Building a Gadget
Once you have reviewed the necessary references and code samples, create a folder with a .gadget extension. Doing so makes file organization during development (as well as packing the files for deployment) easier. For demonstration purposes, name this folder "MyFirst.gadget."
Next, using a text editor such as Notepad, create a new gadget.xml file from scratch or edit an existing one. Listing One is a gadget.xml source code listing.
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8" ?>
<gadget>
<name>My First Gadget</name>
<namespace>microsoft.windows</namespace>
<version>1.0</version>
<author name="Mike Riley">
<info url="www.mikeriley.com" />
</author>
<copyright>Copyright (c)2007</copyright>
<description>A simple gadget that displays
"DDJ Rules!" in the Sidebar.</description>
<icons>
<icon width="130" height="130" src="ddj.png" />
</icons>
<hosts>
<host name="sidebar">
<base type="HTML" apiVersion="1.0.0" src="gadget.html" />
<permissions>full</permissions>
<platform minPlatformVersion="0.3" />
</host>
</hosts>
</gadget>
You create an HTML document with the same name referenced in the gadget.xml <base> element (in this case, gadget.html). The file contents can be as simple as:
<html>
<style>
body {
width:130;
height:30;
}
</style>
<body>
DDJ Rocks!
</body>
</html>
If you omit the <style> information, the gadget still displays, but only shows the first letter of each word on a separate line—not quite your intended result. And while the body width can exceed 130 pixels (which happens to be the width of the Sidebar itself), exceeding this limit makes gadgets look oversized, out of place, and (most importantly) outside the range of the Sidebar Gadget design-guideline recommendations.
Another observation: While Notepad is sufficient for minimal UI construction, I recommend a web design program such as Adobe Dreamweaver for optimum design efficiency. Using a <div> tag during development to constrain the contents within the 130×130 pixel frame limitation is helpful during the debugging stage. Gadgets designed to expand their windows when dragged off the Sidebar can be developed using separate HTML files.
