I've read a lot about widgets in recent times, from

"I want a widget that will do this....." to "Widget is officially one of the buzzwords of the year. Congratulations widget!"

I even tried to look up what a widget was on wikipedia, and got this - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Widget_(computing)

However, when it comes to the context of widgets on webpages; I'm still none the wiser.

Definitions below, please

A widget is just a little web application, in a sense you could call pr checkers widgets, an online calender and smaller like a little date n time function that has text change to "we are open" to "we are closed" at the appropriate times.

Or at least that is my understanding of widgets (web gadgets?)... If i am however wrong, i also wanna know what the hell the little "apparently" blue buggers are

If I'm unsure of the meaning of a word the first thing I do is type define: wordinquestion in Google.

In this specific instance define: widget brought up 19 definitions. 

Gotta love Google!

Well thats not very useful... do we havte do all that searching now?! woman!

(1.) The fundamental data type of the Enhanced X-Windows Toolkit. (2.) An object providing a user-interface abstraction; for example, Scrollbar widget. It is the combination of an Enhanced X-Windows (or subwindow) and its associated semantics. Logically, it is a rectangle with associated input and output semantics, although some can be input-only or output-only. Each widget belongs to one widget class. A widget implements procedures through its widget class structure. ...

I think i was pretty close... ish

Ryan_steyn wrote:

Well thats not very useful... do we havte do all that searching now?! woman!

hahaha...You know what they say...You can give someone a fish and they will have one meal, but teach them them how to fish and they will never be hungry!

From reading those definitions, it seems a lot of people have their own idea of what a widget is...for me, a widget means "thingy majigy"   

Roxane wrote:

Ryan_steyn wrote:

Well thats not very useful... do we havte do all that searching now?! woman!

hahaha...You know what they say...You can give someone a fish and they will have one meal, but teach them them how to fish and they will never be hungry!

From reading those definitions, it seems a lot of people have their own idea of what a widget is...for me, a widget means "thingy majigy"   

Nice... maybe we should start erasing the use of widgets and replace it with "thingy majigy's", all we havte to do is write a whole bunch of long winded, jargon filled articles and soon enough we will have Northie asking... "what is a thingy majigy? "... then we can make up random meanings... like - a "thingy majigy" is a web page with tags. or a "thingy majigy" is the little thingy that makes your hillbilly miracle box viewer work real pretty like.

oh, to dream is to accomplish nothing... to do is impressive.. to get caught doing is the reason they chase me around with funny white jackets

Ryan_steyn wrote:

and soon enough we will have Northie asking... "what is a thingy majigy? "...

hey... not in a bad way... sheesh. As far i know you guys dont have "thingy majigy's" in the UK, it would come across as a good question if ye ask me... kinda like widgets

*unhappy smilies are so... not happy

j/k, ryan

I know what a thingy-majig is, they're everywhere

I'm with Ryan on the understanding of widgets.
Color selector scripts, name hunting scripts,  e-mail a friend etc, etc.

As for thingy-majigs, hmmmmm.

na ha... two votes for Ryans idea... 0 for google explanations... bwahahahha

From my understanding, widget is a fill in word for any object you might sell or work with.  It's usually used in training to represent an object without actually using any specific existing object.  In effect it's the technical name for a thingamajiggy (could you see a professor using that word over and over in class?)

Steven_A_S wrote:

From my understanding, widget is a fill in word for any object you might sell or work with.  It's usually used in training to represent an object without actually using any specific existing object.  In effect it's the technical name for a thingamajiggy (could you see a professor using that word over and over in class?)

hmmm. 2 for Ryans theory... 1 for googles.... bah humbug

Nice alternative Steven

Yes, I have seen widget used as a generic term for windows objects (buttons, combo boxes, etc...), but that definition came about after the other.  There's Microsoft innovation for ya.

Here's the beef - while freelancing some guy has asked me if i can produce a number of widgets for his website.

I got as far as realising that these may be plug-ins; but i have no idea what format he expects these to be in.

A javascript plugin that pulls stuff from a service on my webhost? (most profitable, as i can charge subscription fees)

Something that integrates into his own backend/cms? (one of payment that means knowing what set up he's got)

At present i don't know what widgets he wants, and all he tells me is "Widgets! You know like 'widgets', like you get on all websites".

eh?

Any ideas what this naive man wants?

EDIT

And don't say "thingy majig"!

Alright, Kids -- step aside and let the Grumpy Ol' Fart show you young-uns a few things...

Beautify Firefox widgets in Ubuntu

Firefox Link Widgets

Firefox Widgets

NewGator Widgets Downloads

Widget Codes Explained

Widget Downloads

They're all "thing-a-ma-jigs".......

It sounds like he doesn't really know what he wants, as long as it looks cool and brings in customers, pretty much like a...  Naw, I won't say it.

Damn... you beat me to it, it was on the tip of my tongue

Personally i would try beat an answer out of him with a stick but i reckon with the mass of diversity that applies to general term "widget", you are gonna havte get an answer/description out of him.

Alternatively, put a form on his site that will tell people how old they will be in a random number of days... charge him through his arse for it, maybe next time an explanation will come easier.

Maybe thats all he wants though, time/date and forms... perhaps even flash Its really dependent on what whoever has told him widgets are unfortunately. Perhaps you should TELL him what widgets are (obviously you will sound lkike you know what your are talking about) and force him to explain it differently.

Ryan_steyn wrote:

:Personally i would try beat an answer out of him with a stick

Much to my disappointment, we're not allowed, in the UK, to beat people with sticks no matter how stupid they are. In fact, most get rewarded for their stupidity (and laziness - like people who don't work get houses and money just given to them by the government)

sticks and politics aside, i've got a better idea of WTF a widget is.

next i need to find out if they are to integrate into his db; if not they'll sit on my server and i'll charge him a subscription as i mentioned earlier

many thanks all of you

Ok, I'll jump in too...

There are several options here...

1.) Talk to Mutilated1, as he makes his own beer. Why, you ask? Because a widget is used in beer.

2.) Book a flight on Delta Airlines. Again, why? Their logo is called "Widget".

3.) Find a piece of glass. Apply paint. Set up his website with a button he can click that allows him to purchase a widget, or a small scraping tool consisting of a blade and a handle, used to remove paint from glass.

4.) And last but not least, next time he says "widget", give him a widget (A swift horizontal karate chop to the throat, best delivered to the throat or trachea.)

Personally, I think number 4 will be the best option. And even better, create a flash movie of you giving him a widget and put it on his website!