Desktop APIs

Monday, February 09, 2009 at 3:05 PM

Google Desktop has active ambassadors all over the world who have successfully held programming contests and seminars at their schools.

As a stepping stone for bigger events, we held IIT Google Desktop Developer Challenge II at Informatics Institute of Technology (IIT), Sri Lanka, last summer.

This is the second event we organized at IIT Sri Lanka; you can read about the first event.

IIT Google Desktop Developer Challenge II was a Google Desktop Gadget contest organized for student developers at our institute. Any student enrolled at IIT was eligible to take part, and the main purpose of the contest was to inspire new developers to try the Google Desktop APIs and develop gadgets.

First, the students who wished to participate in this contest had to hand in proposals, which contained a brief introduction to the gadget they planned to develop. After that, it was time for them to develop their gadgets. The completed gadgets were forwarded to a panel of experts including API Gurus and the Google Desktop team. All these steps were done online through the official website for the contest, powered by Google App Engine.

And now, we are very happy to announce the winners of the second successful ambassador event in Sri Lanka.

Nadeeshani Jayathilaka was selected as third runner up for the gadget Greeting Bird, while Shazin was selected as the second runner up the gadget Radio Pro. The first runner up was Hanitha Gnanathesigar for her gadget GHealth N Fitness.

The winner of the contest was Lakmal Jayathilaka, who created the gadget Text 2 Wav Converter.



We congratulate all the winners and would like to thank everyone who took part in this competition and who helped to make this event a success. You can view photos of the award ceremony on Picasa Web Albums. Last but not least, a special thanks to the Google Desktop team for the greatest support given.

Posted by Lahiru Lakmal Priyadarshana, Google Desktop Ambassador and Gadget Developer

Wednesday, December 03, 2008 at 9:31 AM

It was my immense pleasure to conduct this Desktop gadget development workshop at Vellore Institute of Technology (VIT) on 22 Oct as part of Phreak 08. Phreak is a National Level Technical Symposium organized by VIT every year to discuss, share, and learn about the latest and future technologies. The time allotted for this workshop was 3 hours, including a 15-minute break.

It started off with a 45-minute technical presentation similar to what was presented at Google Developer Day. I covered the basic introduction, structure, and benefits of Google Desktop gadgets. This also included a demo of the Designer and an explanation of developer resources. I showed the Gadget API Reference page, and from that we used a few API methods to quickly create the Memory Smiley gadget.



The second part of the session was a fun-filled one. I started with the basics of XML and JavaScript, as most of the students were in their first year and were new to these. After that, I opened the Designer and added some images and a single button. Then students were challenged to come up with ideas on how to develop a gadget out of it. We received more than 35 ideas. Some had real potential, and others were just funny.

A few of the ideas: a dictionary with language converter, a gadget to automatically download videos as you watch them on YouTube/Orkut, phone dialers, file restorer, and a shortcut to clear history. Some of the ideas that came up — such as a to-do list, a weather gadget, and a program runner — already existed in the gallery. We had a few Google T-shirts and gave them away to people that suggested the best ideas.





After the brainstorming session, we took two of the ideas and implemented them on the spot. One was Thought for the Click; the other was a Simple Music Player. I've posted the slides and the code from the workshop in my blog.

I would like to thank the ambassadors, Vishnu S and Ajay Amritraj, who made this all possible. They did all they could to book the hall and get people registered. It was an opportunity for me to showcase my passion for sharing technology. It was a great experience, and I would love to conduct more of these kind of workshops in the future.

If you'd like to see more photos, here's the complete set of pictures.

Posted by Bijoy Thangaraj R, Gadget Developer & API Guru

Thursday, November 20, 2008 at 4:08 PM

Thanks to everyone who attended the Developer Day India codelab sessions and participated in the gadget contest. We've completed the judging and have awarded prizes. Here are the final results:

1st place

Resource Hog Tracker by Prithvi Prabhu

Thursday, November 06, 2008 at 8:02 AM

We would like congratulate Alexey Polkovnikov, who has grabbed the top spot in the Developer Hall of Fame. The Google Desktop team thanks Alexey for creating so many popular, useful gadgets!

Posted by James Yum, Developer Programs Engineer (Google Desktop Team)

Thursday, October 16, 2008 at 3:32 AM

Our very first Developer Day in India will be held on October 18, 2008 at the Chancery Pavilion, Bangalore, India.

This is a very special Developer Day for Google Desktop, as many of our team members work out of the Google Bangalore office. If you are going to attend or happen to know someone who is, allow me to point out a couple of can't-miss sessions:

• Rajesh Chandrashekaran is scheduled to hold a tech talk about Google Desktop gadgets. The talk introduces the Desktop gadgets platform and provides an overview of the APIs, tools, and incentives for creating gadgets.
  
