BEST MAC MAGAZINE

EXCLUSIVES

Closer Look > Apple Amazing Widgets for Amazing Users

Words by Barbara Mende

March 2008

What's practical, user-friendly, fun Ñ and free? If you said Podcasts, fair enough. But if you're not yet a widget fan, it's time to explore the enormous range of helpful little programs and shortcuts for your Tiger Dashboard.

You've forgotten about Dashboard? Well, it's time to get reacquainted. Click on the speedometer-like Dashboard icon on the dock, or press function key 12, and you'll be in a new virtual world. Apple has given you a great assortment to begin with.

Do you like to start the day with a weather report? A stock report? Do you have a plane schedule to check? Do you need to translate something into Dutch, or figure out how many gallons are in 25 liters? All that info is available just by clicking on one of the widgets on your Dashboard screen. If you don't see the one you want, click on the plus sign at the bottom left to activate more widgets, or to turn off the ones you don't have room for. To explore further, hit "Manage Widgets," click on "More Widgets," and you'll be at Apple's widget browser, .

Widgets come in three basic flavors: Little programs, such as Freecell and Sudoku; shortcuts to applications, such as Address Book; and shortcuts to Web info, such as Wikipedia. Start with "Today's Top Downloads." On a typical day you'll find information, search aids, games, utilities, business software, and just plain feel-good stuff. For example:

• Perennial favorite RadioTuner lets you clean up all those radio station bookmarks you've set up in Safari. It gives you instant access to all your favorite online stations. Switching from music to sports to news is easier than pushing a button on your radio.
• Starry Night shows the planets and constellations that are visible in your location.
• SpaceWorms, Banana Warehouse, and Bubble Trouble are great games to play while you're on hold. For more serious play, try a few rounds of Texas Hold 'Em with Scenario Poker.
• Not to encourage quests for a free lunch, but with AirPort Radar you can scan the area you're in for wireless networks. During your travels, you can be sure to get the best available gasoline prices with Gas. Type in an address or zip code and it'll fetch , information on what stations offer the best buys. It can even conjure up a Google map to lead you directly to the station.
• Does gazing at the screen soothe you? Watch your Chia Pet widget grow, or see Flappie change moods with the weather. Be transported back to the sixties with the I Love Lamp Lava lamp. For more action, try the JuggleMaster juggling simulator.
• What, you haven't memorized the Periodic Table of the Elements? Click on an element of The Periodic Table for basic information and properties. Double-click and you'll see the Wikipedia entry for the element. Now you're ready to impress your scientifically inclined friends. If your friends are policy wonks, use VoteWatch to check out recent votes in Congress. To learn how your own senators and representatives voted, just enter your zip code.
• At this point you may be concerned that all these widgets are wearing out your computer. They're not, but you can make sure by consulting iStat pro. This little monitor has the same info you could get from Activity Monitor if you could ever remember its name and where to find it. iStat gives you all the details you'll ever need on your processor, memory, hard drives, bandwidths, battery, temperature and more.

There's a huge variety to choose from among the nearly 3,000 widgets on the Apple site alone, searchable by name or category. But there's no rush to get to them all. You can't make a bad decision. Widgets are easy to download and remove. And remember, they're free, so there's no risk to playing with as many as you want. Whimsplucky Software's free Widget Master makes it easy to delete widgets permanently, or keep them around for when you're in the mood.

Have a new idea for a widget? Go to developer.apple.com/macosx/dashboard.html and learn how to create it. But chances are that someone has beaten you to it.