January 29th, 2007
The world of Widgets has changed a lot since Konfabulator came along back in 2003, when it was the only option of its kind for developers. Since then, similar offerings have emerged from several places, including Apple, and tomorrow, Microsoft as part of Vista. It has grown to such a point that Newsweek is proclaiming 2007 as the Year of the Widget.
Speaking of Vista, I should point out that our current release (Yahoo! Widget Engine 3.1) runs very well on it. That means you have over 3,700 Yahoo! Widgets ready and waiting to be unleashed on Vista tomorrow. But I digress�
Arlo and Perry created Konfabulator because they wanted to build cool stuff but found the available options lacking. Ever since, our product roadmap has been driven primarily by the needs of our Widget developers — trying to give them the tools to create compelling experiences. And with all the new options available, there’s never been a more exciting time to be a Widget developer. But, it’s also a more complicated world than when we were the only choice. So in the spirit that has always driven Konfabulator — helping developers build cool stuff, here’s our (pretty darned candid) view of the landscape and some advice on choosing the solution that best meets your needs.
So, which Widget platform should you use?.
The simple answer to that question is “it depends”.
What are you trying to accomplish? How much (or little) power do you need? Will it be a web-only Widget, or will it run on the desktop? Do you have existing code you want (or need) to reuse? All of these factors can influence your decision.
First, let’s address web Widgets
There are two major categories of Widgets: web Widgets and desktop Widgets. Web Widgets run inside a web page and are also known as “modules” or “badges”. Web Widgets allow anyone to create their own website “mash-ups” by embedding content from one site into a page on another site. These types of Widgets are completely based on browser technologies — HTML, Flash, etc. And while they have been around in various forms for a while, the use of the term “Widget” to refer to these web page modules is relatively new. Widget has (at least since Konfabulator’s introduction) conventionally meant a desktop-based mini-application that shows discrete information, often connected to the Internet. And, it is these types of Widgets that I want to delve into more today. So, if what you want to create is something that can be embedded in a personalized homepage, profile or blog, then you can probably stop reading now.
Why choose a desktop Widget?
The advantages of a desktop Widget over a web Widget include:
- Lives outside of the browser
- Access to local resources
- Potential for offline use & background downloading
- Greater interaction with the rest of the system through standard desktop interaction.
Desktop Widgets blur the line between the web and the desktop by pulling the content out of the browser and integrating it into your desktop.
Within the world of desktop Widgets there are several choices.
- Apple Dashboard
- Microsoft Windows Vista Sidebar
- Google Desktop Gadgets
- Yahoo! Widgets (Konfabulator)
(There are also some less mainstream desktop options and some emerging solutions that are attempting to bridge desktop and web. But for the sake of not making this a novel, I’m going to stick to the top four in this post.)
Apple and Microsoft each took the approach of using their native web browsers to implement their Widget environments. Google’s Desktop gadgets and Yahoo! Widgets use their own proprietary XML formats and rendering engines. Each approach has its pros and cons, so let’s take a quick look at both.
Apple Dashboard / Microsoft Windows Vista Sidebar
The Apple/Microsoft approach can be very appealing. By using their native browsers, these companies could build a Widget engine without having to invent anything new.
Pros:
- If you have existing code for a web page, it’s fairly easy to adjust it to run in these Widget environments.
- You can use special objects in Javascript to get at the underlying system.
- DHTML is easy to learn and work with.
- You can take existing AJAX libraries and use them right off the shelf.
- There are many HTML authoring tools available. Apple has a brand-new DashCode IDE for writing Dashboard widgets, which is actually pretty slick (and mercifully not related to my arch-nemesis, XCode).
Cons:
- Each Widget is a full-on web page, and can take a significant amount of system resources.
- Strong ties to the OS. While this has some advantages, the downside is that Apple’s widgets will only run on Macs and Microsoft’s gadgets will only run on Vista.
Google Desktop Gadgets
Google is currently using custom XML file and object model. Their object model is not based on W3C standards, but is their own custom creation.