  
• I am conducting two codelab sessions throughout the afternoon, which are actually going to be mini gadget programming competitions. You can be the inaugural winner of the "Google Desktop award for codelab excellence at Developer Day" and win a fabulous prize!

Wednesday, September 10, 2008 at 8:08 AM

Posted by Satish Sampath, Gadget Master (Google Desktop Team)

We're excited to invite you to Google Developer Day in Bangalore, India. Google Developer Days are a chance to learn about Google developer products from the engineers who built them.

The Bangalore day will include both a tech talk and a code lab session on the Desktop APIs, hosted by members of the Desktop team. You'll get to meet members of the team and in the process learn how to build gadgets and applications using the Desktop APIs. Gadgets can be a desktop presence for your web application or site, keeping it in people's minds even when they're not using a browser.

For more information, search the sessions page for "desktop". Hope to see you in Bangalore!

Wednesday, September 03, 2008 at 8:08 AM

Posted by Benjamin Schirmer, Intern (Google Desktop Team)

If you're new to gadgets and thinking about creating your very first gadget, you might be wondering if it's really worth the time and whether anybody will use your gadget. I thought I'd use myself as an example to show you the impact a gadget can have.

I started creating my first gadget in 2005, when the first sidebar version of Google Desktop was released. Back then the gadgets were COM based, so building gadgets wasn't as easy as it is today, and the gadgets didn't look that good. My first gadget created about 3,000,000 hits on my server, gave me my very first Google T-Shirt, put me in contact with some Google Desktop developers, and gave me direct access to the engineers behind Google Desktop. I also met some other gadget developers such as Yannick and Teo, whom I can now call my friends.

Since I had such a great experience with the first gadget, I soon started on my second gadget, then my third... and now I have 22 listed gadgets. When the Google Desktop team released the new JavaScript API, creating gadgets became much easier and faster, and the gadgets started to look a lot better. Through my work as a gadget developer I gained more and more experience with the Google Desktop gadget API, which I used to help other developers in the developer group and to write some articles for the knowledge base. The Google Desktop team rewarded this by making me one of the API Gurus -- a small team of experienced gadget developers. I could now use the fancy "[API Guru]" tag after my name, and I received a really nice Google API Guru sweatshirt.

At the beginning of this year I applied for an internship in the Google Desktop team; I'm now in Mountain View at Google. I can't tell you what I am working on, but I can tell you that working at Google is a lot of fun and not just because of the free food and snacks. You meet a lot of nice and interesting people, and you get to experience different cultures.

I hope this answers the question about whether making a gadget is worth your time. But will anybody use your gadget? The answer largely depends on the quality and features of your gadget. Here are a few download numbers for my gadgets, which show you how many people might download and use your gadgets:

• Tetramino Games: 756830 downloads since Oct 2007
• Digital Retro Clock: 555172 downloads since Nov 2007
• VolumeControl: 500392 downloads since Oct 2007
• Recycle Bin: 267033 downloads since Nov 2007
• GMail Icon: 194355 downloads since Nov 2007

As you can see, quite a lot of users might be interested in your gadget. If your gadget is well done and has some cool and useful features, your gadget could become one of the most popular gadgets, and you could make it into the Google Desktop Developers Hall of Fame.

Wednesday, August 13, 2008 at 1:08 PM

Posted by James Yum, Developer Programs Engineer (Google Desktop Team)

If you weren't at the open house for our Lively rooftop lounge, you really missed out. The turnout was good, and we were pleased to see new faces.



It wouldn't be a Google gathering without T-shirts. Those who attended received special Google Desktop T-shirts, which you can't get anywhere else.



We did a lot of brainstorming about gadgets and ways to improve Lively and Google Desktop. We also established a new favorite pastime: anvil dropping.



Here are some interesting snippets from the chat:

Lahiru:
well it would be really cool if we have some HTML render element
Bijoy:
Yes, a web browser control will do...
►Bijoy nods yes◄
►Sebastian is confused◄
me:
well, a subset of html might be okay?
Lahiru:
yes
►Lahiru nods yes◄
me:
<b><u>
Yannick:
wow guys slow it down


Yannick:
well, but how would you try them out in lively?
I think there should be some developer object
Benjamin:
I'd love to create an interactive arcade machine with a gadget as the game interface
Yannick:
just a simple 3d wall
►Benjamin is in love◄
Yannick:
where we can simply
me:
i very much agree
Yannick:
change the gadget in some local directory
and hit reload
Teo:
have you guys checked the jedi council room?

Please come out to the next gathering. We all had fun, and it was a great way to meet new friends (and anvil-dropping enemies).

