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30 MILLION USERS, 140,000 COMMUNITIES, AND GROWING...
JULY 2008
 
Syndicating content the easy way
July's favorite gadgets

Getting the most out of gadgets
After dedicating last April's ConduiTimes to web gadgets, we were flooded with responses from our readers who wanted more info and ideas. So based on your responses, we're again devoting an entire issue to this fantastic way of enriching your toolbar and engaging your users. So read on for more of our best Tips and Picks.


Syndicating content the easy way

Just to remind you, web gadgets (also called widgets) are snippets of HTML code that can be easily embedded in any web page (such as a blog or website) and of course, in your Conduit-powered community toolbar!

Gadgets are the ultimate way to add content to your toolbar and engage your subscribers with great games, news, videos, online applications or anything else you may want to offer. They are absolutely the best way to spice up your toolbar with only a few simple clicks.

To add a gadget:
In your Control Panel, Toolbar tab, click the Gadget Button link in the list. You can then either pick a gadget from the Gadgets Library, or click Custom Gadget to add any other gadget (by inserting either an external URL or embeddable HTML code).

To add a predefined menu of gadgets:
Again in the Toolbar tab, click the Predefined Gadgets Menu link in the list. You'll be able to add a drop-down menu of 20 cool gadgets that we hand-picked for you. You can edit and customize the predefined list at any time.

Add Gadgets




July's favorite gadgets

There are thousands of gadgets available for you to choose from and easily add to your community toolbar. Sites like yourminis, Widgetbox, LabPixies and Google Gadgets offer a rich selection of gadgets with embeddable code that can be easily imported to your community toolbar.

Check out our Publishers' Favorites and Editors' Picks for great gadgets that will help you entertain and engage your subscribers:


Publishers' favorites:
  1. Horoscope - What could fit better with the popular, personalized E-mail Notifier and Weather components than a personal Horoscope gadget? Grab the code and customize it, or use this alternative gadget with additional menus and options.
  2. Facebook - Let your toolbar subscribers access their favorite social network directly from the toolbar wherever they are on the Web. Grab the code or try this alternative gadget.
  3. More content gadgets - Gadgets that keep your toolbar constantly updated with fresh content are a sure-fire way to keep your subscribers coming back for more.


    Gadgets can be addictive, so take advantage of it!
    Try these cool gadgets:
    The classic Space Invaders game here or here, and Veoh popular videos. And for creative users with a lot of time on their hands, add this cool synth/piano gadget.
  4. Tools - Here are some useful tool gadgets that can bring your subscribers back to your toolbar again and again: a web clock that shows the current time wherever users are, online bookmarks for storing and viewing favorite websites all in one place, polls and surveys that you can create, URL shortener for shortening long URLs for Twitter or mobile phones, Google Maps, Virtual Earth maps, ClustrMaps that show the locations of all visitors to a given page and an IP locator that displays and tracks IP address, country name, Internet service provider and more.
  5. Shopping - Let your subscribers shop with a click directly from your toolbar! Try these handy shopping gadgets they're sure to like: Shopzilla, Smarter, Amazon, and Shopping.com.

Editors' picks:
  • There's nothing like music-on-demand to keep your subscribers tuned in. Last.fm offers a variety of gadgets that can be easily customized and added to your community toolbar. We liked this gadget best.
  • Answers.com has the answers to millions of questions that interest your toolbar subscribers. Check out the rich gadget library. Our favorite is "Quote of the Day."
  • TripTouch's Travel widget is a great resource for your on-the-move toolbar subscribers. With this cool gadget, they can get local information in the most popular cities in the world for quick orientation and local listings.
  • For a travel gadget that's both useful and lots of fun, try 3D Globe. Just click any point on the globe to get the local time, weather and additional info that will help users be a better real or armchair globetrotter.

Gadget libraries and services
Here are two recommended sites that you may want to check out to enrich your use of gadgets for your users, your community toolbar and your website. Come2Play offers a library of rich social gaming widgets with great analytics and community features. Vortex is a great service that enables you to syndicate different components of your site or blog into one widget, including your videos, RSS, messages and more. Check them out!





Quick Links
So best of luck in adding new gadgets to your community toolbar! If you would like to share your gadgets with other publishers, or recommend cool gadgets for us to feature in future issues of the ConduiTimes, please send us your ideas. And as always, we look forward to hearing from you in the Conduit Community Forum.

The Conduit team
 
www.conduit.com