I must admit, for a while I was a widget whore. I created as many widgets as possible in a short period of time and uploaded them to iGoogle. The problem was, only iGoogle users could use the widgets, but I wanted Facebook, Bebo, and others to have the same ability. This is where WidgetBox came in.
Once visiting WdigetBox, you will notice the large array of choices. You can easily find other widgets by browsing through the tags, hidden gems, new widgets, featured widgets, or by going through their all time favorites, hottest, new & notable or top rated. If you know what you are looking for, you can even use the ‘Find Widgets’ search box. Even if you aren’t there looking for widgets or adding your own, you can use their network channels to add your blog or find others to read.
With that being said, we will focus on its ability to add widgets to other services.
After creating an account and signing in, click ‘Make a Widget’. You are then able to select one of five choices:
Select the type of widget you wish to add and enter your already made widgets URL (or feed) or select HTML/JS. After clicking ‘continue’ you will be brought to a page displaying your widget code, widget settings and a preview. If everything looks OK, click ‘Save Widget’, else edit the code until it is accurate.
Once the save is complete, you will then be able to test your widget, add it to WidgetBox’s gallery, and create it into a FaceBook or Bebo app. If you wish to make the widget into an app, you must login the social media website and follow a series of directions (nothing difficult, just lengthy).
Additional features
- Make money from your apps. WidgetBox offers ways to earn money everytime your app is shown.
- Featured status. Get enough views/adds and move up the list to featured widgets. Searches are also sorted by views/adds, so the more popular the widget, the more visible it becomes.
- Stats. See how many times your widget was added and viewed by others.
Conclusion
Overall, WidgetBox is a great utility which allows us to easily switch widgets to apps. I have used it numerous times and have been quite impressed with the ease of making the widgets compatible.
Written: Oct 9, 2008
Tags: Reviews, widgetbox
Texas Wanderer
October 9, 2008 @ 10:17 am | Reply
Great review! I’ll have to check this out later this week.
Dennis Edell
October 12, 2008 @ 2:23 am | Reply
Excellent find, thanks!