Yahoo! just released a new version of Konfabulator, now known as Yahoo! Widgets Engine. The new version includes new default widgets for Yahoo! search, maps, notepad, address book, and mail. Also included are improved widgets for Flickr, Yahoo! Photos, Calendar, Weather, and Finance.
According to Toni Schneider of Yahoo! there have been 1.5 million downloads of Konfabulator since it was acquired by Yahoo! in August. Downloads are currently about 90% Windows, a low number considering Apple's latest operating system features a very similar application, Dashboard, already built-in. 50-100 widgets are submitted to the widgets gallery every week.
Yahoo! Widgets Engine is a different take on desktop applications. While other companies have focused on search with a small sidebar component Yahoo! is trying to place content on the entire desktop space related to its various content properties. It would not surprise me if Yahoo! starts to bundle Widgets Engine with its desktop search product.
Tags: Konfabulator
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