I’m feeling a little left out of the iphone, ipod, idog phenomenon going on. So I decided to take a look at some common items and see if I can add “i” to it and see how they would look/interact. The first design is a simple thermostat. I’ll take a look at it’s UI and basic functions and see if I can make it into an ithermostat. The first time experience is below. I’ll create some of the additional screens later. Let me know what you think.

Default Interface

Unlocked

Sliders are a common way for users to adjust elements with fine granularity. They can offer more choice with a smaller footprint than a drop down menu. They also offer absolute variables so the user never enters into an error state. The problem with sliders is their accessibility. They require decent dexterity since the target for the mouse is ofter small but recently I found this new method that has full keyboard support.

This method offer full keyboard capabilities as using unobtrusive JavaScript which is a method that separates the JavaScript behavior from the page markup.

Here are some other examples of unobtrusive Javascript

• Lightbox
• Calendar pop-up
• Star Rating
• Image Reflections
• Slide Show

Widgets come in all shapes and sizes. They live on your desktop, MySpace, web pages, PDAs, phone etc. They are small applications that are surrounded by other components and other brands. So how do you balance your own brand and still allow your widget to “fit in” with the other ones? Take a look at the NBA widget.

The NBA has a prominent brand which they would like to protect but they also need their creative to compliment the environment in which it is to be displayed. It also needs to look “cool enough” to engage a user enough to include in their personal space.

I looked through many of the web’s top Gadgets and Widgets an found a few similarities amongst the most downloaded:

• Simple - (don’t try to tell me weather trends in the US, just tell me if it’s raining outside)
• 3D - Use shadow, highlight and perspective to make your widgets “pop”
• Use logos and colors to maintain your branding but keep the saturation level low so you don’t conflict/compete with other environments.
• That “We 2.0″ look -Glossy surfaces, large fonts, gradients, textures etc.

I treated myself to a new computer (Dell Inspirion 530 to be exact). An upgrade from the Dell 4400 which was a real dog. An interesting thing I noticed when installing was the Google Desktop and a few widgets. Not Microsoft Gadgets which which is what I expected if anything. I’m not sure how I feel about it. It seems similar to IE loaded on every new PC back in the day before the anti-trust lawsuit.

I’ve finished a new Google desktop gadget. I used a sample gadget that came with the API download. A simple countdown to Christmas. It’s a little large but this time of year it’s okay to be a little over the top. The countdown JavaScript is Google’s but the images I created. Feel free to download a copy for yourself here. Of course you’ll need Google Desktop to run the gadget. Enjoy!

Yesterday I downloaded the Google API for creating gadgets within Google desktop. I’m reading through some tutorials and some of the documentation. Overall they seem pretty simple to create. At the core there is some XML and some JavaScript. If you can edit/write those you have what it takes to make a gadget.

Included in the API are some tools for building (Designer) and a debugger. I was able to create my very own gadget within minutes. Granted it was only a “Hello World” gadget but I’m still learning