Pros:
- Fairly easy to understand if you know HTML.
- Not constrained by HTML model.
- Can use either Javascript or Visual Basic.
- Better platform ties: drag/drop support, etc.
- You can use their Gadget Designer development tool to aid in writing your gadget.
- Not very resource intensive.
Cons:
- Still fairly limited in its abilities compared to other engines, particularly in the presentation layer.
- Interface is filled with update flashes and jerky motions. This is somewhat out of place in today’s world of the highly polished Mac OS X and Vista interfaces.
- Requires download of entire Google Desktop package to run.
- In its current form, positioned as more of a consumer product than a platform for developers. So, it’s more like developing a plug-in for someone else’s product than creating your own experience.
- No Mac OS X support
Yahoo! Widgets (nee Konfabulator)
We also use an XML file format and a home-grown rendering engine. In the past, our object model was not W3C standards-based, but over time we’ve been creeping in that direction. I believe this helps us get more traction from those who are familiar with DHTML programming.
Pros :
- Largest addressable audience. We’re the only cross-OS Widgets platform — Mac OS X, Win 2000, Win XP, and now Windows Vista.
- We are not hamstrung by web standards (although we adopt them when possible, e.g XMLHttpRequest). This gives us flexibility to produce Widgets and platform features that truly take advantage of the desktop.
- Easy to write for. While we aren’t as familiar as DHTML, we are just as easy to code for. Our API is less “techie” than other offerings, making it more accessible to more people.
- Powerful design, animation, and interaction facilities — based on 5 years of developer feedback.
- Slick tie-ins with the platforms we run on — features like drag and drop, open and save dialogs, etc.
- Much more application-like environment than DHTML or Google gadgets. It’s easy to write Widgets with multiple windows, for example. DHTML engines can create new windows on the fly, but each window is its own little HTML world. In contrast, all of the windows can see one another in our Widgets, so sharing information across windows is easy. A good example of this in action is our Picture Frame Widget when you are managing your Flickr photos.
Cons:
- You need to learn our XML language vs. DHTML, so it’s marginally less accessible to those who already know DHTML.
- Since we don’t own an OS, our platform requires a one-time download of components. We’re working on making this much more streamlined.
- To be frank, our current version (3.1) consumes a fair bit of resources. We hear this feedback loud and clear from our developers and users, and I think they will like what they see in our upcoming release.
- Lack of video support.
And in conclusion�
The takeaway from all of this is that DHTML is great for those people who only care about one platform, or have a strong needs or desires to use DHTML. It’s familiar and fairly simple. Plus, these systems are built-into the OS, so no extra software is required. But the resources required to drive such a Widget can be a bit excessive, and you’re limited to the one platform.
The Google approach is more in line with ours in terms of technology, but it’s Windows only. Also, the model is more like a plug-in than a mini-application, and it seems (at least to me) that there is less room for artistic or brand expression.
Yahoo! Widgets is cross platform and has the most desktop Widgets available over 4,000 across all OS’s). You can write your Widget once and reach the largest possible audience. We aren�t as familiar as HTML, but we make up for it with features that help generate some of the coolest Widgets around thanks to our powerful presentation layer. We know we have some areas we need to work on, but that’s exactly what we’ve been doing over the past few months. Our next release will really change the way users perceive Widgets, and I can’t wait to get it out there.
I hope that sheds a little light on the different technologies available today. Rest assured, we’re still cranking on new features in our own engine, as I’m sure others are. So, look for a lot of exciting thing to happen in this space over the next year!
While you are talking comparisons and roadmaps I’ll throw in a quite feature request. I’m developing a couple of web applications in the new Rails 1.2 with RESTful goodness and struggling to write nice RESTful widgets. Any chance we can see good support for the GET/POST/PUT/DELETE foursome in a future release? I’d love to be able to use widgets in a similar way to the new ActiveResource framework coming out for Rails.
