Geek2Live

Google Gadgets for Linux provides a platform for running desktop gadgets under Linux, catering to the unique needs of Linux users. It's compatible with the gadgets written for Google Desktop for Windows as well as the Universal Gadgets on iGoogle . Following Linux norms, this project is open-sourced under the Apache License. An important area where Google Desktop for Linux is different from its siblings on other operating systems is support for gadgets. Now, the Linux version of Google Gadgets will extend the gadgets platform to Linux users. By enabling cross-platform gadgets, a large library of existing gadgets are immediately available to Linux users. In addition, gadget developers will benefit from a much larger potential user base without having to learn a new API. There's two main components to the application: one is a common gadget library responsible for running and presenting a gadget, and the other is a host program that allows the user to choose gadgets and run the...

Google has announced the official release of Desktop Gadgets for Linux and is distributing the source code under the open-source Apache software license. Although there are still bugs and the implementation is not yet entirely complete, it works well enough for day-to-day use. Desktop Gadgets is one of the primary features of the Google Desktop suite, which also includes a search mechanism. Gadgets are small, interactive, web-oriented applets that the user can place on the desktop or in a sidebar. Google publishes a complete Gadgets API that enables third-party software developers to create components for the platform. It also supports Google's web-based widgets. Google issued a somewhat lackluster release of its desktop search tool for Linux last year, but didn't support Gadgets on the open-source operating system until now. Although somewhat incomplete, this early Gadgets release reflects a much stronger understanding of the expectations and requirements of Linux users. Sour...