We have received numerous complaints of bloggers seeing those "irritating" quick editing icons - the pencil 
quick edit icon for the posts, and the screwdriver and wrench (spanner) 
quick editing icon for the Page Elements (widgets). Personally they don't irritate me at all.
To me, these are really useful features, especially if you put a lot of HTML/Javascript Page Elements and you don't type a title for the Page Element (which is the norm). In the LAYOUT, they will all read "HTML/Javascript" and there is no way for you to tell which HTML/Javascript is for what unless you click on EDIT to look at what is inside. On the other hand, if you are logged in and you go the the blog, you will know exactly which Page Element you want to edit/delete and all you have to do is to click the icon and you will be editing/deleting the Page Element you want to edit/delete.
Further, they are only visible to me when I am logged into Blogger. No one else will see it. I have written about it before at How to get rid of the irritating "pencil" and "screwdriver and wrench (spanner)" quick edit icons (click BACK button to get back to this page). This however don't seem to satisfy some bloggers, especially those who have private blogs and can view their blogs only when they are logged in.
Here is one comment from a particularly irritated blogger:
"Okay 300 ducats to cooked art, his method worked. The other anwers are basically saying, 'Don't worry -- nobody who uses your blog will see these eyesores but you.' Which seems like an odd thing to tell me, since I will be using my blog more than anyone else, and I don't actually enjoy looking at eyesores any more than they would."
OK, if getting rid permanently of those very useful quick edit icons is what you want, here is how you can do it:
quick edit icon for the posts, and the screwdriver and wrench (spanner) 
quick editing icon for the Page Elements (widgets). Personally they don't irritate me at all. To me, these are really useful features, especially if you put a lot of HTML/Javascript Page Elements and you don't type a title for the Page Element (which is the norm). In the LAYOUT, they will all read "HTML/Javascript" and there is no way for you to tell which HTML/Javascript is for what unless you click on EDIT to look at what is inside. On the other hand, if you are logged in and you go the the blog, you will know exactly which Page Element you want to edit/delete and all you have to do is to click the
icon and you will be editing/deleting the Page Element you want to edit/delete.Further, they are only visible to me when I am logged into Blogger. No one else will see it. I have written about it before at How to get rid of the irritating "pencil" and "screwdriver and wrench (spanner)" quick edit icons (click BACK button to get back to this page). This however don't seem to satisfy some bloggers, especially those who have private blogs and can view their blogs only when they are logged in.
Here is one comment from a particularly irritated blogger:
"Okay 300 ducats to cooked art, his method worked. The other anwers are basically saying, 'Don't worry -- nobody who uses your blog will see these eyesores but you.' Which seems like an odd thing to tell me, since I will be using my blog more than anyone else, and I don't actually enjoy looking at eyesores any more than they would."
Permanently get rid of quick editing Pencil icon for posts
Sign into Blogger (Dashboard), click SETTINGS for the relevant blog and you will be in the SETTINGS > BASIC sub-tab by default. Just a bit down from the top of the page, you will see "Show Quick Editing on your Blog?". Click the down arrow and select "No" At the bottom, click "Save Settings". (Warning: There is a button "Delete this blog" very near that "Save Settings" button, and it is not uncommon to hear of bloggers who accidentally deleted their blog this way). Once you have done that, you will never see the quick editing Pencil icon again.Permanently get rid of quick edit screwdriver and wrench (spanner) icons for Page Elements (widgets)
Sign into Blogger (Dashboard). Click LAYOUT for the relevant blog. Click TEMPLATE tab, followed by EDIT HTML sub-tab. Before you do any editing of the template, backup the template PLUS the Page Elements. See Backup and edit New Blogger template PLUS backup Page Elements. Once you are done with that, you will still be in the template editor window. Tick the "Expand widget templates" box and wait for the template to fully expand. Then look for this line of code:<b:include name='quickedit'/>
If you face difficulties finding that line of code, press ctrl+F and you will see a "Find" followed by a box for you to type or copy-paste what you want to find. Type or copy-paste the above line of code into the box and click "Next". The scroll bar will scroll down to the line and the line will be highlighted. Use your mouse to highlight that line of code again and press the DELETE key. Preview, and if you don't get any error message, click "Save Template". You will never see the "irritating" (to me, useful") screwdriver and wrench icons again.
Update: 25 May 2010: A commentator Susie Hovendick Chan said that she got rid of the quick edit icons by putting
quickedit:display none;
at the end of the style sheet, that is, just before ]]> thus ending with
quickedit:display none;
]]>
Update: A comment from a blogger which I myself haven't tested. Updating here in case any visitor interested in what he has to say. If you do try it, do give us some feedback by leaving a comment: "Sweet! I realized that the wrench icon was causing layout problems in IE7; I got rid following your instructions of it even though its pretty useful.
