Just wanted to post up that our Ultimate Explorer gadget has finally made just over 20,000 downloads today. We’re really proud of it and we hope people continue to find it useful, especially after we roll out the 1.2 update (more on that coming early next week).

Thanks Everyone. 

Just wanted to note that the 1.2 update for the Ultimate Explorer gadget is starting construction and we’re hoping to release it by next week.  This update is going to be pretty big, so stay tuned! 

P.S.:  If you turn the script debugger on in Internet Explorer and view the current gadget and start to see errors, let us know and we’ll look into them.  We’ve received a couple of vague responses about errors, but can’t reproduce them as of yet.  Thanks.

So we’ve had some talk about certain changes to the gadget, so I’ll go ahead and start putting out a few things we’re working on for the 1.2 update.

First off, there have been a couple of suggestions for a smaller search button.  This is definitely doable as it is a little big and with certain changes in the next update I might well be making the regular search button a bit smaller to accommodate the possible addition of an options band at the bottom of the gadget for certain engines.  Yes, that’s right folks, we’ve kind of been running out of room on this things and well, it seemed obvious to use the flyouts as individual options for particular engines.  It works better and makes more sense, plus there’s more room.

I have had one request for the word search instead of a “silly icon.”  The problem with this is that I cannot change the shape of the search button unless it’s going from circle to square.  I wish I had the space for something oval in shape to accommodate, but with various configurations, the space beside the search button can be used, so I’m afraid it’s stuck at a circle.  Why not just replace the icon with text in the circle you ask?  Because that text is going to be wicked tiny.  I’d rather have a big icon that 90% of the people using will be able to understand (and the other 10% of the users can either guess or frantically click to find out that there is a search button after all).  Beyond the obvious use as an icon, it also balances out the design a bit more than regular text.  The exception to the rule is the Digg button, but that is also shorter text, so it can be bigger. 

I would like to announce that we will be adding more engines to the gadget, so this next update will be “laying the groundwork” so to speak for future updates to come.  The general idea is to add in as much usefulness as possible, so don’t be surprised if this thing has around 20 engines before we’re done.

In terms of upcoming engines, I will say that we are planning to add something to cover the weather, date, and time.  I know, not a search engine, but still useful within the context of the gadget, especially since it can then be used in place of two or three other gadgets in a pinch.  The other engine I’ll announce later on as we get closer to the update.

There will be the usual smaller bug fixes and tweaks, but expect big changes in the settings panel, flyouts, new engines, and smaller interface tweaks as we get closer to the next update in a couple weeks (at least, that’s what we’re projecting).

We just launched the newest update to our popular Ultimate Explorer gadget!  Here’s a breakdown of what’s what:

1. Default Browser:  Fixed.  Regular links still work as they did, but any web searches will now work in whatever default browser you have.
2. Update Notifier:  We added an update notifier feature that checks our server once a day to see if there is a new update to the gadget.  If there is, it will display a green button in the lower left hand corner of the gadget.  If you click the button, it will display a flyout with relevant information and links.  This can be disabled in the Settings->Advanced->Updates tab.  Regular update notification in the same tab still works.
3. Drop Down Awkwardness:  Fixed, it’s all pretty now!
4. The Reset Button:  Has been renamed to “Restore Default Settings.”
5. The Search Engine Menu: Can now be closed by clicking anywhere in the gadget.
6. The Current Search Term:  Can be erased with a double-click.  Single click will still allow editing.
7. Default Skin: Will now display the right way in the settings panel.

Download @ Live.com Gallery

Download From BuildAGadget.com

Since the gadget is doing fairly well right now, we though it would be a good idea to begin getting a 1.1 version ready for everyone.  Some of the details are still in the air, but here’s a list of what we’re planning:

1. Possible Fix For Default Browser.  the current bug is actually a bug with the sidebar, so we’re going to attempt to hack around this.
2. Auto-Update Feature.  Cause we need it, though we’re still working out the details, this should be fairly simple and non-intrusive, but still visible.
3. Interface Tweaks For Awkward Drop-Downs.  Going to play around a little with this to see what we can do.
4. Reset Settings -> Restore Default Settings.  Just to make it clearer.
5. Search Engine Toggle Flyout Closable On Gadget Click.  It’s a small tweak, but should help out if you change your mind about switching the current engine.
6. Double-Click Search Term Erase.  This is so we can make it easier for people to add in a different term.  Single click will still allow a user to edit the current term.

So there you have it, a rough overview of what we have planned for the next major update.  We’re not setting a release date just yet, but we’ll post it up here when we do.