Oct/Nov 2008

Widgets are now the big thing in the world of Opera's Web browser for handheld devices. They were introduced for T-Mobile users in September, and the latest version 9.5, currently in beta, extends their use to other networks.

So what are they? Essentially they are mini-programs or processes that automate various forms of user interaction with the Web software. For instance, they can enable users to access customer-selected Web content from a list of icons on the home screen, or allow notifications to be delivered automatically to subscribers.

Opera supplies some ready-made widgets, and also offers an Opera Widget software development kit, which should enable developers to create their own, using standards-based Web technology. The kit has just been upgraded to allow faster JavaScript debugging and on-device testing.

You can download Opera Mobile 9.5 beta with Opera Widgets from http://www.opera.com/products/mobile/