Widgets are a great way of utilising push technology to relavent content to users and spread branding.
Mac OSX has dashboard widgets and Windows Vista also has desktop widgets.
There is currently a growth of online widgets created which can be embedded into mySpace, FaceBook and iGoogle.
Some comments on Adverblog in relation to a widget created by Adidas enabling users to have live sport scores on their deskto notes that there is no need for a widget (branded RSS player) for people who use RSS already as they have a preferred player. However someone else notes that it could be a good way of introducing people to RSS.
(http://www.adverblog.com/archives/002397.htm)
Till recently, most widgets have been in effect branded desktop RSS players:
“The Yahoo! Widget Engine is a JavaScript runtime engine for Windows and Mac OS X that lets you run little files called Widgets that can do pretty much whatever you want them to. Widgets can be alarm clocks, calculators, can tell you your WiFi signal strength, will fetch the latest stock quotes for your preferred symbols. May be a strong marketing tool, too. Widgets are waiting to be discovered by marketers. Content in widgets come directly to their desktop, bypassing e-mail. It’s one way to combat a decline in e-mail open rates. “
(http://www.adverblog.com/archives/002397.htm)
However widgets are now finding their place online.
According to Wikipedia a “web widget is anything that can be embedded within a page of HTML, i.e. a web page. A widget adds some content to that page that is not static. Generally widgets are third party originated… Widgets are also known as modules, snippets, and plug-ins. Widgets can be written in HTML, but also in javascript, flash and other scripting languages…”
Platforms have been created where upeople can easily create widgets: http://www.widgetbox.com,
Widgets can be added to windows.live page (http://blog.searchenginewatch.com/blog/051215-115531) , iGoogle, MySpace, and FaceBook.
Recently faceBook have opeded their API enabling developers to develop widget applications which users can embed in their sites. They allow widgets to be created using Flash 8. Some cool examples are in the making, here are a few examples:
Some Examples
Business Week mac dashboard widget:
http://www.businessweek.com/download/widget/index.html
WEB WIDGETS:
Examples from games and virtual pets to more functional uses, such as miniature chat rooms, maps, reader polls, RSS readers and multiple choice polls.
Lots of examples here:
http://www.masternewmedia.org/news/2006/11/27/digital_content_distribution_made_easy.htm
Other Resources:
http://www.toprankblog.com/2006/11/marketing-with-widgets-interview-with-lawrence-coburn/
web widget building – usability:
http://www.ibm.com/developerworks/library/us-widget/
2007 Year of the web widget
http://blogs.business2.com/business2blog/2007/01/2007_the_web_wi.htmlÂ
