What the heck is a widget?

The Oilman · 07-09-2009, 04:44 PM

I think I know what one is --- its a tiny little java doo-dad on a website.

But why the HECK does every internet-marketing "guru" always talk about selling "widgets"?

IS a widget just a broad term for any downloadable item ??

new2ebiz · 07-09-2009, 04:48 PM

One definition for widget is a tool available in some blogs. I don't know of any other definition. What does wikipedia say?

kf · 07-09-2009, 04:49 PM

Web definitions for widget
doodad: something unspecified whose name is either forgotten or not known; "she eased the ball-shaped doodad back into its socket"; "there may be ...
wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn

Not only downloadable ...

wid·get

1 : gadget
2 : an unnamed article considered for purposes of hypothetical example

AmyBrown · 07-09-2009, 04:53 PM

The use of widget came well before internet marketing and downloadable products. My economics professor used the term extensively 20 years ago.

Here's a definition from wiktionary: An unnamed, unspecified, or hypothetical manufactured good or product.

newBum76 · 07-09-2009, 04:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by The Oilman

I think I know what one is --- its a tiny little java doo-dad on a website.

But why the HECK does every internet-marketing "Goober" always talk about selling "widgets"?

IS a widget just a broad term for any downloadable item ??

What I wanna know is what the heck a "goober" is. I see everyone throwing this term around on here and apparently it's assumed that everyone knows what it means.....except for me!

Emmanuel Betinis · 07-09-2009, 04:59 PM

A "thing".

AmyBrown · 07-09-2009, 05:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by newBum76

What I wanna know is what the heck a "goober" is. I see everyone throwing this term around on here and apparently it's assumed that everyone knows what it means.....except for me!

This forum currently substitutes "Goober" when g-u-r-u is typed.

new2ebiz · 07-09-2009, 05:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kf

Web definitions for widget
doodad: something unspecified whose name is either forgotten or not known; "she eased the ball-shaped doodad back into its socket";

wid·get
1 : gadget

OK, a Thingamajig and whatyamacallit!

Sorry, couldn't help it.

Kay King · 07-09-2009, 05:08 PM

Goober and BlueFart are the equivalent of the Warrior secret handshake

anth.elias · 07-09-2009, 05:12 PM

I know one thing for sure, I hate the term, I can't stand it.

It drives me nuts a piece of code or a plugin of any type is not a widget and it shouldn't be associated with something that is nothing or unnamed the code has a name and we know what it is and what the code does, otherwise we would not sticking it on our Wordpess blogs or what ever.

newBum76 · 07-09-2009, 05:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AmyBrown

This forum currently substitutes "Goober" when g-u-r-u is typed.

Why? What's wrong with g-u-r-u?

newBum76 · 07-09-2009, 05:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kay King

Goober and BlueFart are the equivalent of the Warrior secret handshake

Yeah that reminds, me I don't know what BlueFart means either! Please share the inside joke with me so I can be as cool as everyone else! lol

Loren Woirhaye · 07-09-2009, 05:19 PM

Alfred Hitchcock referred to the plot object characters battle over
as "the McGuffin" - the diamond, the nuclear bomb, the micro-film,
The Maltese Falcon. It's a plot device with no value other than
to be a nexus of conflict.

A widget, as other posters say, is whatever you make and want
to sell. To me it implies something mechanical with spinning parts,
some sort of gadget.

In terms of 2-step direct response marketing the term "Widget"
is the thing you give away to get people to respond to your
ad. ie. "7 Things You Need To Do Right Now To Prevent Your Death"

People request the widget and then you go on to sell them your
cryogenic-freezing services.

See?

Martin Luxton · 07-09-2009, 05:23 PM

A widget is something in Wordpress that never does what I tell it to do.

Widgets only obey my web designer and mad scientists.

Martin

Jill Carpenter · 07-09-2009, 05:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by newBum76

What I wanna know is what the heck a "goober" is. I see everyone throwing this term around on here and apparently it's assumed that everyone knows what it means.....except for me!

Guru's hate blackhat marketing. Does this help?

ROFLMBO

Martin Luxton · 07-09-2009, 05:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by avenuegirl

ROFLMBO

Jill,

Can ladies do this, too?

Martin

newBum76 · 07-09-2009, 05:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by avenuegirl

Goober's hate BlueFart marketing. Does this help?

ROFLMBO

It'd be nice if you actually explained what those terms mean so I can see what's so funny, thanks.

Or is it something for the purpose of making fun of noobs and I just walked into a trap?

mikeyman120 · 07-09-2009, 05:54 PM

I know of 2 widgets.