Those should be supported at present in 3.1 using XMLHttpRequest. Actually I think we support a few more than that. In our upcoming release, we allow all as per the latest W3C draft spec for XMLHttpRequest.
[…] For those of you who don’t know the basics of widgets, or the difference between desktop and web widgets, check out this surprisingly unbiased overview post on the Yahoo Widgets blog where they talk about the pros and cons of the four major desktop widget platforms offered by Yahoo, Microsoft, Google and Apple. […]
When is Yahoo! going to add video support? Our users would love a widget that delivers their “queue” right to their desktop. My queue:
http://mefeedia.com/user/30921/queue/
I guess the best i can hope for is delivering thumbnails then, like on our blog (see right hand side):
http://www.mefeedia.com/blog
Let me know if you need someone for beta testing widgets for video.
That was really nicely balanced.
When I do start releasing my widgets, I hope to make them work in both the Mac Dashboard and Yahoo!
I’ll admit I was really sad about it at the time, but It was brilliant of you guys to move over to windows too. Being the only cross platform widget system really makes you guys extremely important in the upcoming Widget war.
[…] Pour ceux qui ne connaissent pas les widgets, leurs fondements et la différence entre les widgets pour votre bureau (desktop) ou pour le web, lisez ce billet très objectif et surprenant sur le blog Widgets de Yahoo où ils parlent des avantages et inconvénients des principaux éditeurs de plateformes de widgets dont Yahoo Microsoft Google et Apple […]
[…] Yahoo! Widgets - Blog […]
Really nice, detailed and very informative review.
[…] Desktop and Web Widgets 101 As you all know, TradeSports and HedgeStreet have each developed a widget —TradeSports for Google IG, and HedgeStreet for Yahoo! Messenger. Via Tech Crunch, here’s a great round-up of the (desktop, mainly) widget scene. It covers Mac OS, Windows OS, Google and Yahoo!. There are two major categories of Widgets: web Widgets and desktop Widgets. […]
At least for now, Apple consumes less than Yahoo:
http://www.niallkennedy.com/blog/archives/2006/12/widget-memory-cpu.html
Can’t wait for your next release that fixes this!
Although not a widget framework per se, the forthcoming Adobe Apollo rich internet application runtime will enable widget like applications across platforms. Check out http://labs.adobe.com/wiki/index.php/Apollo.
[…] Widget up Word to TechCrunch for pointing us in this direction, which is to a Yahoo! blog about the widget landscape. Looks a pretty comprehensive introduction from here. […]
When are you going to release a Linux version of your Widget engine? I for one have been waiting a long time for a great Widget engine like Yahoo’s to be truly cross platform. Is there any chance that this will happen in the near future?
I suppose the real question is: can a widget platform with a proprietary API (i.e. Yahoo!, Apple and now Microsoft) compete with the rapdily expanding content of DHTML/JS web widgets (which if you count video embeds number in the millions)?
Regarding Google and OS X, Google actually has two widget platforms: Google Gadgets (limited to Google Desktop and Google’s personlized home page as you outline above) and Google Gadgets for your Webpage (or Google Universal Gadgets) that run on any web page. Google’s second platform (for which there are about 3000 widgets) can indeed run on OS X — directly in Dashboard –via our free utility Amnesty Generator.
I have just entered the wonderful world of desktop widgets and i must commend you on a very honest article.
I come from a web development background and so i have honestly found dashboard/sidebar widgets much easier to build than Y!Widgets. There are several things that irk me about Y!Widgets but the main reasons for this is that i cannot seem to find a decent API for your XML structure. I downloaded your SDK and in it i found a 308 page Adobe doc as your API that does not have any reasonable indexing. I think on this point in an attempt to include non-developers you may have alienated those who are most likely to build widgets… developers!
Despite my issues i cannot think of a way around using your engine if i want to target the maximum possible audience, at least until Vista is out and used widely.
Some replies:
Our docs story will be improving quite a bit for our next release.
Linux is talked about often here internally, but we’re not at a point where we can cross that threshold quite yet. I think we need to complete our feature set first.