In case if this helps anyone: the wrench icon is floated right. Float right inside divs that are already right floated will cause the div to stretch unnecessarily in IE7."
In case if this helps anyone: the wrench icon is floated right. Float right inside divs that are already right floated will cause the div to stretch unnecessarily in IE7."
59 comments:
I just want to say thank you for this post about "pencil, screwdriver and spanner" icons. I do get irritated by them but after reading your post, I'm more enlightened as to the purpose of these icons.
HELP, I want to change the line between post and put a divider picture bar like this blog: http://thehomespunheart.blogspot.com/ but I cannot find the directions anywhere...can you help me do this?
i share the same opinion with you. i don't find the screwdriver and pencil icons irritating, they actually make it easier for one to edit the blog without having to go through the dashboard every time, since once you view your blog, you can just easily click on the icons and edit away. but it's a relief to know that we have a choice. :)
can i ask though, how to add a calendar into the blog? i tried searching through your blog but wasn't able to find it. thanks.
nice!!!
Do you know how can i add a counter to each post that allow me to see how many click each post is getting?
thanks again
hey, its me again. I just want to know, do you have any idea about the code for the categories?
Example: Event (11)
School (12)
With the labels of topic followed by the numbers of posts in it. I cant find it in blogger help.
Hi =isleng=,
For calendar, please refer to Calendar for your blog. If you have any problems or comments, please leave your comment in that post.
Peter (Blog*Star)
Generating Revenue from your Website
Hi Firulay,
You can't have different counters for individual posts. You can only have 1 counter for the whole blog and see from you hit counter report which pages are being visited.
Peter (Blog*Star)
Testing Blogger Beta (now New Blogger)
Hi Johnson,
The no of posts for labels is displayed automatically without you having to do anything. See the labels in this blog. If you are not getting it, maybe it is the template you are using. What template are you using?
You may want the manual method using del.icio.us. Refer to
Categories for old classic Blogger templates: A simple method
Categories for old classic Blogger templates: An easy method
Creating categories step-by-step (this is just a summary of the above 2 posts requested by a reader).
This will require work and I am going to update it so that those who wants to use it for New Blogger template for whatever reasons can do it.
Peter (Blog*Star)
Dummies Guide to Google Blogger
"online book" in progress
I have done everything said trying to get rid of the wrenches & pencils to no avail.. HELP!!! I followed the instructions & they are still there whether I am signed in or not!!!! HELP!!!!
Hi Fit at 50,
Sounds like good news (about being fit). Ran the full 42 km in the Penang Bridge marathon 20+ years ago, but now at 59 reduced to walking at every excuses, not specifically for exercise. Now so pathetic I am reduced to begging for excuses to exercise at My first grandchild at his grandfather's 58th birthday. Long post, I think reference to exercise is near bottom of post.
Sorry, probably you have no interest in my whatever, but how to get rid of the unwanted icons. Refer to When to do when you can't get rid of pencil and screwdriver and spanner icons no matter what you do.
Peter Blog*Star
Successes with Kontera ContentLink
I have the opposite problem. A few months ago my quick edit pencils mysteriously disappeared from my blog and I'd like them back. Don't know what happened. It's a pain to have to go to Customize everytime I want to edit. Much more tiring.
What's the quickest way to reinstall them?
Thanks!
Thank you! You're the Best
save me the sweat.
Hi
I must say that I find your site EXREMELY useful for novice like me! To return favour, I decided to thank you offically on my site!
http://moms-2-update.blogspot.com/
Thanks again man!
Hi Lucy,
Check your blog settings as I have experienced it changing without my knowledge. Make sure Quick editing (something) is set to YES.
Peter Blog*Star
Blogger for Dummies
Hi Updated mom,
Thanks.
Peter Blog*Star
Generating Revenue from your Website
Dear Peter,
Unfortunately I still have the problem (my quick editing pencil gone). My settings are set to YES to show the quick editing icon. So I don't think that was the cause.
I'm wondering if somewhere along the line some other code got screwed up, or if the problem is caused by an anti-virus blocker on my computer (way too complicated to figure out).
I've just about given up trying to fix this!
Anyway, thanks very much for visiting my blog.
- Lucy.
Hi Lucy,
I have lots of blogs (majority demo plus multipurpose) and all except main blogs uses different templates. Some templates hide the navbar without you having to do anything. I can't remember, but perhaps some also don't have the quick editing tool. I vaguely remembered someone commenting there is a way to edit the template so those wrench and screwdriver do not appear and something like that might be your problem. I know for sure for some of my blogs, in order to edit a post, I need to click "New post" in the navbar, then "Edit post" to search for the post to edit. It is a pain, especially if the navbar is hidden and then I am forced to go to
blogger.com/home
or Dashboard and start from there.
