Webware

There are a lot of widgets out there. So many, in fact, that sorting through them can be absolutely daunting. Joining the fray of sites that attempt to solve this problem is Widgipedia, a site that catalogs and hosts widgets, both Web-based and downloads. We've covered competitor Widgetbox several times, and the two sites are quite similar. Where Widgipedia differs is in mixing up widgets that run on different platforms: those that run right in your browser and ones you download for various engines such as Mac OS X's Dashboard and Yahoo Widgets. The result is a diverse listing that's fun to explore and play around with.

To sort through all the entries, Widgipedia employs tags instead of categories. This ends up working out pretty well for searching, as long as widgets have been tagged correctly. I still prefer Widgetbox's organization structure with its tags and nine comprehensive categories, which is a little more user friendly. As the site grows, there definitely needs to be some categorization.

(Credit: CNET Networks)

For budding widget designers, there's a dedicated section of widget-creation resources complete with step-by-step how-tos and links to helpful walk-throughs. All the information is relegated to the forums, but there's plenty in there to get a newbie going.

Widgipedia is a great place to browse for new widgets. The site is fairly young, but it already has a pretty diverse collection of neat widgets. If you're a widget developer looking to keep track of what's happening to your widgets, you're likely better off using Widgetbox for its metrics service. If you're just looking to spice up your social-networking profile or desktop widget collection, Widgipedia is definitely worth bookmarking.