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The latest version of Yahoo's toolbar drops the word "Engine" from its name and makes customization even easier than before. It also comes with a revamped look. Yahoo Widgets lets you add small standalone applications that can offer an endless variety of features, content, and system functionality.
Twenty-two default widgets are included--including a weather forecaster, a Yahoo Mail manager, a Wi-Fi signal checker, a calendar, and an iTunes remote. Though the true value of the app should be judged on the quality of the widgets developed, the platform itself is polished and easy to use.
A helpful tour introduces users to the basics of widgets, offering up some examples. Adding and removing widgets is simple, and the new widget dock features more personalization options. Most widgets include tweaks such as skinning options. Other new improvements include Windows Alt-Tab menu access and helpful configuration buttons that appear when you mouse over a widget. Unfortunately, the app inserts itself into your start-up programs without asking--but you can fix that in Preferences.
Yahoo Widget 4 is a valuable tool for users of Yahoo services, and it's a helpful download for anyone who wants standalone desktop tools for regular Web activities, system information, or whatever cool feature the next great widget will offer.
Publisher's Description
From Yahoo:
The Yahoo Widget Engine (formerly known as Konfabulator) 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, and even give your current local weather.
Version 4 adds a new Widget Dock, automatic widget updates, reduced memory consumption, and new developer features such as SQL Lite support. Version 4.0.5 fixes various issues with COM objects and makes two other Mac fixes.
What's new in this version: Version 4.0.5 fixes various issues with COM objects and makes two other Mac fixes.
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All versions:
4.1 starsout of 235 votes
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Current version:
4.4 starsout of 66 votes
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My rating:
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"The widgets that I use work better than expected. . . ."
Version: Yahoo Widgets 4.05
Pros
Very nice the picture frame and digital clock work well, look good and the clock has real chimes. That is all I am using presently for now.
Cons
This field was required.
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"good software.... but some widgets were buggy"
Version: Yahoo Widgets 4.05
Pros
occupies at an average only 5-10mb RAM per widget. CPU load is almost zero (depending on widgets chosen). no noticeable effect on start-up times.
Cons
some widgets available online were buggy/unstable. so one needs some trial-n-error kind of operation before finally settling down on one's choicest of widgets.not a problem if you are seasoned firefox add-ons user.
Summary
good software. useful+beautiful. but addictive like firefox add-ons(your problem,not mine).......too many widgets is bad for health.
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"Good program but could stand some improvements"
Version: Yahoo Widgets 4.05
Pros
Ease of use, adjustable transparency of Widgets, wide variety of available Widgets, doesn't mess with your Task Bar like Google Gadgets does
Cons
Inability to reposition Widgets as desired (alphabetical sorting only, but who wants to memorize a list?); many are "half-baked"; somewhat cumbersome to find what you want in order to turn them on/off or view status; cannot resize Dock
Summary
I like this product and prefer it overall to Google Gadets, but I would rate it higher and would like it better if the following were addressed:
1) Ability to "collapse" the Widgets, active or not, allowing me to easily see their names and fit more into one "page". This way, I wouldn't have to scroll back and forth from one "Dock Page" to another to find/activate/deactivate what I want and could more easily interact with a Widget at any time more quickly
2) Further to #1, the ability to resize the Dock to show or hide the Widget name
3) Ability to Drag and Drop widgets on the Dock to whatever position you wish, allowing you to sort them as you see fit
4) Ability to adjust transparency of the Dock itself and not just the Widgets
5) HUD is inconsistent: some Widgets show up, others don't; Widget position can be adjusted with some but not others; hard to see your Desktop Wallpaper through it so that you can reposition Widgets vs. Wallpaper, etc., and allow everything to be seen easily
6) Although it's great that Widgets can be developed by 3rd parties and I fully support this concept, I feel that the good people at Yahoo should more fully test submissions for functionality, compatibility, stability and consistency. For example: some install ok but don't work at all; some won't install for cryptic reasons; some require additional supporting software that perhaps not everybody wants on their systems; some open with a single left click, others require a double-click and still others only show in HUD view until you click or double-click on them in HUD view
7) Some, but not all, of the Widgets show you a "mini-view" on the dock of what the Widget output is (preferred) so that you don't need to Show the Widget on your Desktop in order to, for example, see the current Weather conditions or how much RAM memory is in use without additional interaction. These are two examples of Widgets that have the functionality I want; I really like to able to see what's going on with them without having to click them, double-click them, or click/double-click in HUD view to see what I want
8) Ability to Drag and Drop the Dock to wherever I wish, as with the Windows Taskbar.
