1 (edited by Makr 2008-12-26 12:03:41)

Topic: Managing Widgets?

Hello All,

Just got my Chumby for X-mass and all is well everything is working and it is great.

I have created some channels and added some widgets. Fine.

My qustion is, can someone who has had their Chumby a while and "fine tuned" it tell me the best way they manage their widgets?

From what I can see now I am thinking of just putting all of them in Default with a clock widget every 2-3rd widget. I know this is not the best way because there is the option to create and modify channels. I would like to hear how others manage all the widgets.

Thanks

Re: Managing Widgets?

Personally, I create situational channels.  My Default channel is a mixed bag, do everything -- a clock, weather, news, facebook, twitter, chumbyland, woot.com.  Aside from that general purpose channel, I tend to make my channels more tightly defined in terms of the categories of widgets included.  I'll give some examples of the ones just off the top of my head...

My second most used channel is dedicated to Radio Paradise -- switch to this one when listening to that station in the ChumbyFree radio. That station is just radio paradise, chumbyland and the weather information.

I have one dedicated to socail media, one for video game news/rss feeds, a political channel, a world/national news channel; I have a 'relaxation' channel that is just a mix of the useless little visual widgets and a few clocks.

I have a camtastic channel, for various webcams, a channel dedicated to the chumby channels for latest releases and most popular widgets -- it's essentially a testbed for the new widgets arriving on the service.

Another channel boasts video television feeds, youtube, etc.

Finally, there's my chumbyland channel that just houses chumbyland and the chumbyland sights widgets for non-stop chumbyland action.  If you don't already have it, get chumbyland!

Re: Managing Widgets?

I do my by category as well. I have a clock one which is pretty much my screen saver or where I put it for non use. Then I break mine down for business and for fun. I have my eBay account on the business side and the games and fun stuff on a different channel. I am sure after awhile you will find what works for you then you can go back in and change it and try something else so easy.

Grow Real Nerve Fully Rely On God Today!

Re: Managing Widgets?

I do everything that everyone above mentions, but on the default channel, I have added the Most Viewed, Highest Rated and Newest Widget widgets. I don't get to chumby.com regularly enough to see the new widgets as they come in and with the Newest Widget widget widget, I can add them from my bed. LATER, at the computer, I can either move it into the best category or simply add it new to the best category if I like it. Then delete from Default and you're done. My categories are similar to other...News, Clocks and Calendars, Cams and Views, Audio and Video, Games, Miscellaneous, Email and Flickr. Enjoy!

Re: Managing Widgets?

Now I get it Thanks. I like the idea of a screen saver/clock channel for when I am away from it. I mostly use it in the morning and at night.
I have an entertainment channel now for when I want to view videos and whatever. Game channel for when I just want to mess around. The default right now is for all things not in a catagory.
Time to work on the alarm clock settings! Thanks!

6 (edited by heyartlady 2008-12-27 17:31:35)

Re: Managing Widgets?

Makr, an addendum to my original response. Now that I have had my Chumby for over a year AND having read and responded to your post; I caused me to reflect on it and I will now make a different channel with repeat widgets that I now KNOW I use, right at bedtime. (I generally use my chumby at night in bed like a bedtime book) I always read the NY Times World and  Breaking News widgets, I then check youtube to see if there is anything new, I check NEWEST widgets widget to see if there is anything new, then I play puzzles and then put it on my favorite clock that I can read throughout the night even without my glasses. Your post reminded me that I can "double dip" and post duplicates of those same widgets in ONE channel. Now that I know what I regularly use, I can do that and not have to keep going back to the control panel. So, now, I will have a new channel...Bedtime. And I don't have to remove them from the other locations, I can just make a new one and duplicate them. Thanks!

And also, thanks for asking a question and coming back on to read the answers and respond that it helped. So many times, people post a question, we all spend a lot of time answering, and the original poster never comes back to say thanks and whether it helped or not. I appreciate hearing that it helped. Your post helped me rethink my evening routine.

One other tip. DON'T FORGET ABOUT THE COOLNESS OF THE PUSHPIN. I don't even worry about what amount of seconds I set a widget to in the 'customize' mode. But I make good use of the push pin while I am in my reading/playing/watching routine, so don't worry about the seconds (unless you have your chumby set to scroll). I just keep mine set on my clock while I'm gone to work with my pushpin and while I'm surfiing and it works great.

