Check out the new Sidebar

Posted by Kevin Tom, Product Manager

The Google Desktop Sidebar has always been great at delivering content personalized to individual users, ever since it was introduced way back in the second version of Google Desktop. But we kept thinking: what's a better way to deliver this content? In later versions of Google Desktop we let gadgets float on the desktop. But the Sidebar was starting to get a bit jealous and we couldn't restrain it any longer, so now there's Google Desktop 4.5, featuring a Sidebar with a new look.

The new Sidebar is transparent, so it fits seamlessly with your desktop environment. Gadgets that fought for attention now look right at home, and content-heavy gadgets get new frames and icons that make it easier to tell them apart. All of this leads to a better place to find your email, news, feeds, stock prices, weather and other essential information. And this version is compatible with all of the latest software including Microsoft Vista, Office 2007 and Mozilla Firefox 2.0. So what are you waiting for? Try the new Sidebar in Google Desktop now.

Getting the most out of Google Desktop

Posted by Mendel Chuang, Product Marketing Manager

When we were designing Google Desktop, we knew that people would use it in different ways. It's been interesting to see just what you're doing with it. Legal Andrew points out that one way to improve your experience is to simply have the right set of gadgets in your Sidebar, so that, for example, the email gadget keeps you from having to switch constantly between Outlook and your other programs. At Lifehacker, Adam Pash points out that you can tweak Google Desktop to get it to do more of what you want. And Ionut Alex. Chitu came up with a list of 10 Great Uses For Google Desktop, including control panel replacement, browser cache, and file recovery.

If you haven't already, make sure to check out our features page to see the full list of what Google Desktop has to offer. Or if you have other ideas, share them with us.

Helpful resources

Posted by Bryan Woodward, User Support Coordinator

With new versions of Google Desktop frequently being released, we've really been adding to the feature set. To help you navigate this maze of features and improve your experience with Desktop, here are two help resources you may want to check out.

U2U Groups

U2U (User to User) groups are official Google Groups that enable users to post feature requests, suggestions, bugs or problem reports, and general questions about Google products and services. What's unique about a U2U group is that not only do experienced users weigh in on your feedback, but an official Google presence, our very own Google Desktop Guide, regularly participates in the discussion. Expert feedback combined with the ability to search over all group posts provides a powerful resource. In addition to the Google Desktop Help and Enterprise U2U groups, groups are also available for other products like Toolbar, Picasa, Maps, Calendar, and more.

Help Center

We maintain a Google Desktop Help Center in 12 languages to help you use Google Desktop. You can browse the content or search the Knowledge Base to find an answer to your inquiry. If you're unable to find your answer on the Help Center or the U2U group, or you would like to leave us feedback or suggestions privately, you can, through the Help Center.

And if you have questions about other Google products and services, bookmark the general Google Help portal: http://www.google.com/support

Google Gadget Awards

Posted by Samantha Crow, Product Marketing Manager

The Google Desktop Gadget Contest ended a few weeks ago, but if you're a college or university student in the U.S., we've got a new challenge for you. How do you feel about writing a gadget that (could) get you a date, is really smart or pretty, or that your friends just can't get enough of? We just launched the Google Gadget Awards, which challenges U.S. college students to create clever Google Gadgets. And we've got a great panel of judges, including Commander Taco, Founder of Slashdot; Chris Anderson, Editor-in-Chief of Wired Magazine; and John Hennessy, President of Stanford University. We've seen some great entries in the past and are excited to see what you can come up with now.

If you're not a university student in the U.S., you can still create Google Gadgets. Although they won't be entered in the Awards, if they're clever enough you just might find them on desktops around the world.

Results of the Google Desktop Gadget Contest!

Posted by Stephen Drennan, User Support Coordinator

We received a number of creative submissions for the Google Desktop Gadget Contest. In fact, because there were so many great gadgets to choose from, we�ve decided to recognize a few additional standouts.

Honorable Mention:

10x10 News by Turhan Aydin - Keep an eye on snapshots of world events from tenbyten.org.

