What is a widget?
A widget is a self-contained piece of code that you can move into, out of and anywhere inside the sidebar area of your blog.
You can use widgets to personalise your blog and deliver information you want.
Where are they?
Inside your blog, click Design -> Widgets (if a theme is widget enabled)
Using them
Add any widget from the “Available Widgets” box in to your “Current Widgets”(Sidebar) area and move them around until you get the layout you want.
Opening them
If a widget has settings, it will have and ‘Edit’ link on the right after it has been added to your “Current Widgets” area.
Click ‘Edit’ to open the widget screen and adjust settings. Hit ‘Change’ to save the widget and to close the window. Then click ‘Save Changes’ under the Current Widgets area.
Removing them
Edit the widget and click on ‘Remove’ to take it out of your “Sidebar” area. Make sure to hit “Save Changes” to save your settings.
Standard widgets
These all do the same thing on every blog. You don’t have to use them and you can only have one each of them. You can’t change how they look and work.
- Akismet
How much spam Akismet has removed for you - Archives
Posts in the past - Blog stats
Numbers! - Calendar
Shows dates in the past that you have blogged - Categories
All your blog posts in categories. (Remember - empty categories do not show up) - Links
Your blogroll links (Remember - links not in categories will not appear) - Pages
If you want them in a certain order, try this. - Meta
You don’t need to keep this. You can always sign in at http://wordpress.com or by adding /wp-login.php to your blog address - Recent Posts
Your last 10 posts - Recent Comments
The last 10 comments made on your blog - Search
To allow people to find what you said and when you said it - Top Posts
Your most visited writings
Widgets you can change
With these you have to put in some information of your own or from another service.
- del.icio.us
If you are with that service the widget will make perfect sense. - Flickr
Getting pictures of your own inside your blog. - Meebo
Online chat through your blog - RSS
Showing information from other sources (other blogs, the New York Times, Amazon, Netflix, any place with an RSS feed) in your sidebar - Text
Your words and images as you want them to be seen.
Will there be more widgets?
There certainly will be. We aim to give you more choice and more flexibility with your blog. But as to what they are….. ;)