Monday, August 04, 2008 at 11:08 AM

Reminder: Wednesday (August 6) at noon Pacific, we're hosting an open house at the Google Desktop rooftop lounge. (Convert to your time zone.) If you plan to be there — and we hope you will — you might want to visit the lounge or another Lively room in advance. That way you'll have time to get your avatar lookin' good.

UPDATE (August 5): Don't stress too much about what to wear. Just show up, and you'll get a schwaggy surprise.

For more details and screenshots, see James Yum's post: $FREE rooftop lounge for Google Desktop developers.



Posted by Kathy Walrath, Technical Writer (Google Desktop Team)

Friday, July 25, 2008 at 2:04 PM

Posted by James Yum, Developer Programs Engineer (Google Desktop Team)

We're looking for gadget developers to join us in an ultra swank, state-of-the-art rooftop lounge in the heart of downtown. Rent is free as long as you are an interested or experienced gadget developer.

You can inspect the premises during our open house Wednesday, August 6, at noon Pacific time — that's 12:30 a.m. in Bangalore, 10 p.m. in Bucharest... (see more time zones).

This one-room complex on top of a fifty-story building has amenities that will surely blow you away:

• Heated swimming pool and jacuzzi
• Poolside patio
• Breathtaking view of downtown
• Fish tank filled with rare and exotic fish
• Outdoor conference room

There are a few inconveniences. First of all, there is no kitchen or bathroom. (Do not use the pool for either of these purposes.) Guardrails are lacking, so try your best not to fall off the building.

We do not discriminate based on gender, age, sexual orientation, or species. Pigs, cats, and bears are all welcome.


Heated swimming pool


Aerial shot of the meeting area


Extremely rare talking fish

Feel free to drop by anytime, but don't miss the open house. Google Desktop team members and top developers will attend. We'd like nothing more than to make this your new home.

Any questions, please visit us at the Google Desktop developer group.

Thursday, July 10, 2008 at 11:16 PM

Posted by Cătălin Avram and Teodor Mihai Filimon, Google Desktop Ambassadors

Our third year at the Polytechnic University of Timisoara is over, and so is our Google Desktop contest. What started out as a local event at our university turned out to have participants from all over Romania.

The submissions ranged from card game gadgets to math quizzes and music-themed clocks. Here are the full results of the competition.

The competitors had quite different levels of experience with Google Desktop, starting with people who'd never used Desktop before — like our 1st and 2nd prize winners Andrei Banc and Iuly Crivat — all the way to hall-of-famer Simon Elod, who won the 3rd prize.

Here are some pictures from the fun-filled award ceremony. :)









Holding this contest was loads of fun. We hope we'll have more Google Desktop stories to share with you soon, so stay tuned to our chapter website and this blog, and have a nice summer! (we know we will :)

Wednesday, June 04, 2008 at 12:08 AM

Posted by James Yum, Developer Programs Engineer (Google Desktop Team)

There was no shortage of developers, or of sessions and snacks, at this year's Google I/O. Google Desktop team members were in abundance as well, with over a dozen of us out in full force. We had a popular booth showcasing a few of our favorite gadgets on Windows and Mac. The 2digg and Tetris gadgets were particularly well-liked.





Thanks to everyone who stopped by our booth to chat. We are looking forward to many new developers and gadgets. We're resting up and recovering now but can't wait to see you all next year.

Friday, May 23, 2008 at 8:48 AM

Posted by James Yum, Developer Programs Engineer (Google Desktop Team)

Google I/O (our biggest developer event of the year) is right around the corner. It will be held May 28-29 in San Francisco, California.

I have a couple of updates to report for the Desktop team:

• A Fireside Chat with Google Desktop engineers has been confirmed for 1:45PM on Wednesday, May 28th. A Fireside Chat is an informal Q&A and is often the best part of the event, as it gives developers a chance to ask what's on their minds and talk to the product engineering teams. I will be there along with tech leads and engineers from Google's Bangalore office.
• About a dozen different members of the Desktop team will take turns staffing a demo booth in the AJAX/JavaScript product area. If there is anyone in particular you'd like to talk to, please send an email to gd-developer AT google DOT com, and we'll coordinate a meeting.

We hope to see you there. If you've haven't registered yet, you still might be able to sign up.

Monday, May 12, 2008 at 4:42 PM

Posted by Lahiru Lakmal Priyadarshana, Gadget Developer

On Feb 28th 2008, we held IIT Google Desktop Gadget Challenge – I, the very first Google Desktop Ambassador event at our institute (Informatics Institute of Technology, Sri Lanka).

The contest was a small warmup event for potential and new Google Desktop gadget developers at IIT. The main goal was to inspire and prepare students for the IIT Google Desktop Gadgets Contest, which we plan to announce by the middle of May.

Today we are really happy to announce the winner of the contest, Mr. Mohamed Shazin Sadakath, a part-time student at our institute. Check the Winners page of our local Google group for more information, and don't forget to check out his gadget, Hit Stations LK.

