Gadget Corner

Posts from the Windows Sidebar team, with gadget authoring tips, links to gadget information, and news about our platform.

Gadget security guide

Check out Michael Howard's and Dave Ross' nice article on how to write a more secure gadget at...

Author: sbblog@microsoft.com Date: 08/01/2007

Swiss gadget development competition

Our friends in Switzerland are hosting a gadget development competition. Here are some highlights:...

Author: sbblog@microsoft.com Date: 04/18/2007

Pre-configuration of Sidebar Gadgets using unattend.xml

We’ve heard from several OEMs who are having trouble pre-configuring Sidebar gadgets using the...

Author: sbblog@microsoft.com Date: 03/08/2007

Windows Live gadgets for Sidebar

Windows Live released two gadgets that really showcase some Windows Live services, as well as being...

Author: sbblog@microsoft.com Date: 03/07/2007

Tips for writing Sidebar gadgets with SideShow functionality

Here's a few tips for developers writing Sidebar gadgets that interact with Sideshow (the Windows...

Author: sbblog@microsoft.com Date: 03/02/2007

Embedded ActiveX objects and x64

Really, this post is about Flash. But it will probably apply to quite a few other ActiveX objects...

Author: sbblog@microsoft.com Date: 01/26/2007

“WPF/E” and Sidebar gadgets

One of my favorite new web technologies is now available for preview. I’d urge to you go check out...

Author: sbblog@microsoft.com Date: 12/05/2006

Using the slideshow gadget with Search folders

Ben Betz has a pretty cool post about building some advanced queries in the UI...

Author: sbblog@microsoft.com Date: 11/27/2006

Building the Feed headlines gadget using the Windows Feeds Platform

The final RSS gadget, “Feed Headlines” is done and available with Windows Vista! This gadget is...

Author: sbblog@microsoft.com Date: 11/16/2006

Roaming gadgets on a USB key

DISCLAIMER: This post is relevant for the Vista v1 version of Sidebar, but isn’t guaranteed to work...

Author: sbblog@microsoft.com Date: 11/09/2006

Localized Date Strings

I just saw this interesting exchange on an internal discussion list, and thought I'd pass it on:...

Author: sbblog@microsoft.com Date: 10/01/2006

Powering Your Gadgets With ActiveX

A while ago, I wrote a tutorial explaining how to create an ActiveX control and use it inside a...

Author: sbblog@microsoft.com Date: 09/28/2006

Persistent Settings Update

Soon after I posted my persistent settings library, I received my first bug on it. I'll discuss the...

Author: sbblog@microsoft.com Date: 09/25/2006

Persistent Gadget Settings

Here is a question that seems to pop up with some regularity on the sidebar newsgroup: "Why doesn't...

Author: sbblog@microsoft.com Date: 09/22/2006

RC1 Changes to the Sidebar APIs

In the RC1 release of Windows Vista, the Sidebar received a number of changes in the APIs that make...

Author: sbblog@microsoft.com Date: 09/08/2006

Brian Teutsch, Windows Sidebar Program Manager The Windows Sidebar is a new Windows Vista component...

Author: sbblog@microsoft.com Date: 08/31/2006

Handling gadget visibility changes

This is our first blog post to help out with some common gadget authoring situations. Today's post...

Author: sbblog@microsoft.com Date: 08/18/2006

Welcome to Gadget Corner!

Windows Vista is proud to present....Sidebar! Watch this space for posts from the cast and crew of...

Author: sbblog@microsoft.com Date: 08/07/2006