July 14, 2009

Queen of Widgets

If you follow my blog, you might have noticed my love for widgets, these neat applications you can add to the sidebar.

Some people say you have to be careful with the amount of widgets you add to your page so that it doesn´t become too polluted, I say "Try widgets out and keep the ones you find useful. "

I´ve tried an infinity of widgets, some are cute, fun and others are really helpful. You can find widgets for your blog by visiting other blogs, checking out google gadgets, widgetbox, Yahoo widgets and others.

What kind of widgets do I suggest? It depends very much on the kind of blog you have. If you have a professional blog, then keep the widgets to a minimum, practical ones. If you have a class blog, widgets which show different climates, time zones or translation widgets could be useful. If you have a personal blog, then I believe you´re free to choose whatever you like.

Useful widgets

1. Counters - You only believe you have readers once you add a counter to your blog.
http://easy-hit-counters.com/


2. Visitors - discover where your visitors are from and how they have discovered your blog.
You can have the LIVE TRAFFIC FEED or the LIVE TRAFFIC MAP
3. Your ONLINE Production - show your readers your online life in one widget so that your readers can see what you´ve been writing in facebook, twitter, blogger, the videos you´ve been uploading to youtube, pictures you´ve uploaded to flickr and so on.



4. Your Blog Feed - customize a feed to your blog at Widgetbox, you can put it in your sidebar and you can also use it in other blogs so that people can see what you´ve been posting about.


5. Your Blog Roll - show your readers what blogs you normally follow by using a feevy widget.

Fun Widgets for class blogs

1. Show the weather

The WeatherPixie

2. Interesting way of showing the Date




3. Online Dictionary




4. Show your students people from other countries have been visiting their blog.
Locations of visitors to this page


5. Have a chat box in your class blog where students can talk to each other (synchronous voice communication)










6. Have a virtual Host for your class blog. Personalize the weekly messages according to the content you´ve been covering.


Get a Voki now!

1 comment:

Claudio Azevedo said...

Hi Ana,
I saw your name in the program for a presentationjat the CTJ seminar in Brasilia next week. Is that actually you? I hope so. I'd love to meet you. See you here!!