All of that said, I still prefer Yahoo Widgets to Google Gadgets for the following reasons:
1) All I wanted with this type of application was a bunch of little "applets" that don't require me to open a web browser or Control Panel function to, for example, get current weather conditions, CPU activity, Day/Date/Time (I have the Windows Takbar set to Autohide in order to get maximum "Desktop Real Estate"), Memory useage, etc. I don't need or want the additional hard drive Indexing that Google Desktop provides, nor the additional resources taken up by this function, or anything else - just at-a-glance gadgetry
2) Although I disabled the "Start with Windows" feature, I have noticed that Widgets doesn't increase full computer start-up time as much as Gagdets does and Widgets starts up manually quite a bit faster than Gadgets does
3) I have several custom Quick-Launch Toolbars attached to my Taskbar: Widgets doesn't affect their size or position when it launches whereas Gadgets does; Widgets also doesn't re-arrange the Icons in any toolbar, including the standard Quick-Launch, whereas Gadgets does
4) Widgets doesn't add any additional Toolbars to my Taskbar at any time, whereas Gadgets does. They also come back whenever I run the program, even when they were dismissed during a prior session with the program. This likely explains some of the behavior noted in #3 above: since Widgets doesn't "mess with my Taskbar", I don't need to waste time setting everything back to they way I want it every time I run the program
5) Widgets is much more stable overall than Gadgets: I have yet to see an individual Widget crash the program, whereas more than one Gadget crashed the whole thing during the brief time I had Google Desktop installed on my computer
6) Widgets doesn't interfere with any program that I *do* want to start with Windows, whether it's set to start with the OS or not. With GD, the Control Icons for (most notably) my Memory Manager and Antivirus appeared at first intermittently, then not at all - even with GD set to *not* start with Windows. Nothing I did would correct this problem - and to me this *is* a problem - and while I admit my patience in troubleshooting this area is somewhat limited, I don't feel I should really need to.
To sum up, I will continue to use Widgets because of its stability, functionality and inobtrusiveness. Hopefully, a version will come out in the future that will add some of the additional features I listed above. When this happens, I'll be able to honestly give it a higher rating, and I sincerely believe it will then kick Gadgets' butt all over the Desktop world. -
"Pretty sweet"
Version: Yahoo Widgets 4.05
Pros
Very versitile, i enjoy the stock quote widget...many to choose from, doesn't slow comp down.
Cons
just one more thing thats prolly not necessary but cool anyway
Summary
if bored download haha
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"kvgcyct.bkjkbhvkucvjh"
Version: Yahoo Widgets 4.05
Pros
;/ljuygutcfkulyghioljh8u
Cons
l.khvkyjtfkuiho/;ij;lkm
Summary
I'm 66 years old and your cnet won't accept my review because for some reason I'm under 13 years old.
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"Works Just Fine For Me"
Version: Yahoo Widgets 4.05
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"Nice n attractive widget"
Version: Yahoo Widgets 4.05
Pros
good appearance
Cons
not customizable dock, I can't reorganize widget order, as I can do it with rocketdock -_-'
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"Plain awesome!"
Version: Yahoo Widgets 4.05
Pros
I love everything about yahoo widgets. There are over 4000 of them. And they all ROCK!
Cons
A few widgets are glitchy or don't work good. This can be overlooked though.
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"Efficient"
Version: Yahoo Widgets 4.05
Pros
I enjoyed the entirety of the idea and would typically flow well. If you budget your RAM and Desktop space wisely (and don't have a boatload of programs going on at the same time) it works really well. Visually stunning.
Cons
Unfortunately, certain individual widgets could be RAM hogs or wouldn't work (for me, they ended up as ones I desired most).
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"best thing ever!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
Version: Yahoo Widgets 4.05
Pros
everything easy to use look awsome
Cons
nothing
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