(Click above for larger image)
iGoogle Gone, Baby Gone
So, thanks to my amazing mentor @JoyceValenza & Google+ I recently heard the upsetting breaking news that Google is doing away with iGoogle!
"iGoogle will be retired in 16 months, on November 1, 2013. The mobile version will be retired on July 31, 2012."What the What!?
Now... to be honest I only use iGoogle at school as my start up page & to bypass my district filter
for Twitter using the totally awesome TwitterGadget! (more about that below!) Shh! Don't tell.But let's talk about what's really important...what about my pet digital Hamster!?? Whew! Thank goodness Adam Bowman, the designer, assures us that the hamster will live on by giving us the modifiable embed code for this engaging widget! Hint: look for the tiny blue link Edit Settings - make those mods then copy & paste the embed code!
(Click on Aloysius the hamster to wake up & feed!)
(My original iGoogle Page - Click above for larger image)
Social Media to the Rescue!
So.....what to do? Of course I complained about this on my G+ and on Twitter and Hmmm a few min later I got this unsolicited tweet! (actually they Tweeted me 3X!)
Protopage Outlasts iGoogle!
Humph! I don't really like to be "spammed" by ANYone...but I admit I was intrigued! So I
checked it out -- and not so bad. Apparently, Protopage was designed before iGoogle and has lasted 7 years! So, like on and off the whole flippin day I played with it - added a pet (a puppy - they didn't have my hamster) weather gadget, clock, to-do list and more. Changed from 3 columns to 4, saw that I could also add tabs...SWEET!
Branding, Backgrounds, and Graphics!
Using Photoshop I designed my own Protopage background coordinating with my new blog header & Twitter background. (#VisuallySnobbyIam) But seriously, branding is all about visual continuity!
Thanks the responsiveness of John Sortino of TwitterGadget for a timely answer to an email, I finally figured out how to add it to my page! (I also donated $10 to TwitterGadget just seemed the right thing to do!) Voila! I'm sold! View my LIVE Protopage (you can have yours public or private)and I forgot to mention it's FREE & easy to set up - tweaking like an OCD geekazoid, Optional!
Do you use iGoogle? Are you sad to see it go? What other Google apps that have come & gone that you miss? What do you think? Your comments are always desired.
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