Turning to Google, I soon discovered that an enterprising developer by the name of Helmut Buhler had created a free tool called 8GadgetPack that reinstalls the original desktop gadget program files in Windows 8.x and allows you use these handy little applications in the new operating system. So, I wondered, maybe Microsoft really only hid the feature, and it was still buried in the operating system somewhere. Upon reflection, I recalled that early betas of Windows 8 still had desktop gadgets. But alas, Microsoft removed that capability from its newest operating system. Recently, I was using one of my desktop gadget creations on a Windows 7 system, and I wished that Windows 8.x could run desktop gadgets. Of course, I still have several Windows 7 systems in my lab and use the desktop gadgets on them from time-to-time. Back in 2009, I picked up on this latter fact and went to town creating a host of desktop gadgets that automated some useful command line utilities. They could also be used to control external applications. These small applications were designed to perform simple tasks, such as display clocks and calendars, run RSS feeds, or launch search tools. Find out how to use 8GadgetPack to install any Windows desktop gadget.Īs you may know, before Windows 8 and its Windows Store Apps, there were desktop gadgets designed to work in Windows Vista and Windows 7.

Greg Shultz takes a look at 8GadgetPack, a free tool that reinstalls the original desktop gadget program files in Windows 8.x. Install any Windows desktop gadget in Windows 8.x with 8GadgetPack

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