Webmaster Central Blog
Official news on crawling and indexing sites for the Google index
Got a website? Get gadgets.
Wednesday, October 11, 2006
Google Gadgets are miniature-sized devices that offer cool and dynamic content -- they can be games, news clips, weather reports, maps, or most anything you can dream up. They've been around for a while, but their reach got a lot broader last week when we made it possible for anyone to add gadgets to their own webpages. Here's an example of a flight status tracker, for instance, that can be placed on any page on the web for free.
Anyone can search for gadgets to add to their own webpage for free in our directory of
gadgets for your webpage
. To put a gadget on your page, just pick the gadget you like, set your preferences, and copy-and-paste the HTML that is generated for you onto your own page.
Creating gadgets for others isn't hard, either, and it can be a great way to get your content in front of people while they're visiting Google or other sites. Here are a few suggestions for distributing your own content on the Google homepage or other pages across the web:
*
Create a Google Gadget
for distribution across the web. Gadgets can be most anything, from simple HTML to complex applications. It’s easy to experiment with gadgets – anyone with even a little bit of web design experience can make a simple one (even me!), and more advanced programmers can create really snazzy, complex ones. But remember, it’s also quick and easy for people to delete gadgets or add new ones too their own pages. To help you make sure your gadget will be popular across the web, we provide a few
guidelines
you can use to create gadgets. The more often folks find your content to be useful, the longer they'll keep your gadget on their pages, and the more often they’ll visit your site.
* If your website has a feed, visitors can put snippets of your content on their own Google homepages quickly and easily, and you don't even need to develop a gadget. However, you will be able to customize their experience much more fully with a gadget than with a feed.
* By putting the
“Add to Google” button
in a prominent spot on your site, you can increase the reach of your content, because visitors who click to add your gadget or feed to Google can see your content each time they visit the Google homepage. Promoting your own gadget or feed can also increase its popularity, which contributes to a higher ranking in the directory of
gadgets for the Google personalized homepage
.
Hey!
Check here if your site is mobile-friendly.
Labels
accessibility
10
advanced
195
AMP
13
Android
2
API
7
apps
7
autocomplete
2
beginner
173
CAPTCHA
1
Chrome
2
cms
1
crawling and indexing
158
encryption
3
events
51
feedback and communication
83
forums
5
general tips
90
geotargeting
1
Google Assistant
3
Google I/O
3
Google Images
3
Google News
2
hacked sites
12
hangout
2
hreflang
3
https
5
images
12
intermediate
205
interstitials
1
javascript
8
job search
2
localization
21
malware
6
mobile
63
mobile-friendly
14
nohacked
1
performance
17
product expert
1
product experts
2
products and services
63
questions
3
ranking
1
recipes
1
rendering
2
Responsive Web Design
3
rich cards
7
rich results
10
search console
35
search for beginners
1
search queries
7
search results
140
security
12
seo
3
sitemaps
46
speed
6
structured data
33
summit
1
TLDs
1
url removals
1
UX
3
verification
8
video
6
webmaster community
24
webmaster forum
1
webmaster guidelines
57
webmaster tools
177
webmasters
3
youtube channel
6
Archive
2020
Nov
Oct
Sept
Aug
July
June
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2019
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sept
Aug
July
June
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2018
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sept
Aug
July
June
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2017
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sept
Aug
June
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2016
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sept
Aug
June
May
Apr
Mar
Jan
2015
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sept
Aug
July
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2014
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sept
Aug
July
June
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2013
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sept
Aug
July
June
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2012
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sept
Aug
July
June
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2011
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sept
Aug
July
June
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2010
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sept
Aug
July
June
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2009
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sept
Aug
July
June
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2008
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sept
Aug
July
June
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2007
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sept
Aug
July
June
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2006
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sept
Aug
Feed
Follow @googlewmc
Give us feedback in our
Product Forums
.
Subscribe via email
Enter your email address:
Delivered by
FeedBurner