widgetBeat…

Sneak peek of a widget that can “bring your text to life”

February 20th, 2008

by Al Merkrebs, February 20, 2008 @ 5:46 p.m. PST

First, you have to love the company’s name- Viewdle. They recently announced the beta release of a widget that pops up video from the text of a person’s name on a Web page.

It’s called the “Name Widget,” and it’s unusual because you have to scroll over text before you actually see the widget.

For example, scroll and keep your mouse over this name: Hillary Clinton, and you should see a brief, silent video of the person. Now try this name: Barack Obama. Or, if you prefer: John McCain. Very cool, right?

The company states that the widget “enables publishers of online publications, blogs and websites to add a visual representation of people referenced in their text.” The technology is based on their “multi-modal video search platform that uniquely combines indexing technology for text, audio and actual video.”

One more hit… check out this name: Mick Jagger.

Pros: It’s fun and does what it says: “brings text to life;” works on standard HTML Web sites, Blogger and Typepad; very easy copy/paste installation.

Cons: It’s beta and not supported on Opera yet (make sure you have the latest version of Flash player!); does not yet work on the standard social Web sites, like Facebook and MySpace, but support for social sites is in the works; currently uses only a people search of Reuters’ content, but future releases will let you select other URLs.

Coolness factor: 4/5

Engine required: None. For now, just copy and paste code into your own independent Web site.

Get widget here: Name Widget

Entry Filed under: widget in sight