I will see if I can get some answer for you.
Peter (Blog*Star)
http://bloggerdough.blogspot.com/
(Temporary blog for bloggers who want to earn from their blogging efforts until final website ready. Blogging is helping me put my 2 sons through college on my pension and it can do similar for you)
Hi Lucy,
I am not sure if I have the time to check from your source code, but it would still be helpful to give your blog URL. If you do, it would be good to give it as an active (clickable) link Someone else may want to have a look at it. Who knows? Maybe one fine day when I am not so busy, I may come back here to check, etc.?
Now if it was me and I don't want to have the hassle of ploughing through the template, what I may do is to first backup the template plus backup the Page Elements (some cannot be backed up, and some, like Profile, Archives, need not be backed up), reload a fresh template (this may be a completely different template or it may be your original template without any blog customization.
Peter Blog*Star
Blogger Dough
(Blogging helped my put 2 sons through college on my pension and if not for blogging, I would have been in financial difficulties. We want to help you do the same)
Thanks Peter. I think I'll try your suggestion when I get a chance.
I may just start my blog again from scratch anyway....
I really enjoy your site Peter, you are a great help to all us bloggers out there!
I came up with a very quick and simple alternative for Firefox users. If you have the Adblock Plus addon for Firefox, you can just block the icon you don't want to see anymore. It's not a solution for everyone I know, but it's another way :)
Like Lucy. I have the opposite problem - I just uploaded a third party template and it seems they have removed the edit icons (the pencil)... it may be a small price to pay because I like the new three columns in this template BUT...
If you can tell me how to add the code for that icon/edit tool back in, I would love that - what do I need to look for - i can probably get it off the old template and paste it in...
I still have the dragonflies (wrenches) and I love them, they're a big timer saver just like the pencil tool.
Thanks! I hope you are feeling better!
Oops, I forgot to check the 'email follow up comments' box...
I am trying to remove the screwdriver for public viewing, but leave it for author editing. When I access the blog through the web the screwdrivers are visable. How do I fix the problem? Nothing is working.
http://headoverhealth.blogspot.com/
Hi Rose,
I don't have an answer yet. Check back later to see if I found a solution or if the other Bloag*Star have one.
Peter Blog*Star
Dream Driven Life(TM)
Hi Maria and Lavinia,
Don't worry about the icons. Your visitors will not see them. If you log out of Google/Blogger/gmail, you too will not see it. They are very useful when you want to edit something as they are some kind of short cuts for you and your convenience
Peter ChenBlog*Star
Environmentally friendly presents (gifts)
Just want you to know I have selected the NO so I don't see those eye sores and it still shows them, I even changed it to Yes saved it and then changed it back to NO to try and reset it and it still shows them. But as long as noone else see's them then I'm ok. thanks anyways,
Sandra
Hi Sandra,
I think you are seeing a cached copy of your blog (outdated). Trying clearing cache and cookies or add a ? to the end of the blog URL in the address bar and press the ENTER key.
Hi I'm using a custom template on my blog and there is no b:include name='quickedit' in the code but the spanner and screwdriver icons still appear but the pencils do not. When i click the icons it says "the blog you were looking for was not found" which leads me to believe that it is a problem in my code? I can turn on and off the quick editing in settings and that will turn on and off the pencil function which does actually work. Of course the spanner and screwdriver icons only appear when logged in but it is still a nuisance any suggestions?
These quick editing icons will vary according to different templates. Some templates may have them, some may not.
But really I would rather have them than not as these quick editing icons are extremely useful and I really don't understand why bloggers would not want to have them.
i love it when tips are nice and simple...this one was nicer and simpler....thanks
I seem to have exactly the opposite problem as the Quick Edit icons seem to have disappeared in all 23 of my blogs (nothing I did, as far as I can tell).
Any idea how to fix it?
Thanks.
Uncle Frank
When I get problems like that, I normally use a different browser (effect same as clearing cache and cookies) and hope that that may help.
I still haven't figured out how to PUT the quick edit icons/tool back in. url: http://thecoffeeshopblog.blogspot.com/ )
I have looked at the source code for other blogs using what was my original (minima black) template. And I have found what I think is the code, but how to put it into my third party (three column minima black) code - where to put it in - and how much of the code I need to swipe - I need help with.
And - I still have the quick-edit capability in my sidebar, oddly enough.
Some people may not like the tool but I find it INVALUABLE on my other blogs. It saves tons of time and extra steps.
Thank you again, You are a phenomenal resource, and have helped me with more problems than you know.
OMG thanks SO much for this!! Those things get on my nerves and I've been trying to figure out how to delete them for a long time. This was very easy to do....
