Opera Widgets blog

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Are you up to the challenge?

Opera is challenging developers to create cross-device widgets or “X-Widgets” that can be used on both mobile phones and PC/Mac computers.

An example of an X-Widget might be a shopping list you keep both on your computer and mobile phone. That way you can update it whenever and never lose track of what you need to pick up at the store. Another could be a simple game that you can play on your computer, then pause it, and continue on your mobile phone – perfect when you are going for a high score. One more could be an online auction widget, where you could follow an auction both at home and on the go, and bid right up to the last minute!

Cash prizes galore!

Opera is stepping up and awarding generous cash prizes for the best overall X-Widgets submitted.

• 1st prize: $5000
• 2nd prize $2000
• 3rd prize $1000

In addition you can win t-shirts and $50 Amazon gift cards if you're one of the first 20 qualified entrants. The best weekly widget will be rewarded with a $300 Amazon gift card.

If your X-Widget is among our top picks, we will promote it on widgets.opera.com and you might also find it bundled in our next widget product release!

Yes! How do I get started?

Check out our Opera Widget SDK which has an emulator and access to the Opera Widget manager on Windows Mobile and Symbian phones to help you test and play with your creation.

Rules

Have a read through these rules before you roll up your sleeves:

1. X-Widget submissions must be able to run on both the widget emulator included in the SDK and on your desktop.
2. On the emulator, the submission must support QVGA (portrait and landscape) and desktop.
3. You can upload newer versions of your widget, but remember, only the latest approved version will be judged (be careful when adding or removing features).
4. You are allowed to submit a maximum of 3 widgets, and are encouraged to focus on quality over quantity.
5. Coding standards are to use a separate markup for styling and scripting.

Submitting your X-Widget

To submit and participate in the challenge you have to:

1. Become a registered member of the My Opera community (sign up).
2. Upload your widget to http://widgets.opera.com/.
3. Send us a link to your submission using our contest form.

Judging

All X-Widget entries will be judged by a panel of developers and marketers at Opera. X-Widgets will be judged on:

• Usefulness across mobile and desktop
• Addictiveness
• Coding quality
• Design quality
• Overall quality

Dates to remember

Weekly prize deadlines:

• November 2nd, 2008
• November 9th, 2008
• November 16th, 2008

Final deadline: November 23rd, 2008.

The Final winners will be announced December 15, 2008 in this blog.

Tips and tricks!

• Don’t wait until the last minute to send in your X-Widget.
• You can ask for tips and hints from our developers in forums.