[disco_stu]

I'd like to create a Dashboard widget that checks for updates to the user's currently installed widgets, and I was wondering if anyone else would be interested in such an application? (In other words, if I'm the only one, then it's probably not worth implementing )

There's a slight chicken/egg problem, though. In order for my widget to work, existing widgets would have to be updated so that my widget could 'talk' to them.

Other widget developers would need to do two things:
(1) Add a few (three, to be exact) keys to their widget's info.plist file
(2) Host a dictionary/plist on their websites containing the most recent version number of their widget.

My widget will compare the installed widget's version to that of the most recent version listed in the online plist, and go from there.

Of course, my proposed widget would be completely free, open source. I've got about 95% of the backend code already written, and if there's enough interest, I'll have to enlist one of the pixel gurus in the GUI forum to help with a UI.

I'm interested in getting other MacNNer's feedback. Is this realistic? Am I asking too much of other developers? Sure, you could use VersionTracker or MacUpdate to check for updates, but once you install x number of widgets, the process becomes arduous and time-consuming. With my approach, developers can ensure that everyone has the latest and greatest versions of their widgets. I'm open to suggestions, too, if someone sees a better approach.

Thanks!
disco_stu

[cybergoober]

There's a similar widget available at dashboardwidgets.com already:

http://www.dashboardwidgets.com/show...ls.php?wid=940

Checks against the current versions of the widgets on the dashboardwidgets site...

[ManOfSteal]

I think this is concept is excellent; however, I still question why more and more developers don't include a "built-in" version checker with their widget(s).

[disco_stu]

Originally Posted by cybergoober

There's a similar widget available at dashboardwidgets.com already:

http://www.dashboardwidgets.com/show...ls.php?wid=940

Checks against the current versions of the widgets on the dashboardwidgets site...

Hmmm... so there is. I just looked a few weeks ago, too.

The only thing that I don't like about their approach is that they rely on a third party, ie Apple's dashboard page or dashboardwidget.com's page, for thier data. I was trying to avoid that in my design, and all the potential mess that comes along with parsing their data.

As for ManOfSteal's reply: Thanks, and I agree that it would be nice if the dev's would include their own version/update checker within their widgets. I can see how that hasn't caught on yet, though: it would take an additional amount of coding (more advanced perhaps for many widget developers), and, perhaps more importantly, it would take up valuable screen real estate for the widget.

Personally, if I have ten widgets active on my Dashboard, and eight of them have updates available, I'd prefer to be able to go to one central place to download them all. My opinion, obviously, is to let the widgets do their jobs and have someone else's job be to ensure that the widget is up to date. (But I also dislike how, by default, iTunes and iPhoto notify me that updates are available - that's what Software Update is for!)

I haven't done advanced JavaScript programming in ages, but I assume this is doable: Someone could always write a set of JavaScript functions that use XMLHttpRequest and it's own version parser to download and compare the versions - then the developer would simply have to include that code in their widget and allot some screen real estate for alerting the user...