The widget in wordpress that is a module add on.

and

Here's a definition from wiktionary: An unnamed, unspecified, or hypothetical manufactured good or product. as mentioned above by AmyBrown

Mike

AmyBrown · 07-09-2009, 05:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by newBum76

It'd be nice if you actually explained what those terms mean so I can see what's so funny, thanks.

Or is it something for the purposes of making fun of noobs and I just walked into a trap?

bluefart = black-hat

seasoned · 07-09-2009, 06:47 PM

Widget is a VERY old term! It just means THING and is often used to illustrate marketing, accounting, and manufacturing.

Amy,

So there is NO distinction between blue fart and black hat? It looked like blue fart was a PARTICULAR black hat technique. I was not diligent enough to wade through the garbage to find out.

Steve

Jill Carpenter · 07-09-2009, 07:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by newBum76

It'd be nice if you actually explained what those terms mean so I can see what's so funny, thanks.

Or is it something for the purpose of making fun of noobs and I just walked into a trap?

I would point you to the discussion thread but the one I want to show you went poof.

There is a special function you can program into the script that runs on this forum. The owner of the forum can make certain words change into other words.

Recently, b-l-a-c-k-h-a-t items were getting out of control and so the term is now replaced with blackhat. Just try typing the term above without the dashes in it and when you publish it will turn into the other word.

Same with guru which is g-u-r-u without the dashes in it.

So there is your secret handshake.

AmyBrown · 07-09-2009, 07:10 PM

Steve,

I don't believe it refers to a particular technique. A more specific answer to newBum76 is that currently on this forum typing black-hat (w/o the hyphen) results in blackhat being displayed.

Amy

deanmoney · 07-09-2009, 08:55 PM

He is the world watcher.

Paul Myers · 07-09-2009, 09:27 PM

Quote:

I know one thing for sure, I hate the term, I can't stand it.

Yeah, well, life is full of disappointments. Get over it. Or don't. That's up to you.

Widget, gizmo, gadget, doodad, thingamabob, dingus, doohickey, thingie and occasionally whatsis, whatchamacallit, or whoozis. All used to discuss a situation or process involving some item without getting distracted by the specific characteristics of the item.

The term widget is the most popular, and was around in that use long before blogs were even thought of. It will still be around when blogs have been replaced by whatever replaces them.

Paul

scraggz · 07-09-2009, 09:53 PM

Darn, I thought it was a small crawling animal!!

Either way I can sell you one, or many if you like!

07-09-2009, 04:44 PM	#1
The Oilman Drinking Milkshakes War Room Member Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: The Wild West of the Internet Posts: 602 Thanks: 5 Thanked 13 Times in 8 Posts	What the heck is a widget? I think I know what one is --- its a tiny little java doo-dad on a website. But why the HECK does every internet-marketing "guru" always talk about selling "widgets"? IS a widget just a broad term for any downloadable item ??

07-09-2009, 04:48 PM	#2
new2ebiz HyperActive Warrior War Room Member Join Date: Apr 2009 Posts: 199 Thanks: 11 Thanked 17 Times in 17 Posts	Re: What the heck is a widget? One definition for widget is a tool available in some blogs. I don't know of any other definition. What does wikipedia say?
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07-09-2009, 04:49 PM	#3
kf Communi~Kate War Room Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Geographically Independent Posts: 651 Thanks: 152 Thanked 128 Times in 44 Posts	Re: What the heck is a widget? Web definitions for widget doodad: something unspecified whose name is either forgotten or not known; "she eased the ball-shaped doodad back into its socket"; "there may be ... wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn Not only downloadable ... wid·get 1 : gadget 2 : an unnamed article considered for purposes of hypothetical example
	Those who stand for nothing, fall for anything. ~ Alexander Hamilton

07-09-2009, 04:53 PM	#4
AmyBrown HyperActive Warrior War Room Member Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: The Left Coast, USA Posts: 477 Thanks: 250 Thanked 165 Times in 112 Posts	Re: What the heck is a widget? The use of widget came well before internet marketing and downloadable products. My economics professor used the term extensively 20 years ago. Here's a definition from wiktionary: An unnamed, unspecified, or hypothetical manufactured good or product.
	"Test fast, fail fast, adjust fast." Tom Peters

07-09-2009, 04:59 PM	#6
Emmanuel Betinis --> SEOHelpVideos.com <-- War Room Member Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Minnesota, USA Posts: 730 Thanks: 75 Thanked 46 Times in 39 Posts Social Networking Contact Info	Re: What the heck is a widget? A "thing".
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07-09-2009, 05:08 PM	#9
Kay King Senior Warrior Member War Room Member Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Gulf Coast, USA. Posts: 15,130 Thanks: 3,678 Thanked 4,118 Times in 2,245 Posts	Re: What the heck is a widget? Goober and BlueFart are the equivalent of the Warrior secret handshake

