Thing 12: Adding Gadgets

Review the widget you selected. Are you getting comfortable with embedding code? Do you belong to other online communities? Are relationships formed online as meaningful as face-to-face relationships? Why do you think MySpace and other social networking sites are so popular with kids today?

Please take a moment to participate in my poll "Which genre do you prefer reading?" located on the bottom right side of my blog. I'm curious about reading habits. I also invite you to become a follower on my blog. Knowing who might be reading my blog on a regular basis may alter what I choose to write about. I also added a newsfeed gadget. I thought this might be handy for some people who might stumble across my blog.

I belong to delicous, facebook, igoogle and one for keeping track of books. I realize now that they only are interesting when the participants keep adding new information. If they are stagnant, we stop going to the site. The more interactive, the better. On Facebook, I add photos, play wordscraper with other members, and comment on other people's photos. My son and his fiance have a countdown clock on Facebook for their upcoming wedding, plus a list of the wedding party, all of whom are members of Facebook. Some of the gadgets seem more useful for a igoogle page, rather than a blog. I thought about adding one with newspaper covers, but I don't see how this is really interactive, just informative. It may be useful just to show others what's out there if they have never looked at widgets or gadgets.

BTW, I added gadgets to this blog that were easily accessible using the blogger technology. In the next entry, I will experiment with widgets and embed one using the html code. I am very comfortable with both technologies. I wanted to add something on the bottom of the blog page that would fit more horizontally, rather than vertically. I haven't been successful so far. Any suggestions?