Microsoft Has Killed Widgets Six Times. Here's Why They Keep Coming Back

Microsoft’s on its sixth resurrection of Windows widgets, and the crowd is split between cheering and eye-rolling. The article calls the new Widget Board “scar tissue” built from past disasters: safer JSON cards (no apps running), faster native graphics, a space-saving overlay, and opt‑in data. Translation: they learned the hard way. But the comments steal the show. One camp, led by lordkrandel, rages that generic tiles and sneaky promos miss the point—people want personal, not pushy. Another camp, like sublinear, throws shade at the headline—“clickbait!”—and argues widgets never died; they just need variety and to stay in the background. Nostalgia enters, with giuseppe yearning for the friendly Windows 98 vibes and dropping a video link. Meanwhile jauntywundrkind is quietly manifesting a simple, portable widget setup. The running meme? Groundhog Day for widgets—Microsoft builds, backlash hits, feature gets locked down tighter. People joke the Win+W panel is a secret handshake nobody knows, and there’s a brewing ad-versus-utility smackdown over Microsoft’s desire to monetize the news surface. One bright note: a rare peace treaty as dartharva applauds the article’s clean layout. Verdict: the tech is evolving, but the vibe check is the real boss.