Regarding Apollo, we’re well aware of it, but we didn’t include it because it a) isn’t out yet and b) it’s not totally in our space. It’s more of a total platform, more geared to go head to head with someone like Microsoft than the Widget market (not that it won’t have impact). I also imagine that, like Flash, the IDE will be pricey, whereas things like DashCode and Google Designer are free. This tends to create a barrier to entry for the average Joe. I believe there should be zero forced cost involved in being a developer for these technologies.
[…] Direct link to the Yahoo blog: http://widgets.yahoo.net/blog/?p=16#more-16 […]
[…] ウィジェットの基礎についてよく知らない、あるいはデスクトップウィジェットとウェブウィジェットの違いがわからない読者はこちらの驚くほど公平な概論を読んでみるといい。これはYahooのウィジェットについてのブログの記事で、４つのメジャーなウィジェットプラットフォーム、Yahoo、Microsoft、Google、Apple、のそれぞれについてメリット、デメリットを論じている。ウィジェットを制作するにあたって、どのプラットフォームを選ぶべきか決める場合には、全体的な普及の度合いに加えてデスクトップとウェブの双方から利用できるウィジェットが作れるかどうかが重要な要素となる。この観点からすると、プラットフォームとしてMicrosoft Vistaが最適といわざるを得ない。Vistaはすぐに他のプラットフォームを全部寄せ集めたよりも普及することになるだろうし、VistaのウィジェットはデスクトップだけでなくLive.comのページでも作動する。しかし十分なリソースがある開発者の場合、４つのプラットフォーム全部に対して制作を行うのは割合普通のことだろう。上の記事は、スタートアップのウィジェット、たとえばFoxが支援しているSpringWidgetsなどは一切紹介していない。こういったスタートアップのウィジェットはこれからすぐにもっと出てくるだろう。 開発者はこういう新しいプラットフォームにも常に目を配り、普及の兆しが見えるようだったら、それも開発対象にする必要がある。[原文へ] […]
[…] Daarnaast leveren ook de grote jongens uit de online wereld strijd: zowel Apple, Yahoo, Google als Microsoft zijn gekomen met hun eigen versie van de widgets. Spannend en nog weinig voorspelbaar wie die strijd gaat winnen. Yahoo wijdt er op zijn eigen widget blog een vergelijkend artikel aan. Redelijk neutraal, en de moeite waard om te lezen. […]
[…] Well for answers to those questions a more on widgets, check out Yahoo! Widgets Blog, a (truly) unbiased look at widget development use and the workings of them. […]
[…] Yahoo! Widgets - Blog Una comparativa de widgets y gadgets y esas cosas (tags: widgets article) […]
Nice overview. As a developer I had to work it OSX Widget, Yahoo Widget and lately Vista Gadget.
My preference goes to Yahoo Widget Engine, which is mature and strong, simple and powerful.
OSX Widget aren’t that bad also, and liked them after a few hours of understanding the way they work.
But now, after several weeks of developing for Vista Gadget, I can easily say that’s an unfinished product, that can barely have a “Beta” tag on it. But heck, we need to work with what we have. Lots of missing features, bugs and have to do work around to get the things done. I suppose a new version will come up in the next few months…
I prefer Yahoo widgets on my Macs because I can choose to display them on the desktop or on the heads-up display. Apple’s Dashboard only displays via their heads-up display. I can convert them to developer mode and display them on the desktop but they will always appear on top of everything else!
Great post! Widgets, esp. after the eventual preponderance of Vista, may become the dominant desktop applications and the confusion over all the types has only just begun.
I’m curious as to why nobody has made their widget engine from XUL….
Add another request for a Linux version of Konf…Yahoo! Widgets.