As a sign of appreciation for his contribution to Google Desktop, Shazin will receive a cool Google gift pack. Let's welcome this new gadget developer to the arena.

Thanks a lot to everyone who supported this event, and special thanks to the Google Desktop team for their continued guidance and support.

Friday, April 25, 2008 at 3:37 PM

Posted by James Yum, Developer Programs Engineer (Google Desktop Team)

The Google Desktop team hopes you can join us at Google's biggest developer event of the year. Google I/O will be held May 28-29 in San Francisco, California.

Google Desktop engineers have just been scheduled for a Fireside Chat. It will be an informal Q&A session where you can ask just about anything — design decisions, annoying issues, and features you'd like to see.

You can find us hanging out in our demo booth throughout the entire event. The booth will be in the Ajax/JavaScript product area.

Google I/O is going to be an amazing event with lots of great talks and sessions. We're really looking forward to meeting you, so please stop by and say hello. If you have questions about participating in the event, please send an email to gd-developer AT google DOT com.

UPDATE (May 23): The chat has been scheduled for Wednesday at 1:45, and we have some more information about the demo booth. See the Google I/O Update post for details.

Monday, April 07, 2008 at 10:57 AM

Posted by James Yum, Developer Programs Engineer (Google Desktop Team)

The University of Karachi is Pakistan's largest public university. Among the student population of 30,000, you can find Google Desktop developers! Google Desktop Student Ambassador Rizwan Zahid and his fellow students have been seen sporting their Google Desktop T-shirts around campus. (Rizwan is on the right in both pictures.)

On March 29 Rizwan and manazirul-haq held a seminar about Google Desktop technologies. They talked about developing applications and gadgets using the Google Desktop APIs. Here are some pictures from the event.

For even more pics, check out the web album for the event. If you're interested in joining Rizwan's group and participating in their activities, you can find them hanging out on Google Groups.

Big thanks for Rizwan for leading and organizing the very first Google Desktop Ambassador event. If you're interested in becoming a student ambassador at your school, send an email to gd-developer AT google DOT com.

Friday, February 15, 2008 at 8:35 AM

Posted by James Yum, Developer Programs Engineer (Google Desktop Team)

Heads up: The Hall of Fame ranking algorithm will soon take into account the popularity of each developer's gadgets. The new algorithm will also consider contributions to the developer community, including blog posts, articles, and volunteer roles such as API Guru and Student Ambassador.

The upshot is that some developers' spots are going to change, and the Hall of Fame will have a new leader.

As always, we value your contributions to Google Desktop and will listen closely to any questions and concerns you may have. You can reach us at gd-developer AT google DOT com.

Tuesday, January 22, 2008 at 1:32 PM

Posted by James Yum, Developer Programs Engineer (Google Desktop Team)

We've recently made improvements and added a splash of color to the Hall of Fame. We hope that it is now more indicative of each person's contribution to the developer community.

You might be wondering about the little icons in each developer's entry. Those icons are insignias representing various developer achievements.


We're working to make the Hall of Fame more fun and useful. If you have any suggestions or feature requests, please let us know.

Also, if you need to submit or update your profile, send your information to gd-developer AT google DOT com.

Friday, July 27, 2007 at 2:25 PM

Posted by Joe Monical, Online Operations Associate (Google Desktop Team)

As a gadget developer for Google Desktop, you can play a big part in making Google Desktop more useful and exciting for our diverse community of users. The dynamic and innovative gadgets you create help personalize the Desktop experience and also inspire others to make their own unique gadgets.

We really appreciate all the effort you put into expanding the world of Google Desktop, and we'd like to reward your hard work with a limited-edition patch. For each gadget you submit that is included in our gallery, we'll send you a patch like this one:

UPDATE (October, 2007): Our rewards have changed a bit. Instead of one patch per gadget, your first gadget submission nets you a developer appreciation package that includes a patch. Subsequent submissions give you a shot at other rewards.

As your talents grow and you reach new levels of gadget mastery, you may have the opportunity to obtain different and more specialized patches, as well.

Whether you choose to sew your patch to a backpack or jacket, or simply hang it over your desk, we hope you'll enjoy and proudly display this recognition of your achievement.

Tuesday, July 24, 2007 at 9:19 AM

Posted by James Yum, Support Engineer (Google Desktop Team)

The Google Desktop Team is happy to introduce the API Gurus team:

• Teodor Filimon
• Lahiru Lakmal Priyadarshana
• Benjamin Schirmer
• Yannick Stucki
• Bijoy Thangaraj

What are API Gurus? They are experienced developers who can answer your questions and provide valuable feedback on your gadgets.

They will be actively participating in the developer group, so please be sure to welcome them and get help for the gadgets you've been working on.