Carrier by Petar Petrov - Try and sink your opponent's fleet! Since this gadget uses our Google Talk API, you can play against friends as well.

Gate2Home Virtual Keyboard by Ilan Bar-Magen - This keyboard emulator allows you to easily type in characters from multiple languages. As a universal gadget, it works with both the Google homepage and Google Desktop. To add this to your desktop, simply select "Add gadgets..." from the options menu, then search for [ virtual keyboard ].

Hot or Not by Ron Huang - You can easily submit your ratings for photos of users from hotornot.com, or simply view a slideshow. This gadget also allows you to set your preferences for both age and gender.

Weather forecasts of Japan by IT Design BitWiz - This handy gadget displays weather forecasts (complete with pictures) for various areas of Japan.

Memory Smiley by Bijoy Thangaraj & Nirmal Jose - See your memory usage represented by a Smiley. As your memory usage fluctuates, your Smiley reacts accordingly.

RSS to Speech by Alexey Polkovnikov - Add your favorite feeds, then hear your feeds read aloud by your computer's default text-to-speech voice.

Shortcut Gadget by Teodor Mihai Filimon - Frequently used programs are always a click away with this gadget. You can even assign your own icons to each shortcut.

And without further ado, the Google Desktop Gadget Contest winners are...

3rd place � Day/Night World Clock by Beatrix Gottanka � We couldn't have designed a better world clock. Not only does this clock show you the local time, but there's also a map that indicates where it's night or day at any given hour. And if you want options, this gadget has them.

2nd place � Multiplayer Reversi Game by Turhan Aydin � Immerse yourself in the fun game Reversi with this visually rich gadget. Not only can you play against the computer, but this gadget takes advantage of our Google Talk API so you can also play with your friends.

1st place � diGGGadget by Marius and Yannick Stucki � Stay on top of the latest stories from digg.com. Click on a few buttons and you'll know why we think it's so great. It also takes advantage of our advanced APIs to enable sharing news with friends plus personalization based on your interests.

These gadgets are wonderful examples of what can be done with the Google Desktop SDK. We truly enjoyed reviewing all of the contest submissions, and look forward to seeing more of your creations in the future!

Google Calendar Gadget Reloaded

Posted by Bryan Woodward, User Support Coordinator

It's time to update your official Google Calendar gadget. Due to popular demand, it now supports multiple calendars from your Google Calendar service. It will also color-code your scheduled events using the same colors you've set in your main Calendar preferences. And this update also fixes the mysterious "Invalid parameter value..." bug some people have experienced.

Finally, if you haven't already, download Google Desktop 4 in order to try out new gadgets like this one. You won't want to miss out on all the new and improved gadgets we're cooking up.

Personalizing desktops everywhere

Posted by Mendel Chuang, Product Marketing Manager

Starting today, Google Desktop 4 is coming out of beta in 26 languages (including Romanian!); a Japanese version is now available in beta too. It's easier than ever to search and personalize your computer no matter what language you speak. In version 4, we've aimed to improve Desktop's performance and have added a few features you've asked for:

• Easier to add international gadgets - Use the new Add/Remove gadgets interface to easily find gadgets in other languages; choose the language you want in the top right corner
• Configurable Taskbar "gadgets" button - Just click the arrow to the right of the Google Desktop "gadgets" button, and hover over "Taskbar Button" to change the display - with text, or without, or remove it altogether
• Change the Sidebar font size - Cick the "Options" button located at the top of the Sidebar, and hover over "Font Size" to change the setting

The Google Desktop Gadget Designer is now available in French, Italian, German, Spanish, Simplified Chinese and Japanese, and can be downloaded as part of the Google Desktop SDK. This should make it easier for developers everywhere to create great Google Gadgets. There are also new Developer Guides in each of these languages to help you better understand how to use our APIs.

We also want to thank all of you who sent something in to the Google Desktop Gadget Contest. We're reviewing all of the submissions now, and will announce the winners here on September 5th. Even though the contest is over, you can still submit your gadget to share it with millions of other Google Desktop users around the world. If approved, you'll also receive a Google hat, Google pen, and Google Desktop Developer T-shirt while supplies last.