The Bottom Line
Pageflakes is a good choice for a personalized start page. It has a neat interface, and allows you to use the service without signing up, though you will only be able to access your page from a single computer if you do not sign up.
The drag-and-drop interface is simple to use, and there is plenty of content that can be easily added to the page.
Pros
- Easy to use.
- Use it without even signing up.
- Guides user through getting initial page up and running.
Cons
- Unnecessarily large footer to the page.
- