Slashdot Mirror
Google Releases Desktop Gadgets For Linux
mstrom writes "Google announced it has ported its Google Desktop Gadgets platform to Linux, making it the first cross-platform [desktop] gadgets framework.
In a sign that Google is fully embracing the open source model, it admits the product is not feature-complete and has opened up the code base hosted on Google Code 'to give everyone a chance to tinker with the code powering the gadgets.' According to Google: "Gadget support is not just a single feature, but rather an entire platform for miniature applications.'"
How much search bars and adboxes do one need on a desktop?
Extreme Programming - Redundant Array of Inexpensive Developers
For all the Google talk about organizing information and their 'open platform' push with Android, it's about time they start taking Linux platforms seriously.
... but is it open source? Yes! Screenshot: http://google-gadgets-for-linux.googlecode.com/svn/images/ggl-standalone.jpg
If you count Opera's widgets, this isn't the first cross-platform widget/gadget system.
Comment removed based on user account deletion
making it the first cross-platform [desktop] gadgets framework
Wasn't Konfabulator the first? It supported both Mac and Windows, and was the tool of choice until Apple decided to release the Dashboard.
Although KDE4.1(?) was planning to impliment the ability to run Apple Widgets (or whatever they're called).
Of course, Apple didn't design them to work cross-platform, though.
Wouldn't KDE 4 be the first cross-platform desktop widget framework? Or don't they count it because it isn't completely done yet?
Do people really use them? I don't use any of the widgets on my Mac OSX system. I sort of used the calculator, but do I really need one in the background all the time? On Vista I shut down the sidebar, what a huge waste of resources. And why do I need a clock gadget when there's one already in the system tray? This just seems like a gimmick to waste collective time.
From TFA: ...to give everyone a chance to tinker with the code
[Google] admits the product is not feature-complete and has opened up the code base
Since when was "open source" just an excuse for releasing a half-finished product? Google is a multi-million-dollar company. Surely they can afford to pay some programmers and testers to produce a finished product before they release it?
Error 404
Take Nobody's Word For It.
the first cross-platform [desktop] gadgets framework
So, this Konfabulator thing I've been running for years isn't cross-platform after all? Thanks for clearing that up, Slashdot!
I'm only wearing black until they come out with something darker.
How long until a .deb file is made.
good news all around.
Ubuntu- Linux for human beings.
Can anyone summarize what this means, for those of us stuck behind firewalls?
Note to Google: blogspot is probably not the best place to put real stuff, however "Web 2.0" it may be.
I want to delete my account but Slashdot doesn't allow it.
http://code.google.com/p/google-gadgets-for-linux/source/browse/trunk/COPYING
You must be new here.
"I have downloaded hundreds and hundreds of records, why would I care if somebody downloads ours?" Robin Pecknold
I agree.
And not only they give a source package for linux but they also give support for both qt and gtk widgets.
And for those saying that Linux users don't want a ugly Vista bar on their desktop, I must remind them that Linux had those thingies way before Vista. I'm talking about adesklets, superkaramba and friends..
So yes, I actually feel happy when a big company like Google thinks about us, the minority and little Linux users. Even if I don't need/want what they have to offer.
Hi all, I am not sure if they are not breaking rules of GPL. Of course, I don't think this is intentional - but if their gadgets use Qt - they should be released under the terms of GPL and not Apache Software License 2.0. Quick browsing their code repository shows that even files that require Qt headers have Apache license header - not a GPL one. Does anyone know if this stuff is legally possible? I'm not accusing Google of anything, I'm really happy that they released it and I'm building this software right now. I just think the legal stuff is really important.
I saw a lot of posts claiming that gadgets are worthless. Since I use Google Desktop with gadgets, I thought I would mention that gadgets I use. I mostly use Google Calendar (my agenda is very full) as well as a remember the milk gadget that is identical to the one on iGoogle. I also use a large digital clock with an alarm that flashes to alert me when I need to do certain things. The only other gadget I would like is something that combines RTM, my calendar, and permits me to "punch in" and "punch out" to activities in my RTM to do list. I like having all of these visible to me to help me keep track of my activities and goals. I use two wide screen monitors though, so if I had a tiny screen I might not find gadgets as useful.
Awesome, my first 0.
/LabMonkey09
What about my hockey scores? Too bad this information is controlled - would make great gadgets!
Comment removed based on user account deletion
I have a gnome applet for weather called Weather Report 2.22.1, works just fine, just checked it a minute ago. You can set location covered and how often it updates and how you want the numbers read out (miles or kilometers and etc.). It has current conditions, forecast for today and the rest of the week, and the radar image.
This new release rewrites the plugin used to provide applet support to browsers. One of the new features is the ability of dragging an applet to the desktop, and the applet would stat there. It's really simple and it's very cool. This is coupled with the newly added support for abitrarily shaped applets.
Sun is trying to revitalize applets. There's no reason a Java applet should be slower than flash, and the language is much more powerful.
The food came to the table.
One of the guests shouted out: "I can't eat that!".
"Why?" enquired a troubled hostess.
"This fish is still frozen in the middle."
That was a true tale. The meal was free to "the guest" but he rightly pointed out that it wasn't fit to eat. If I give you something and it's sucky I'd rather you told me.
Summary: You should complain no matter what price you pay, or if something is free-gratis. That means that your benefactor can make a correction if there is some error. Of course that might just say FY, but that's their prerogative.
I think Tk has it beat by a long shot (over a decade).
:)
(Plus, Tk is something I'd willingly install on pretty much every platform I have, while KDE is something I don't want on any platform, no matter how much you pay me. But that's a separate issue.)
Well, it's released under the Apache License.
What is the license of Microsoft's "open source" softwares?
http://code.google.com/p/google-gadgets-for-linux/
factor 966971: 966971
Microsoft doesn't do Open Source, it does Shared Source. To laymen, that means you can look at some of it but if you change any of it, it spends three months festering in Ballmer's underpants before approval gets signed in triplicate and you get a letter basically requesting you to empty the entire contents of your bank account into the Microsoft Money Pit before the fat sweaty bald man gets his "Yes" rubber stamp out.
Gentoo Linux - another day, another USE flag.
My experience with google software is that very little, if any, is a port to Linux. Most of it is simply a wine implementation. So, in effect, it is a windows program running on linux.
If google wants to really commit to linux they'll make real linux programs and not some wine implementation.
You can lead a man with reason but you can't make him think.
>> "Gadget support is not just a single feature, but rather an entire platform for USELESS miniature applications."
Fixed that for ya!
Comment removed based on user account deletion
The Google Gadgets developers have already created a Plasma implementation of them, similar to how MacOSX widget support is implemented. The blog of Aaron Seigo, Plasma developer About Google gadgets on plasma