Huge help - Thank you! Worked a treat!
Hi, I love quick edits and maybe you can help me with the answer to this.
On one computer, the work fine.
On another computer, they never show up (I always have to make changes through the Edit posts page).
I have the newest version of Firefox on both computers.
Do you know what I can do make them show up on this one?
I followed the instructions for adding quick edit at http://www.google.com/support/blogger/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=42231 but adding those bits of code were not enough: Blogger rejected them .
Any help would be much appreciated.
I tried what you said but nowhere in the html of my template did I find "b:include name='quickedit'/." Believe me, I scoured through it 5 times and it's just not there.
My blog is:
http://linda-jesusthoughts.blogspot.com/
Then I would suggest you leave them alone as really, these icons are very useful and convenient and to me they are a shame to remove plus only you when you are logged in will see them. No one else will.
I *WANT* the tool icons & they disappeared this morning...along with the "customize" tab....wassup with that?
Think back and try to remember what you did before the change.
I want it back too!!!
I cannot figure out where to insert the code and which pieces of the code to reinstall the tools that seem to be LOST since I used a third party layout...
http://watchpaul.blogspot.com/
I LOVE the quick edit tools, and am crippled without them.
Refer to How to add quick edit pencil
Refer to How to add quick edit pencil
YAY!!!!!!!! It worked! A godsend. Thank You - my quick edit tools are restored. No problems with the code. Very clear instructions!
I've been trying to get rid of the wrench tool on my blog which I've only started up again and revamped everything, I went to settings and saw that the quick edit is set to "No" and I even checked my site after I logged off to see if it's only there when I signed in but the wrench tool refuses to magically disappear :(
In case any kind soul can save me, here's my site :
www.fataladdictions.com
Thanks and have a great day!
I removed that line in like six different places yet somehow, the pencils and screwdrivers are still showing up. Did I do something wrong?
I don't know. But really, those quick edit icons are very very useful so if I were you I would leave them alone as only you when signed in can see them and no others
I like the wrench icon but I've been doing some seo on my blog and I have come to find out I have 13 repeated images (the wrench) on my pages now and it's slowing load time, seo, and other things. I am wondering if there is a way to keep the benefits of the wrench but get rid of the 13 repeated images it is creating? Does anyone have any suggestions?
YOU NEED THAT WRENCH ICON to give you fast and easy access to your edit window. No one else sees it but you, it does not slow you load time. there are sites where yo can test what is slowing down your load.
I STRONGLY URGE YOU to KEEP YOUR EDIT TOOLS - I just had to go to a lot of trouble to reinstall them when the third party layout I use removed them.
Hi Rose,
Thanks for answering the question and reinforcing my recommendation to keep those quick edit icons. Much appreciated.
Thanks for this helpful post, Peter. I also believe that they are important, but with our IE browser my template's screwdriver and wench icons remained visible even when I'm already logged out. With Firefox, there's no problem. Maybe the kind of template I'm using is not IE compatible?
I recently created a simple navigation bar (horizontal menu) in the blog Header for this blog's privacy policy and contact form and there is an "irritating" screwdriver and wrench icon plus an unwanted blank line when I viewed this blog. So to make sure these 2 are not visible to others I just viewed the blog with a different browser where I am not logged in and confirmed it is OK. Problem solved. Now you know why I have many browsers installed in my computer.
I recently created a simple navigation bar (horizontal menu) in the blog Header for this blog's privacy policy and contact form and there is an "irritating" screwdriver and wrench icon plus an unwanted blank line when I viewed this blog. So to make sure these 2 are not visible to others I just viewed the blog with a different browser where I am not logged in and confirmed it is OK. Problem solved. Now you know why I have many browsers installed in my computer.
Help! I forgot to backup my blog adn delted all the icons. Now, my 1st column is at the top and my other 2 columns are at the bottom!
My content shifted on my preview page with those pencils. I had to delete them to see how my page would look to others.
Someone said to put quickedit:display none;
in the CSS styling. Can't remember who and just how, but it's worth google-searching to find out if you're interested.
"Can't remember who and just how, but it's worth google-searching to find out if you're interested"
Susie, thanks for the suggestion. Hope you don't mind humoring me a little if I ask if you did try the quickedit:display none; and if so, how did it work out and how it may have helped you.
Warm regards.
No problem, Peter. I tried it myself, and no pencil appears. I put the script at the end of my CSS styling, before the ]]>:
.quickedit {display:none}
Sweet! I realized that the wrench icon was causing layout problems in IE7; I got rid following your instructions of it even though its pretty useful.
In case if this helps anyone: the wrench icon is floated right. Float right inside divs that are already right floated will cause the div to stretch unnecessarily in IE7.
Amazingly helpful. Thanks!!!
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