One more request for a linux version (Gnome&KDE)
[…] It’s time to refresh the perspective of what Windows Vista means to the average web developer and designer of old. It’s time to empower you all to blur the line between operating system level software and traditional client-side software. It’s time to keep you connected and stop […]
[…] The Yahoo! Widgets blog has a very good, very balanced, and very detailed comparison on different widget technologies for Windows and Mac. They do mention Dashboard for the Mac, but I noticed they glossed over Dashcode for the Mac. I think it’s the most important invention in Widgetry since the widget was invented for one reason. […]
There should be a transformer for widgets from Dashboard widgets to Yahoo widgets and vice versa, because both contain very cool widgets that can be used on either one!!!!!
The best widget programs
http://www.winmatrix.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=5121
Is this article for real?
Where is Opera widgets with several more widgets out there and cross platform in the real sense?
This article fails to mention Opera Widgets, the only cross platform widget engine.
“Largest addressable audience. We’re the only cross-OS Widgets platform”
Really now?
I would count Windows as one platform, but if you’re gonna play it that way:
Windows 95, Windows NT, Windows 98, Windows ME, Windows 2000, Windows XP, Windows Server 2003, Windows Vista, Mac OSX PPC, Mac OS Intel, Linux x86, Linux PPC, Linux SPARC, FreeBSD, Solaris..
Say, when do you plan to launch Widgets for Solaris?
“We are not hamstrung by web standards”
While others believe using open standards is a Good Thing, and locking users to a single product is not.
http://www.w3.org/TR/widgets/
“To be frank, our current version (3.1) consumes a fair bit of resources.”
http://www.opera.com/support/search/supsearch.dml?index=386
I’m not sure I agree with your definition of desktop Widgets vs. Web Widgets. Both categories need an engine to run, and while several of these are now built into the OS, yours is still a standalone application required to launch the Widgets. The difference is that a browser can do a fair bit more than just run Widgets, and the only browser to offer this feature so far happens to consume considerably less resources too..
I realize you’re concerned that the launch of Vista will eat into your market, but your comparison is moot when some of your stronger arguments belong to your “competitors”, conveniently left out. It’s a nice effort, but please try to stay objective.
- y
Is there a way I can embed the Widget player inside my own application so people could use Yahoo widgets in it?
Many thanks.
[…] The Ever-Changing Widget Landscape a detailed comparison of the crowded desktop widget/gadget area, weighing the pros and cons of Google Gadgets, Vista Sidebar, Mac’s Dashboard and Yahoo!’s Konfabulator - I’m already using the winner for desktop widgets
(tags: Google_Gadgets Widgets) […]
Carl, there is not at present, but we have been seriously looking into that for some time now.
I’m sure that someone’s probably already mentioned this, somewhere, but what I’d really love to see is that all attributes inside of a widget accept javascript. Currently it seems that event elements have executable javascript but everything else just has plain old literals.
If you look at www.laszlosystems.com, its engine accepts script everywhere. this means that instead of having to set the hOffset/vOffset for dynamically positioned elements in an initialization script, you can put the code directly into the hOffset attribute.
This makes for a much, much cleaner and more readable application.
My 2 cents.
Joe.
A DTD will be making its way out there with our next release. I’ll warn you though… since our language has historically been a little odd (e.g. you can specify things as attributes or elements), the DTD will force you to use more attributes (at least, that’s how I feel about it this month).
See my previous post on the matter for more info.
Fully agree with Nicolas Mendoza, Petter and yitz: Opera widgets support much more platforms.
[…] Yahoo! Widgets - Blog (tags: Blogging) […]
[…] Showing Vista love: Earlier this month, we mentioned that Yahoo! Messenger for Vista was coming. Well here are a slew of products that’ll get you ready and rarin’ to run on the new platform. Need an instant fix? Try out some of the more than 3,700 Yahoo! Widgets that are compatible now, and read the Yahoo! Widgets team crib sheet on the burgeoning world of Widgets. And don’t forget to check out the (really) shiny new Yahoo! Search Gadget for your Windows sidebar, which puts web search, Yahoo! Answers, Yahoo! Local, and more just a click away. […]
Thanks Ed.
