Closer look at Google Desktop sidebar and Gadget

What are Gadgets?
Gadgets can be placed in the Sidebar or anywhere on your desktop, on your iGoogle page or even any other page including yours. We also know that gadgets are mini applications that shows you some information and often also provides functionality. Informative gadgets could be, showing the latest news lines or the weather. Gadgets may also provide functionality, that could be for example a clock, multimedia control or a to-do list.

How do a Gadget work?
In somewhat technical term a Gadget is a simple XML and JavaScript mini application that can be embedded in web application, other applications and at your desktop.

Not all Gadgets works everywhere.
A good thing to know is that when a Gadget is written it may be written as a desktop mini application or to use as a web application. That's why you don't find Gadgets available for the Desktop in a web application and vice verse.

Why use Gadgets in the sidebar?
As I explained first, that they provides you information and functionality. In the sidebar It may be easier just to check or use your sidebar then to open a website to get the information. In the sidebar It may also be easier if you can control something from there instead of opening some sort of program or setting.

Working with Google Desktop Sidebar.

Placing the sidebar. We have 3 and 5 ways how to place and display the sidebar. We can chose to place the sidebar with the options sidebar, deskbar and floating deskbar.

As default it comes placed as with the option sidebar. With this option it'll work as a sidebar and be placed either on the left or the right side of the screen. You may also prefer to use the option always on top.

Setting the sidebar to Always on top, gives you faster overview of the information and functionality. Doing this will take some place of your screen and working space. But with today's computer screen which are wide there will be a lot of space free anyhow for normal users. With a small computer screen may be a pain to have it on top as your working space will be very limited. If you use dual screens you'll have an excellent opportunity to use the sidebar at the second screen, the left side if you align the screen to left.

When you work with the sidebar mode, using it on top or with a second screen and gets used to it's functionality it may feels sometimes a bit worthless to even have a task bar in Windows. In fact most of the functionality could move over to the sidebar.

In we use the option deskbar in the sidebar it'll place itself as a search field in the taskbar in Windows. The gadgets that was docked in with the sidebar mode or option are hidden now. All un-docked gadgets are still available on the desktop.

Deskbar option

The last option to place the sidebar is floating deskbar. This will turn the sidebar into a singel search field on top of other windows, and all Gadgets that was docked in the sidebar are now hidden.

Floating deskbar option

If we don't want to display or use the sidebar just chose the option None.

Add functionality and information to the Sidebar, adding gadgets.
Adding more gadgets is easy. Just by clicking on the plus sign or by right clicking on the sidebar. Doing this a new window will be opened with some available gadgets.

Adding Gadgets

You can chose from sorted categories to the left and search others on the right upper corner. You can also chose gadgets in multi languages. When clicking on the Add button in the Gadget will install the gadget right away after you have confirmed it in a pop-up windows.

You can un-dock any gadgets to the desktop and place them freely wherever you want. By doing this will automatically toggle the expanded view which is available to use when they are docked with the sidebar. Many of the gadgets has their personal configurations. To save space on the desktop you can often collapse a gadget. To remove a gadget simple click on the cross or right click and remove.

Collapsing gadgets

If you have installed Google Desktop on several of computers you may want to get your gadget contents and settings to all. This is available by right clicking at the sidebar, click at Configure gadgets and then check the box "Save my gadget content and settings so I can access them from any computer". Note that not all gadgets supports that, look at the Configure gadget windows which gadgets are supported.

In the next post I'll be comparing Windows Vista sidebar, gadgets and Google Desktop sidebar, gadgets.

References:
Getting Started with Google Desktop