Hello Widgi-fans,In our last episode, we discussed the emergence of Widgets. Now that you know a bit about Widgets, it just makes sense to delineate some major areas of growth in the space spanning from widget creation to search.Since there is tons to discuss, I have truncated my original list (It was long). This shorter and shinier list is organized by user class. Note that things get a bit sticky when you try to define potential problem areas that Widget Creators have because they are not always the same people as the content/service owners. For example, the folks that made the Yahoo Finance Badge may have needs that differ from a developer making a Widget using Yahoo Web Services. Ya dig? For now, I am lumping the two into one category to start. In future fire side chats, we can try to break things down more specifically as it definitely worth exploring. If you have any specific feedback, or ideas, I would love to hear them. Widget Creators (Individual, Last.fm, Yahoo)

• Creation - Um, ok who is going to build this thing?
• Tools & Standards - What the heck do I use to make a Widget?
• Hosting - Where do I put it?
• Portability - Where can it go?
• Configuration - Can the user muck around with it?
• Distribution - Ok, how do I get people to use this bad-boy?
• Authentication - Is this really my Widget talking to me?
• Security - Duh.
• Analytics - Where, oh where, did my little Widget go?
• Prediction - Where, oh where, could my little Widget go?
• Monetization - Make me some cash flow Widget - please?

Aggregators (MySpace, Blogger, Live, etc.)

• Code Verification - Is this yet another fool trying to make a mess?
• Monetization - I am hosting this site, do I get a piece?
• Service Conflicts - What about MY widgets on MY social network?
• Framwork Conflicts - How do I import 3rd party Widgets?

End Users (MySpace Kidz, Wordpress Geeks, etc.)

• Search - Where do I find those cool thingys to put on my site?
• Discovery - I don’t even know what I am looking for, what’s cool?
• Collection Management - I got lotsa Widgets, got any boxes?
• Deployment - How do I put this Widget thingy on that Blog thinger?
• Monetization - Can I get a piece of the action?

technorati tags: widget, widgetchallenges, socialnetworktools

This is the first installment in a three part series discussing Widgets. In this first installment, we discuss the emergence of Widgets. In the next part of this discussion, we will discuss open problem areas in the Widget space. This series will conclude with a look into the future of Widget technologies. Enjoy!Once upon a time (1993-94), the future of the web was uncertain. There was no MySpace, Google, Amazon, or EBay. Yahoo was just a twinkle in the eyes of Stanford Graduate students Jerry Yang and David Filo. Even more shocking, corporations questioned the validity of leveraging the web as an effective mechanism to reach consumers. “Why would anyone want to spend time online?,� the asked. “How will we make money? We all saw how that turned out. Fast forward to 2006 - the Web is back in a whole new way. And a new mechanism is surfacing with the same game changing ramifications as the web page. Ironically, this mechanism is enabled by the very same technologies whose value was once called into question by corporate America. This new medium is the Web Widget. Want your blog readers to know about the stocks you are watching? Grab a Yahoo Finance Badge. Want to put a music player on your MySpace? Grab a Streampad Playlist Widget. Want your friends to check out a hot new video you saw? Grab a YouTube Player Widget. Widgets are the web ala carte. More importantly, users are leveraging Widgets to build increasingly customized experiences on StartPages, Social Networks, Blogs and other emerging online content aggregation platforms. And, as it happens, content aggregation platforms are meeting this burgeoning demand by enabling the use of Widgets. Typepad has opened up their sidebar to Widget Developers. Blogger is Beta testing page layouts with “Elements.� Tagworld has introduced a Widget gallery. The list goes on and on… Although there are a number of terms used to describe Web Widgets (Modules, Gadgets, Badges, Elements, Capsules, Snippets…), one thing is certain - these seemingly innocuous little modules are popping up all across the World-Wide-Web. For now, the use of Widgets has been limited to the techno-elite. However that is all about to change. The same corporations that were unsure of the value of the original web, are rushing to embrace this new medium. Marketers are encouraging them to capitalize on the new channel, recognizing the foundational role that Widgets will play in the emerging Web as a Platform. Just as web services enable developers to mix and match digital content and services to deliver new applications, Widgets will enable non-technical users to mix and match pieces of the web to create custom experiences for themselves and others. In the next installment, we will discuss some of the emerging problem areas surrounding the Widgets. Although Widgets seem simple, nothing could be further from the truth. Stay tuned, fellow web-slingers. technorati tags: widget, web2.0, social network