OU Library iGoogle Gadgets

The OU Library’s Website Personalisation Project is experimenting with the use of web services (including gadgets) to provide content to Library customers. The gadgets are currently available within Library Toolbox, which is where we showcase new technologies that we are working on and invite feedback on them.

Below is the list of gadgets that we plan to implement using the NetVibes Universal Widget Application (in addition to the Library catalogue search and the new books list gadgets that are currently available). The Netvibes UWA enables you to write a widget once and run it anywhere, e.g. iGoogle/Pageflakes/Netvibes/Facebook, Vista etc. Is anyone else using this application to create Library widgets? Please share your thoughts on it.

• ORO Search
• OneStop Search
• eJournals Search
• Search boxes for key databases
• Featured links (as per the links box on the Library homepage)
• “My record” (similar in format to the Facebook iGoogle gadget; to enable people to see how many books they have out, how many requests pending and how many items are available for them to collect. Tabs for other Library services e.g. catalogue search, New books, etc)
• RSS feed for each OU Library blog
• New books (individual rss)
• Library news (rss)
• Library events (rss)
• Library seminars (rss)