07-09-2009, 05:12 PM	#10
anth.elias Hulk Warrior Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Atlantis Posts: 215 Thanks: 1 Thanked 16 Times in 16 Posts	Re: What the heck is a widget? I know one thing for sure, I hate the term, I can't stand it. It drives me nuts a piece of code or a plugin of any type is not a widget and it shouldn't be associated with something that is nothing or unnamed the code has a name and we know what it is and what the code does, otherwise we would not sticking it on our Wordpess blogs or what ever.
	Laptop Repair Omaha Ne \|computer repair Omaha Ne \|computer repair Bellevue Ne \|laptop repair Bellevue Ne \|desktop repairs bellevue ne

07-09-2009, 05:19 PM	#13
Loren Woirhaye Who'm I kidding? War Room Member Join Date: May 2006 Location: Easthampton, Massachusetts Posts: 4,542 Blog Entries: 15 Thanks: 117 Thanked 904 Times in 651 Posts Social Networking Contact Info	Re: What the heck is a widget? Alfred Hitchcock referred to the plot object characters battle over as "the McGuffin" - the diamond, the nuclear bomb, the micro-film, The Maltese Falcon. It's a plot device with no value other than to be a nexus of conflict. A widget, as other posters say, is whatever you make and want to sell. To me it implies something mechanical with spinning parts, some sort of gadget. In terms of 2-step direct response marketing the term "Widget" is the thing you give away to get people to respond to your ad. ie. "7 Things You Need To Do Right Now To Prevent Your Death" People request the widget and then you go on to sell them your cryogenic-freezing services. See?
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07-09-2009, 05:23 PM	#14
Martin Luxton Christmas Rocker Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: North Pole Posts: 2,380 Blog Entries: 1 Thanks: 545 Thanked 696 Times in 372 Posts	Re: What the heck is a widget? A widget is something in Wordpress that never does what I tell it to do. Widgets only obey my web designer and mad scientists. Martin
	"Merda taurorum animas conturbit"

07-09-2009, 05:54 PM	#18
mikeyman120 Mike-Nagle.com War Room Member Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: NY, USA Posts: 984 Thanks: 180 Thanked 172 Times in 102 Posts Social Networking	Re: What the heck is a widget? I know of 2 widgets. The widget in wordpress that is a module add on. and Here's a definition from wiktionary: An unnamed, unspecified, or hypothetical manufactured good or product. as mentioned above by AmyBrown Mike

07-09-2009, 06:47 PM	#20
seasoned Senior Warrior Member War Room Member Join Date: Jan 2003 Location: , , USA. Posts: 11,102 Thanks: 1,411 Thanked 727 Times in 634 Posts	Re: What the heck is a widget? Widget is a VERY old term! It just means THING and is often used to illustrate marketing, accounting, and manufacturing. Amy, So there is NO distinction between blue fart and black hat? It looked like blue fart was a PARTICULAR black hat technique. I was not diligent enough to wade through the garbage to find out. Steve

07-09-2009, 07:10 PM	#22
AmyBrown HyperActive Warrior War Room Member Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: The Left Coast, USA Posts: 477 Thanks: 250 Thanked 165 Times in 112 Posts	Re: What the heck is a widget? Steve, I don't believe it refers to a particular technique. A more specific answer to newBum76 is that currently on this forum typing black-hat (w/o the hyphen) results in blackhat being displayed. Amy
	"Test fast, fail fast, adjust fast." Tom Peters

07-09-2009, 08:55 PM	#23
deanmoney HyperActive Warrior War Room Member Join Date: Jun 2009 Posts: 110 Thanks: 5 Thanked 6 Times in 6 Posts	Re: What the heck is a widget? He is the world watcher.

07-09-2009, 09:53 PM	#25
scraggz Active Warrior War Room Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Western Australia. Posts: 61 Thanks: 4 Thanked 13 Times in 8 Posts	Re: What the heck is a widget? Darn, I thought it was a small crawling animal!! Either way I can sell you one, or many if you like!
	Stan Craigie Check Out My WSO - Be Your Own Graphics Expert Best Article Re-Writer/Spinner Ever! How to Create a Curved eBook Cover in Gimp - FREE eBook Last edited by scraggz; 07-09-2009 at 09:54 PM. Reason: Hit the wrong button!