[…] Yahoo! Widgets - Blog Here is a pretty good overview of the various types of widgets on different platforms. (tags: widgets web2.0 widget desktop yahoo gadgets web google development dashboard comparison blog article vista windows apple macos) […]
Now I know that I’m not the slowest kid on the block but there should be a more simple 1, 2, 3, etc. I have more questions than words that attempted to explain “how to.
[…] Yahoo! Widgets - The Ever-Changing Widget Landscape A great overview of widgets and how we got to where we are. (tags: Widgets Yahoo Apple Google Microsoft gadgets) […]
[…] Hmmm. Given Yahoo’s investment in desktop widgets (and their overall interest in the space) one wonders if they will create a web-based platform where these can all now live. Seems like a no brainer since they like to match or exceed Google and Windows Live. (Microsoft is an Edelman client and we work on Live outside the US) […]
I always liked the desktop Widgets.
[…] http://widgets.yahoo.net/blog/?p=16#more-16 […]
My top requests…
1) An embedded database engine
2) Industrial strength XML parsing
- Currently it just doesn’t handle large XML files very well
[…] The Ever-Changing Widget Landscape “The world of Widgets has changed a lot since Konfabulator came along back in 2003, when it was the only option of its kind for developers. Since then, similar offerings have emerged from several places, including Apple, and tomorrow, Microsoft as part of Vista. It has grown to such a point that Newsweek is proclaiming 2007 as the Year of the Widget ….Yahoo! Widget Engine 3.1 works on Vista.” That’s not to say that Yahoo Widgets are interchangeable with Vista Widgets… you still need the Yahoo Engine. “For desktop widgets you have: * Apple Dashboard * Microsoft Windows Vista Sidebar * Google Desktop Gadgets * Yahoo! Widgets (Konfabulator) […]
[…] We’ve spent the past 10+ months working on this release. During this time we’ve increased the size of our team (the proof is in our About Box) and spent a good amount of energy trying to figure out how to best serve our customers and developers in this increasingly competitive space. […]
One more request for Yahoo Widgets Engine for Linux
… atleast start it and begin CVS downloads… thank you…
Add another request for a Linux version
I just moved from Windows XP to Ubuntu Linux 7.04 and really miss my Yahoo Widgets. Gnome is my preferred desktop on Linux and you can run gDesklets or Jackfield there but gDesklets is very old and outdated (and nobody really does much with it these days). Jackfield is a newcomer and not so eye-catching yet. KDE has Karamba and SuperKaramba which are better but nothing beats the Yahoo Widgets.
If Yahoo has done a Mac OS X version then they are pretty much already there… you just need to decide on whether to do a GTK or QT front-end for it to work good on Linux. I would tend to push more for the GTK side since it is more “standards” based and is already cross-platform (Linux, Mac OS X, Windows, etc) and used a lot by Mono (cross-platform .NET Developers).
Please, pretty please
Add another request for Linux
I have been using Yahoo Widgets for quite a while now and recently moved to Ubuntu 7.04 and sorely miss my widgets. Please consider porting to Linux soon.
Thanks
@dhoomz: What makes you think Yahoo! would make an *open-source* version? I’m not saying they won’t; just that a version of the widget engine that runs on Linux doesn’t *imply* it will be open-source.
Hey Guys and Gals,
I wanted to download Linux and Solaris Widgets plz guide me from where I can download, and I am not super user in soalris 9.0, so how can use them plz tell me, I am desperate to use them on linx a well as on solaris they are very good and I can help in development too.
I really love yahoo widgets, but now i’m using linux, so it will be very kind from yahoo to make a linux version.
[…] In our mission to make applications that are easy and convenient to use, it was only a matter of time before we start to offer other methods to access Aruna Send (other than the web). Today is the first public beta release of the Aruna Send Yahoo! Widget. If you don’t know about Widgets yet, they are handy mini applications that can easily be accessed at any time on your desktop. There is a good article that gives an overview of the major widget platforms available today. […]
Does any one know how to embade/play swf ( flash file) in xml.con file?
