content is laid out, but maybe if the documentation used words like “column-like” or “in columns” instead of just “column”, it would be more clear that this is not referring to an element?
With 10 years of experience, I don’t actually need columns, because i work with grids and for that I only need blocks.
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