Amnesty Singles - Convert Dashboard widgets into apps

Nov 08, '06 07:30:06AM

Contributed by: robg

The macosxhints Rating:

[Score: 9 out of 10]

Amnesty Singles takes Dashboard's devmode hack, whereby you can permanently move Dashboard widgets to the desktop, one step further: it lets you convert any widget into a true standalone application.

Usage couldn't be much simpler than it is. Just drag and drop a widget from either your user's or the top-level Library/Widgets folder onto the Amnesty Singles large drop zone. You can then create an app that's dependent on having the original widget around, or (if you've registered) a standalone app that includes a copy of the widget. Click Build, specify a save location, and you're done.

Launch the newly-created program, and you'll find a Widget menu in each app you create. Using this menu, you can set the program's level--floating above all other windows, standard window behavior where it will interleave with others, or a neat desktop option that "embeds" the app on your desktop. There's also a menu to set the refresh interval, along with a Get Info option for the widget (which may or may not provide useful info, depending on what data the original widget author included in their project files).

This is somewhat naggy shareware--you'll get a pop-up window over your converted apps until you register--but it's not overly expensive, and it provides a really useful service. Apparently the converted widgets will also run on 10.3.9, but I don't have a machine around on which I can easily test that.

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