igoogle

The economy is in a major state of flux right now. Although unemployment is still on the rise, the stock market is on the rise too as of late.

If you're one of those people trying to make sense of the markets, you might be happy to know that instead of jumping from site to site to get all your financial information, you can simply add some gadgets to your iGoogle home page. From currencies to commodities, iGoogle gadgets will satisfy any desire.

Commodities Market If you're looking to find a way to easily track the price of oil and natural gas, the Commodities Market gadget is for you. The gadget displays the major commodity indexes, including crude oil, natural gas, and even coffee. You'll see the price fluctuate as market factors change throughout the day. It's a great way to stay up on the commodity market.

Company Overview After you install Company Overview, you can input any company's ticker symbol and see an overview of its operation. You can also get company news, see key financial ratios, check out its financial performance, and even see who the company's key managers are. If you want to listen in on quarterly earnings calls, you can find all the information you need to join those calls in this gadget. Check it out.… Read more

Google has been once again revamped its iGoogle start page for easier use on iPhone and Android handsets. It lets you see and interact with your gadgets in a similar fashion to the desktop version, by making use of tabs and displaying content that runs in iFrames. The previous version, which was mysteriously discontinued by Google in late January, simply put everything into one, large vertical stream, and required you to go back and forth to get at different sets of widgets.

One nice feature that was not found in the previous version, is the option to set certain widgets … Read more

While it may not have the same mainstream cachet as the Consumer Electronics Show or the Electronic Entertainment Expo, the annual Game Developers Conference, also known as GDC, is always one of the most interesting places to gauge the health of the video game industry.

So far, the games biz has managed to create the impression that it is largely recession-proof, free (for the most part) from the layoffs and closures that have affected so many other industries. But video games may be a textbook trailing indicator, buoyed by popular low-cost hardware such as the Nintendo Wii and DS, and … Read more

It's perhaps a sign of how little major game industry news was made at the 2009 Game Developer's Conference that Google's simple announcement of a new series of video game themes for its iGoogle personalized home page was one of the best-attended press functions of the show.

In the midst of a dark, noise-filled warehouse space converted into a temporary gaming hub, complete with Guitar Hero and Street Fighter IV setups, we caught up with Google's ubiquitous vice president of search products and user experience, Marissa Mayer, to talk a little about the company's very … Read more

SAN FRANCISCO--Google unveiled on Wednesday the latest addition to its iGoogle start page service: a collection of themes designed by video game publishers.

The search giant has partnered with nine publishers to come up about two dozen themes from recent games such as Electronic Arts' Spore to arcade classics such as Galaga.

Like other themes produced through the iGoogle themes API, each one will change throughout the day, including with Easter eggs that some developers tucked inside their designs. Unlike gaming designs created by individuals, these can be used by anyone without stepping on copyright and intellectual property.

Marissa Mayer, … Read more

We've received further word from Google on the demise of iGoogle, a version of the Google home page that was optimized specifically for the iPhone. The iPhone-formatted version of iGoogle now redirects users to the generic Google Web site formatted for mobile devices.

We contacted Google again to see if the changes to iGoogle were the result of a staff reduction and advised them that some of our readers were taking up arms over iGoogle for the iPhone being taken down and a Google spokesperson replied:

"We are redirecting all iPhone users to the standard mobile version of … Read more

Earlier this week, iPhone Atlas reported that Google had quietly removed the iGoogle Web site formatted for the iPhone. The iPhone-formatted version of iGoogle now redirects users to the generic Google Web site formatted for mobile devices.

In response to our query regarding the demise of this popular Web site for iPhone users, a Google representative said:

"In an effort to make our iGoogle mobile experience more consistent, we're no longer supporting a special version of iGoogle for the iPhone. Those who currently use iGoogle for the iPhone will be directed to the main mobile version of iGoogle.&… Read more

Without warning, Google has quietly removed the iGoogle Web site formatted for the iPhone. The iPhone-formatted version of iGoogle now redirects users to the generic Google Web site formatted for mobile devices.

The version of the page that was unique to the iPhone, optimized for the Mobile Safari browser, and offered sections that were expandable or collapsible, used to display custom gadgets.

Despite the iGoogle move, the search giant appears to still be developing its Google applications for Apple's smartphone, including enhancements for voice searches, Google Earth exploration, and Google Maps directions and Street View.

You can see a … Read more