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API Overview

Gadgets are mini-applications built using HTML, with JavaScript, Flash or Silverlight for dynamic behaviors. Since gadgets can run on multiple sites and platforms, there are special tags and libraries that work in different places. All of these are extensions to the core gadgets API, to provide additional functionality.

Gadgets API extensions

OpenSocial

  • Utilize functions for creating social gadgets.
  • Available for gadgets on containers that support the OpenSocial API, such as orkut and the iGoogle sandbox.

Maps

  • Add geo-targeted functionality by overlaying your data on maps.
  • Available for gadgets on Google Maps (Mapplets).

Finance API

  • Retrieve and display stock information from Google Finance.
  • Available for gadgets on iGoogle.

Ads

  • Create gadgets that serve as dynamic, rich-media advertising.
  • Available for gadgets running via Google AdSense.

Calendar

  • Build gadgets than run within a calendar and display time-based information.
  • Available for gadgets on Google Calendar.

Spreadsheets New!

  • Build gadgets that interact with the content of a spreadsheet.
  • Available within a spreadsheet, or on another web page that supports gadgets, such as iGoogle.

Sites and platforms

The list of places you can run your gadgets is ever growing:

Google products

  • iGoogle
  • Google Apps start pages
  • Google Desktop
  • Google Maps
  • Google Toolbar
  • Orkut
  • Blogger
  • Google Calendar
  • Google Spreadsheets API and Tools

Third-party products and sites

  • MyAOL
  • IBM websphere portal
  • RedHat JBoss portal
  • SUN portal
  • BEA weblogic portal

Other sites

  • Any webpage