How can I replace Dashboard with Yahoo Widget Engine?

December 13, 2006 8:46 PM

I'd like to know some specifics about replacing Dashboard with Yahoo! Widget Engine.

I have a pretty cluttered menu bar and was wondering if there was a hack to get rid of the Yahoo! Widget Engine icon. On a similar vein, does anyone know how to get rid of the menu bar in the heads up display of Yahoo! Widget Engine? I've been trying to use it as a replacement Dashboard (since dashboard seems to be a memory hog), but whenever i bring up the HUD, there's an empty menu bar still cluttering up my dimmed Dashboard. One thing that I do miss about Dashboard is it's incredible Dictionary Widget. Is there a way to convert the Dictionary Widget to Yahoo! Widget Engine format?

I figured out how to prevent Dashboard from starting up, and I set the Yahoo! HUD key to F12, but that's basically it for my replacement strategies. Any other tips on replacing Dashboard are welcome.

posted by secret.osha to computers & internet (2 comments total)

Each of my Dashboard widgets uses between two and six megabytes of real memory. I wouldn't quite call that a memory hog.

http://www.mikey-san.net/dashmem.png

How much memory do you have installed? Is whatever small savings you're going to get worth the trouble of what you're asking about, including the effort in replacing one engine with another?
posted by Mikey-San at 9:25 AM on December 15, 2006

i have 512mb of memory. the reason i suggested it is because dashboard seems to take so much from virtual memory whenever i bring it forward with f12. i'm not sure why that is, but compared to dashboard, yahoo widget engine emerges much more quickly. i'll admit that i'm anal about these things, but i think i can learn a little bit about os x applications by trying to tinker around with it a little. i actually was able to remove the false menu bar from yahoo widget engine by going into its package contents and renaming a couple of files. i also removed the gears in the hud background using the same method. however, there hasn't been much luck in removing menu icons.

what's truly bothering me though, is that os x seems to be accessing the hard drive and virtual memory much more often than it did just a couple of weeks ago. logon has been slower too, even though the only things that start up are quicksilver and path finder. before you ask, i don't remember what i installed or did to cause that to happen. i think i assumed that it would only be temporary and the cache would eventually balance out based on what programs i use.

again, you're probably right in that it's not really worth it. it is, however, one of those things that is gonna be bugging me for quite a while. so if you've got some suggestions, i'd be interested. very interested.
posted by secret.osha at 6:51 PM on December 24, 2006