I hope that there is linux version asap
well, I won’t be very original here saying: I switched from windows to ubuntu feisty recently and I really miss yahoo widgets on my new system. It would be great to run them on linux. Yahoo widget engine is a great app and ubuntu is a great system. Why can they be together?
I really hope guys you are going to intensify your efforts to release a linux version of the widget engine. It will be very appreciated.
Thanks Ed. Nice thing
Hi,
Just want to request a Linux version!!!
I’m also using ubuntu and think that yahoo widget rocks!
Linux version would be great. Being only MAC and Windows doesn’t cut it. Linux is really huge in the research/biotech/education and ISP world.
I also vote for a Linux version. I am using SUSE and KDE on my laptop exclusively. I have Super Karamba but it’s just not as polished and nice as Yahoo Widgets are.
Great post im gonna post this linux widget topic on my blog..
More power to you guys
Another request for linux
hi i need yahoo widget launcher for windows 98 plz any one can help me?
I do no usually send comments, but figure if enough people vocalize intrest in a linux solution..maybe it will happen
I too have been migrating our winxp machines to PCLinuxOS…now .94…and would be very happy to see/use widget’s on linux/KDE. SuperKaramba is ok..but from what I see Widgets are much more polished, complete and offer a huge repository of solutions.
Thanks for all the work you have done so far on the win/mac side.
Yet another request for a Linux version.. I use Ubuntu Feisty Fawn too, maybe you could get some of the community to help write a Linux engine with you if you don’t have the resources!
Well, a Linux version would be nice, but an open source version would probably be more useful to more people. Widgets should probably not draw using KDE or gnome features, and if a fltk version is made it would run in virtually all X, aqua, and aero interfaces with no more worry about rewriting functionality. Sure, it’s one more port. But the platform specific parts could be weeded out from windows and os x ports, thus leaving us with a single version that works the same everywhere.
Thanks. It’s a nice review!
[…] Me pasa Humberto este interesante artculo “The Ever-Changing Widget Landscape” en el blog de Yahoo Widgets sobre las diferentes alternativas de widgets, clasificados por: […]
Hate to say it, but we’ll probably never see a Linux version of Yahoo Widgets. Yahoo just doesn’t give a crap about us Linux users. We’re probably better off waiting for Jackfield (which claims it will be able to run Yahoo Widgets and Windows Gadgets, and is already capable of running OS X widgets) to mature.
I’d love for Yahoo to prove me wrong though. Count this as a vote for a Linux version, if you will.
[…] So what the heck is a widget anyway? A must read article defining what the various types of widgets are, what they do, how they differ, and what they are properly called, was published on Yahoo last January. Despite Yahoo’s self-interest in the subject (as publishers of the Konfabulator platform), the article is objective and is the best general review on widgets I’ve seen. Although the piece mostly discusses web vs. desktop widgets, to my mind there are three major categories of widgets: […]
another request for linux please ….
Just another vote for a Linux version… just switched to Ubuntu Feisty 7.04.
another request for linux… ubuntu festy
I would also love to see a Linux version of Yahoo Widgets, preferably made for Ubuntu. Thanks.
I would be so happy to se yahoo widgets on my UbuntuPC. It is the only thing I’m missing.
Comment:
Even though GNU/Linux is open source doesn’t mean all software running on it is. Seems like very meny of the people out there think so…
I can see how putting development effort into widgets for Linux may not seem particularly urgent, but considering the relatively underdeveloped state of Linux widgets, the impressive growth rate of the OS, its high developer/user ratio and their renewed focus on eye candy and usability (e.g. Fusion/Beryl), Y! Widgets could gain quite a following with a bit of timely porting.
As for waiting on feature maturity, Linux users are notoriously tolerant of work in progress as opposed to waiting 6 years for a new iteration which turns out to be… underwhelming, to say the least. Have hope, Linux users - I suspect Google will be releasing their gadgets for Linux in the near future, having already ported a version of Google Desktop.
