It’s a Wide Widget World out there…
Static (e.g. stale) websites are a thing of the past. By adding a widget or two to your website, mySpace page, Facebook profile, eBay store, etc… you can easily and affordably enhance your web presence.
According to Wikipedia, a “web widget is a portable chunk of code that can be installed and executed within any separate HTML-based web page by an end user without requiring additional compilation. They are derived from the idea of reusable code that has existed for years. Nowadays other terms used to describe web widgets including: gadget, badge, module, capsule, snippet, mini and flake. Web widgets often but not always use DHTML, JavaScript, or Adobe Flash.”
Here’s a list of some of the widget resources out there (e-mail us if you think something should be added to this list!):
- Google Gadgets (”Google Gadgets are miniature web objects that you can copy & paste into your own webpage, for free”)
- Widgetbox (”world’s largest directory and gallery of web widgets”)
- SpringWidgets (”a widget directory for the desktop and the web”)
- Yourminis (”widgets for your blog, website, startpage, and desktop”)
- WordPress Widgets (enhance your WordPress blog with widgets)
- Shopit (”Shopit’s storefront profiles, portable store widgets and networking tools are built for social commerce; use them to buy, sell, trade, or to just promote yourself, anywhere on the web”)
- Cartfly (”you can customize your portable store to fit your business’s look and style; the emphasis is on a simple interface with a fast setup that will help you get your store out and about on the web in no time”)
- Cooqy (”create customizable widgets you can embed in your website, blog or social networking page; the widgets are free for non-eBay web pages; using the widgets on eBay pages such as item listings is free if you have fewer than 500 active listings; it’s $4.95 per month if you have more than that”)
- FormLogix (”FormLogix is an online form builder tool for creating web databases and web forms; forms may be embedded in your website, blog, or may be used internally”)
A note about widget selection: remember, just because you can doesn’t mean you should. Exercise care and judgment when choosing your widgets and remember, less is still usually more. So only add a widget or two when it actually enhances and adds value to your web presence instead of distracting or overwhelming your visitors.
Related Reading: Widgets Are The New Black
A Sample Widget:
Tags: badge, capsule, e-commerce, embed, flake, forms, gadget, mini, module, snippet, Web 2.0, web widget, widget, widgets
