1. Re-Add the gadget: Simple fix for some issues.

2. Re-Boot your machine: This sometimes fixes issues where gadgets lock up or the sidebar decides to stop all internet traffic.

3. Restart the sidebar program itself: This generally fixes issues where gadgets lock up or the sidebar decides to stop all internet traffic.

4. Make sure you have the latest version: Double check the the site or re-download the program.

5. Search for relevant blog posts: Your problem may have already been solved.

6. Persistent settings fix: (Windows Sidebar Only) Open up the gadget settings panel, go to the Help tab and follow the bottom instructions.

Windows sidebar is available for Windows 7 and Windows Vista.

If you hit "Close Sidebar" after right-clicking on it, it merely minimized to the system try. Look for the icon on the right hand lower part or your screen and click it to bring the sidebar back up.

If you right-clicked that icon and hit "Exit", then you'll need to open the start menu and do a search for "Windows Sidebar" then click the result of the same name to restart the program.

Windows Vista: Right-click the sidebar or the icon in the notification area of the task bar and select "Properties." Under arrangment, there are several options including putting the sidebar on top of other windows, changing from the right side of the screen to the left or vice-versa, and specifying which monitor to display the sidebar on (if you have multiple monitors).

Right-click the icon in the notification area of the task bar and select "Exit", then go to the start menu and search for "Windows Sidebar". Select the result of the same name and voila! You have restarted the sidebar. If this continues to be a problem, consider adding a shortcut to the program to your desktop or start menu.

In Windows 7, rebooting generally works or if you want to do it manually: Hit ctrl-alt-del and terminate the sidebar.exe service from the task manager. Then go to Computer  >  C:\  >  Program Files  >  Windows Sidebar  >  sidebar.exe

You can bring up the Gadget Gallery panel by either clicking the plus sign on the top of the sidebar or by right-clicking the sidebar and selecting "Add Gadgets..." (Windows Vista), in Windows 7, simply right-click the desktop and select the "Gadget Gallery."

Once there, simply select the gadget you wish to add and either drag it onto the sidebar or double-click it. If you're downloading a gadget, simply click "Open" to add it to the top of the sidebar immediately or save it and double-click it to do the same thing.

Some computers can have trouble installing a gadget from the run button. If this happens to you, simply save the gadget to the desktop and double-click it there to install it.

Windows Sidebar: On each gadget, on the top right hand corner when you mouse over the gadget for more than a second, appear three icons. The top icon is an X and will close the gadget if clicked. The second is a spanner or wrench icon that will pop open the settings panel for the gadget (which can also be accessed by right-clicking the gadget and selecting "Options") and the last is a drag panel. The drag panel exists in case the gadget itself is not draggable, clicking and dragging on this tiny panel will allow you to move the gadget anywhere on the sidebar or your desktop.

In Windows 7, there is occasionally a fourth icon that when clicked, resizes the gadget if it has different sizes for docked and undocked states.

Uninstalling is very easy. Simply open the gadget gallery as if you were going to add a gadget to the desktop, but instead right-click the gadget and select "Uninstall".

This is one of those very odd problems that seems to hit some users no matter what we do. The issue is that the gadget seemingly trips a security barrier in Internet Explorer and thus stops being able to call out to the internet for data. From the information we do have, this has nothing to do with the gadget making a call to a server, but is more likely because of the save file we generate to help users keep their settings.

Just so we're clear, we're not doing anything shady with the gadgets. The external save file is something that is supposed to be fully supported on the sidebar platform and was even considered an option for developers by the people who created the platform. This is why a normal gadget has it's settings erased when its removed from the sidebar.

Some computers seem to have some additional limitations on the topic of external file saving and that is what's causing these issues. Unfortunately, we haven't been able to recreate the problem thus far, which is why we can recommend trying out a few things, but can't guarantee that these will work.

1. Try everything from #1 out, just to be safe. Sometimes resetting the sidebar will actually work.

2. Reset the Settings.ini file. Remove all the gadgets from your desktop, then go to: c:\  >  Users  >  [Your User Name]  >  AppData  >  Local  >  Microsoft  >  Windows Sidebar. Then delete the Settings.ini file and reboot.

3. Make sure you are an administrator on your computer. Guest account limitations may cause file permissions errors. Additionally, you can try giving the sidebar.exe admin privilages from the compatability panel in the .exe properties.

4. If all else fails, try bringing the UAC and IE security down a few levels and see if that helps. You can always reset them later.

Because Adobe is taking their sweet time getting Flash ready for 64 bit systems. But you're in luck as they seem to have some release candidates available:

Flash Player 11 Release Candidates