Yes…Lets get this onto Ubuntu 7.04 POST-HASTE!!! Would love to see this available. Use the community if you have to. Windows is dying….we need to ensure Widgets live on!!!
I am moved from XP to Ubuntu Linux. Please make a version for GNU/Linux…….
Im looking for a widget to my new blog.
I need this widget to show all my favourites in a slidshow.
Is there a kind of that widjet?
Thanks
i just found out that dell and acer are gonna have ubuntu 7.04 running on their laptops now and not vista. linux is moving into the big world when two big names in computers are using it. and if you guys at yahoo are smart, you would make a widget engine for ubuntu. i mean, come on, you guys can create any computer software you want to, why not do this for all the people who are either moving to ubuntu because vista costs too much and is crap or because mac os x is way too expensive.
do it for the little guy. and yahoo widgets are free to run on windows and mac, so what would it hurt to port it to ubuntu.
thank you very much for reading this.
froggy
Hello,
Me too. I’m using Ubuntu 7.04 Feisty Fawn. I really hope that you guys could make a version of yahoo Widget Engine for Ubuntu.
Thank You!
Thanks for this widget.. i really need this.
Kreatus
Linux will be forever 2steps before of XP. thats the truth
Ok, guys,
just to require an Ubuntu/Linux porting of Yahoo! Widgets.
Thanks to everybody.
Micky
Yet another vote for Linux support… or at least bring it to a state where it will run under Wine
Guys, how can you say that your widgets are “across all OS’s” when you don’t address Linux? What a bunch of hooey. Linux is stable, gaining market share and is a mainstream desktop OS. It’s time to stop pretending otherwise.
I am a novice at all this but learning good information thank you Yahoo
I think yahoo widgets really rocks!
I will install it.
Thanks to you guys.
Just another request foe a linux version… tnx.
Agree with David - across all Os’s should include Linux. Come on Yahoo.
[…] On the Yahoo! Widget blog someone authored a post regarding the ever-changing widget landscape for desktops and how developers are pigeon-holed into one platform or another (unless they use Yahoo! SURPRISE!) The same problem holds true for web-based widget developers. […]
You say this is the only widget engine that supports all operating systems, but it doesn’t support the main one that all others are based from. How can it support them all without supporting Unix?
hmm, I would also love to see a Linux version of this.
you must make a widget for windows me,nt, and 98
i would love it if i would s it in the windows me,nt and windows 98 version
Another request for a Linux version. It is not necessary to be open sourced.
Just another request for a linux version.
… again.
All I want for xmas is a Linux version….
Didn’t think I’d be saying this, but I too have switched from XP to Linux/Ubuntu 7.10 and there is very little I miss.
Other then some additional eye candy, I feel a few steps ahead of Vista, and yes, the widgets would be nice!
After using Ubuntu for a week now, I can say that there will definitely be no Vista for me.
Bring the widgets to linux!
On linux you can use screenlets: http://www.screenlets.org/index.php/Screenshots
Linux version please…
…please?
Another vote for the Linux version.
I need a Windows 3.1 version of widgets — Okay — not really. However, I do vote for a Linux version. I miss my widgets. I have to use the wife’s computer every once in awhile just to get a fix.
+1 Request for Y! widget on Linux. Thanks!
Yes, Yahoo! Widgets for Ubuntu would be a life-saver. The radio players are the only thing I miss; I have to run Windows XP inside a virtual machine just for the Y!widgets. Ick.
If you can do it for Mac, which is already Unix, how big a step can it be for Debian-based Linux?
I don’t get it: when I bring up the Heads Up Display (F8), I get the whole full screen background but all the widgets are BEHIND the full-screen, faded out. If i then press F8 all the widgets are now in the front and the full-screen goes away. What is the point of the Heads Up Display then, it shows nothing and forces you to hit the key twice. Or am I doing something wrong?
LinuXXXXXXX versionnnnnnnnn pleaseeeeeee
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