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Google Makes Updates To iGoogle

Today, Google rolled out an updated design for iGoogle to all U.S. users, which includes full canvas views for gadgets and support for full feed reading. These changes make iGoogle a more useful homepage.

I don't have one home page, I have seven. If I did have just one, it would be iGoogle. In fact, I use iGoogle, too, but utilize Google's Reader more for news gathering. Google rolled out some interesting changes for iGoogle that just may convince me to use it more.

The big deal is the addition of "canvas view," and it's really cool. Not all of the iGoogle gadgets can use the canvas view, but a good handful can. The canvas view lets you see everything on a Web site without leaving iGoogle.

Some of the gadgets that can access the canvas view are:

• News: New gadgets from The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and The Washington Post give full-page views of what's new in the world.
• Games: The Sudoku gadget lets you play thousands of full-page Sudoku puzzles without squinting at 6-point type. The GoComics gadget gives you your fix of Garfield and Doonesbury and lets you choose from all of their other comics.
• Entertainment: You can configure the TV Guide gadget to your ZIP code and use it today to figure out when the newest episode of The Office is playing. The iLike gadget lets you browse news, concerts, and free MP3s from your favorite musicians.
• Google stuff: The new Gmail gadget lets you read your full e-mail and perform simple actions like send or reply to e-mails without leaving iGoogle. Google Finance now provides full-screen finance charts and news of the stocks in your portfolio.

There also is a new navigation system on the left side of the page so you can jump to your gadgets quickly with one click.

In all, this constitutes a major upgrade for iGoogle. Check it out.

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