iGoogle is Gone! What Now?

It should come as no surprise to iGoogle users that it went away on November 1, 2013. Its planned demise was announced in July 2012 and the mobile version was shutdown last year. Still, that is not a comfort to the procrastinators who ignored months of pop-up and other messages.

There are many alternatives to replace the functionality of iGoogle. However, the best solution probably varies by individual and which features they were using. While there are some seemingly powerful replacements available, some are probably too complex for the typical iGoogle user, and some charge a fee for advanced features.

Some recommendations for former iGoogle users:

Relax. Don't panic. Don't assume that another personal portal / start page website is really needed.

Use an up-to-date tabbed browser. My personal opinion is, after a very brief learning curve, the Google Chrome Browser is probably best for most people. If you are comfortable with bookmarks, tabbed browsing, and a few tips and tricks you may soon forget your old friend iGoogle.

Create a bookmark for Google News and set your location. There have been some recent issues with Google News displaying the Weather Summary section – if this continues, consider adding a bookmark for your favorite weather website.

If you like having your Google Tasks or Calendar visible, consider installing a Chrome Browser extension, pinning the related app to a tab, or simply creating a bookmark for easy access. Remember, it is easy to rearrange the bookmarks on the bookmark bar with your mouse and you can right-click edit to shorten the descriptions.

If you use RSS to follow dynamic web content, consider using Feedly.com – it is a very good feed aggregator. In addition to the web interface there are high quality apps for IOS and Android.

If you really gave the above suggestions a chance but still feel you need a 'one stop solution', you can investigate some of the iGoogle Alternatives at Lifehacker.com or Tomsguide.com. But again, my recommendation is against jumping to a single replacement – it is better to think about which features you really use and try to address those.

If you use the Chrome Browser, you might choose one of these two extensions:

New Tab Page – Very simple extension which may meet your needs.

Awesome New Tab Page™ - A more powerful extension which might baffle some Luddites.

Finally, if you don't have the inclination to do any research on your own or have never used a Chrome Browser Extension, try igHome.com. You can get a feel for it by simply going to the URL, but will need to register if you want to customize its content. This video might help you make the transition to igHome.

Good luck and have fun.