There are now so many choices when it comes to creating desktop widgets. You can use:

- Google Widgets
- Yahoo! Widgets
- Dashboard
- SpringWidgets
- YourMinis

and much much more. It seems the biggest difference is do you develop an HTML/XML based widget or a Flash based widget.

My question is, which platform do you think is the best for widget development? Flash, HTML? Which current engine is the best to develop for and why?

Thanks,

JL

from my point of view, is better to use Adobe AIR directly without the need of any third party as SpringWidgets or Yourminis.
As far as I know, both springwidgets and yourminis use this technology (AIR) but you need to build your widgets using flash.
now, the good thing about AIR is that you can build your widgets either in flash or HTML so if you use AIR directly you are not limited only to do flash stuff but HTML as well...

Dashboard, well, depends on your target, if you are targeting only mac users, why develop on something different? dashboard is the way to go
but if your target is broader, then I would say AIR (again) as is cross-platform.

Google and yahoo widgets? no thanks!
I know there are many (MANY) people who like them but I had a bad experience with Google widgets and the super huge environment you need to install to run your widgets...
I'm pretty sure people don't like installing environments, that's why my desktop widgets are standalone, don't need to be installed and behave as any other file (you can drag them, move them to a folder, delete them...)

Here in Widgipedia there are many Google & Yahoo widgets developers, I'm expecting they will tell us more to convince us to use these platforms so let's listen to what they say

salut!

:: Games Garden ::

Thank you for the feedback.

I've explored AIR but I am a bit confused by it. Is AIR basically a widget development platform? Essentially a Flash executable and JavaScript compile engine in one? Does it have it's own API or SDK for developing widgets and it knows how to handle HTML+JavaScript+Images to create a UI app?

Also, what if you want to extend the functionality of AIR? Can that be done so you can build a wrapper around it?

Thx,

J

AIR is a platform to develop rich desktop applications, meaning applications like word, excel, etc with the difference that they can handle rich media pulling data from the internet so is like having internet on your desktop without the need of a browser (and no its not a browser).
It does have its own SDK and if you think is to develop widgets then people at adobe will feel a bit upset as they target is to develop applications with larger scopes than a widget could have but still is able to create widgets because at the end of the day, widgets are small apps but still apps

I guess you won't need to extend AIR as it is in fact the wrapper for your applications so they can run in any OS.

Well, I guess is better if you check the adobe website as well (now Im a bit drunk, it's friday night and at the office they give us beer on fridays afternoons... )

salut

:: Games Garden ::

...OS X Dashboard ! Works for me ! I love the Dashboard - Sorry, but i'm not in windows anymore, i gave up on it ! Errors, Errors, Errors... AIR is great, but anybody need AIR installed to use the Widgets - MDM Zinc is great too : Cross-platform, standalone, flash integration(SWF's) ! Yahoo is easy to develop (XML) - BUT limited ! Google Gadgets ? Don't know much about it - i find them preety ugly ! SpringWidgets, Widgetbox
and YourMinis are Web based(Webwidgets), nice, simple to use BUT showing the links of them and all the time is very annoying !

http://thedashboard-widgets.blogspot.com/

Hi all,
I like to use the AIR to develop the desktop widget. At present I am developing desktop widget and in that I am using Move Player (www.movenetworks.com). I think you guys might have heard about it., ABC.com is using Move Player to show their full episodes. But somehow I cannot use Move Player in AIR. Can anyone confirm that AIR and Move Player both can work together? Move Player is a plug-ind for the browser to play the video in HD. You guys also can also send an email at ursams2003@yahoo.co.in

I appreciate your valuable time,
Thanks,
Best regards,

I think possibly Google Widgets,Yahoo! Widgets are considered to be the best engine to develop a widget for.

cartes r4i

Google and yahoo widget are easy to use and implement

Which ones run better on net books? I have a net book and can't have too many programs running without slowing down my computer. Does HTML5 use less memory and power than a Flash widget? I think while computers are getting faster, more and more people are using bare-bones systems like net books and Ipads and Iphones that need to run more efficiently.

Bella Vega, Multivariate Testing Advisor