Windows Vista Sidebar - Useful or Eye Candy?

As most of you know, Microsoft introduced a new feature with the release of Windows Vista - the Windows Sidebar.
On the surface, this seems like a pretty cool feature; the ability to have a lot of different information right there on the desktop. Well, I’ve been running Vista for about five months now and I would have to say I have mixed emotions, at best, about Windows Vista Sidebar.  To the right I have posted my current Windows Sidebar.

The Positives

• Information right there at you fingertips. I really like the CPU/RAM meter that lets me know how my system is performing.
• Customization. Anyone can develop gadgets and these can be added to anyone’s sidebar.
• Looks. I have to admit, the Windows Sidebar just looks cool.

The Negatives

• Windows Sidebar takes up a good deal of memory. I’m not really sure how much memory the Sidebar is eating, but you don’t get an image rotator, an rss feed ticker, etc. for free.
• Lack of cool widgets to add to the sidebar. Other than the few that came with windows, I really haven’t seen any widgets that make me want to download them. Microsoft has a Gallery site where users can upload their widgets, and rate those available, but I just haven’t found anything of much use there. Most of the widgets there are weather related, ticker related, or some type of skin for the clock. Maybe as the technology is out there and matures there will be some more cool stuff, but right now I’m not blown away.
• I really don’t look at the desktop that much. The only times I really look at my desktop is when I startup my computer, when I shut it down, or when I launch an application (and that’s usually from the quick launch). I really just don’t spend much time perusing my desktop.

Prognosis

Though I like the Windows Sidebar and think it will gain usefulness as more and more people use Vista, I certainly don’t

think anyone should upgrade to Vista just for this feature. Right now Windows Sidebar is just eye candy for me, though it’s eye candy with potential.