EDITED typos

Re: Managing Widgets?

I wish I could play with mine in bed... the plugs in our room are awful! Having to run accross the room to halt the klaxon does help ensure I get up in the morning though...

Re: Managing Widgets?

theprawn wrote:

I wish I could play with mine in bed... the plugs in our room are awful! Having to run accross the room to halt the klaxon does help ensure I get up in the morning though...

I have seen a little alarm clock on wheels, that when it goes off it jumps off the nightstand or wherever you put it to begin with, that you then have to get up and chase to whatever nook and cranny it lodges itself into in order to turn it off. I was CONSIDERING buying one for my son when he was in high school, until I realized, he probably wouldn't set it. And would continue to rely on, "Galen. Get up.", "Galen. Get up.", "Galen. Get up.", "Galen. Get up.", "Galen. Get up.", "Galen. Get up." "Galen. Get up."...at 10 minute intervals from 6:30 to 7:30. I was his snooze alarm!

Re: Managing Widgets?

theprawn wrote:

I wish I could play with mine in bed... the plugs in our room are awful!

ONE surge protector type multi-plug thing plugged into a really good extension cord (quality AND the correct voltage)=1 lamp, 1 phone charger, 1 Chumby, and an occasional heating pad on bad back nights right at the bedside table. Oh. I forgot. I live in Kansas so there is the ever present Weather Radio.

Re: Managing Widgets?

heyartlady,
I think it is an "unwritten" courtesy to check back on the post you create or comment on and follow up with the people who have contributed. I have noticed on allot of the threads on here that the people that start them never comment again. So I agree, you wonder if it helped them or if they even read your response?

I am going to create a channel called Wake Up. When my alarm goes off it will go to this channel. In the channel I am going to put music, the weather, traffic if possible, and a time widget between all of them so I can get the time and info in the morning while I get ready for work. SWEET!

Re: Managing Widgets?

I have a channel called weather that I use in a similar way to display weather and time only in the morning, and then an alarm that turns itself back to night mode after I leave for work. etc.

Re: Managing Widgets?

vw195 wrote:

I have a channel called weather that I use in a similar way to display weather and time only in the morning, and then an alarm that turns itself back to night mode after I leave for work. etc.

That's cool! Mine is not used as an alarm clock (insert 4,000 gasps here) so after I quit playing/reading at bedtime, it is stuck all day long on the same clock I use all through the night until I go to bed the next night. Worked well for me for over a year...hope I'm not burning up the screen, but the clock I use is that great one with black background and skinny white lines that just go around at the appropriate times so I guess it is OK to leave it all day and night until I get back to read and play!

I might look into that alarm/night mode thing! Thanks!

13 (edited by theprawn 2008-12-29 17:47:38)

Re: Managing Widgets?

So it's been running, with little exception, non-stop for nearly a year? That's pretty impressive.  I'm always afraid mine is going to burn up, screen gets warm when it's using more advanced widgets.

Edit: Thinking about it, mine gets similar treatment... not for as many months, but its use is pretty constant. Changing widgets all day, though.

Re: Managing Widgets?

theprawn wrote:

So it's been running, with little exception, non-stop for nearly a year? That's pretty impressive.  I'm always afraid mine is going to burn up, screen gets warm when it's using more advanced widgets.

Nonstop for OVER a year. November 15, 2007. I'm shown as registered on the forum as January 28th because even though I had registered on Chumby.com on November 15th, the forum takes a different registration and that's how long I READ THE FORUM BEFORE SIGNING UP TO ASK ANY QUES...oh you know what I mean! :-) Yes, nonstop, no issues, no shutdowns, no can't connects, no nothing wrong at all. Other than when Duane (Hi Duane) took away my touch tap screen thingy from the first control panel that I found and nobody else did and I lost it when I upgraded to a new control panel and the touch tap screen thingy was wonderful and even though Duane put it back just for me in Beta I can't figure out how to do it so I am still changing channels with the button on top...but I digress. Yes, running constantly over a year. Sure has been fun!

Re: Managing Widgets?

That's a bit reassuring. I know it's an always-on device, and other devices that are never shut off (alarm clocks:) do just fine but years of televisions, video game consoles and other things being allergic to operating has caused me to just cross my fingers. wink