Mac OS X 10.4: Downloaded Dashboard widgets don‘t automatically install

Did you download widgets for Dashboard (part of Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger) but can't find them in Dashboard? If you use Safari to download Dashboard widgets but don't have the "Open 'safe' files after downloading" checkbox selected in Safari preferences (the option is disabled), the widgets will not be automatically installed into Dashboard.

So, how do you install a downloaded widget? It's easy.

1. In the Finder, choose Home from the Go menu.
2. Open the Library folder (the one in your Home folder).
3. If you don't see a Widgets folder, create a folder named Widgets.
4. Drag your downloaded widget files (they have a .wdgt extension) to the Widgets folder.
   
   Note: If your downloaded widget is still archived (the file name ends in .zip), be sure to double-click it first to reveal the actual .wdgt file.

The next time you open Dashboard, your new widget will appear in the widget bar (click the "+" button to reveal the bar), ready for you to add.

Note: In Mac OS X 10.4.1 or later, if the "Open 'safe' files after downloading" option is enabled in Safari preferences, Safari will alert you that a widget you're downloading will install automatically—in case you don't wish for that to happen.

Tip: In Mac OS X 10.4.2 or later, you can double-click a widget to install it. If your downloaded widget is still archived (the file name ends in .zip), be sure to double-click it first to reveal the actual .wdgt file, which you can then double-click to install (the rest of this document doesn't apply to 10.4.2).

Why not just double-click the downloaded widget in Mac OS X 10.4, 10.4.1?

In Mac OS X 10.4 and 10.4.1, double-clicking a downloaded widget (with .wdgt extension) does open it in Dashboard. However, this does not copy the widget to the ~/Library/Widgets folder. If you accidentally delete it from the download location (such as your desktop) and then log out or restart, it will no longer be available in Dashboard.