| Windows Desktop Gadgets | |
|---|---|
 | |
 Screenshot of Windows Sidebar, showing the analog clock, headlines and picture slideshow gadget | |
| Developer | Microsoft |
| Operating system | Windows XP SP2 or later |
| Included with | |
| Predecessor | Active Desktop |
| Successor | Live Tiles inWindows 8,Windows 8.1, andWindows 10 |
| Type | Desktop widget engine |
Windows Desktop Gadgets (calledWindows Sidebar inWindows Vista) is awidget engine forWindows Vista andWindows 7, part of the now discontinuedMicrosoft Gadgets widget platform. Its gadgets can perform various tasks, such as displaying the time and date, gatheringRSS feed orEmail information, allowing users to use tools such assticky notes ortimers, among other tasks.
Windows Sidebar was introduced with Windows Vista, in which it features a sidebar anchored to the side of thedesktop. The gadgets can either be placed on the sidebar or anywhere on the desktop. In Windows 7, the sidebar was removed, but gadgets can still be placed on the desktop.
Windows Desktop Gadgets was discontinued inWindows 8. The Windows 8 Live Tiles can perform a similar function, but they are only visible when theStart menu is visible. They run in a more restrictive environment, making them less risky, but also less useful for some purposes, likesystem monitoring. Live Tiles too, was discontinued in Windows 11 in favor of the widgets panel.
Windows Sidebar originated in aMicrosoft Research project calledSideshow (not to be confused withWindows SideShow). It was developed in the summer of 2000, and was used internally at Microsoft.[1] It included a clock, traffic reports, and IM integration.
Windows Sidebar appeared in build 3683 of Windows Longhorn circa September 2002 and was originally intended to replace thenotification area andQuick Launch toolbar in Windows, but these plans were scrapped after thedevelopment reset in mid-2004.[2] Windows Sidebar was rebuilt and began to appear in Windows Vista builds in the second half of 2005. Some reviewers andMacintosh enthusiasts have pointed out the Sidebar's similarities in form and function toKonfabulator (later Yahoo! Widget Engine), which appeared several years previously, and theDashboard widget engine first included withApple Inc.'sMac OS X v10.4, which had been released a few months earlier.
InWindows 7, Windows Sidebar was renamedWindows Desktop Gadgets, and the sidebar itself was removed in Windows 7 since build 6498.
Windows Desktop Gadgets was included in all beta builds ofWindows 8 up to build 8432 (fbl_loc) and did not make it to thefinal release. Instead, on July 10, 2012 (which is in the intervening time between the last beta of Windows 8 and its final release), Microsoft issued security advisory to disable Sidebar and Desktop Gadgets on Windows Vista and 7 because of asecurity vulnerability that could allowremote code execution.[3]
Windows Desktop Gadgets is a feature of Windows Vista and Windows 7 (excluding theWindows Server family of the operating system). It hosts mini-applications or "gadgets" which are a combination ofHTML,CSS, andJavaScript code. Their use cases include displayingsystem time orcalendar date, downloading and displayingRSS feeds, controlling other software such asWindows Media Player, placing useful tools likeSticky Notes, and more.
In Windows Vista, gadgets can run docked in the sidebar, or float anywhere on the desktop. The sidebar also has multiple pages for lots of gadgets, and pages can be switched using the arrows at the top. It is also possible to run multiple instances of a gadget simultaneously. Windows Sidebar also works onWindows XP.[4]
In Windows 7, the sidebar was not included, but gadgets can still be placed on the desktop, and a desktopcontext menu was added. In Windows 7, gadgets can snap onto the edges of a display or on other gadgets, and gadgets now have an option to change its size on the desktop from small to large.
Windows Vista is preinstalled with eleven gadgets: Calendar, Clock, Contacts, CPU Meter, Currency Conversion, Feed Headlines, Notes, Picture Puzzle, Slide Show, Stocks, and Weather. Several other gadgets available during the beta such as App Launcher, Feed Viewer, Number Puzzle, Recycle Bin, and Egg Timer never made it to thefinal release. Windows 7 adds a Media Center gadget and removes the Contacts, Notes, and Stocks gadgets.
Originally, Microsoft provided a link to a web site calledWindows Live Gallery where additional Sidebar gadgets that have been created bythird-party developers could be downloaded. The site was officially retired on October 1, 2011.[5][6]
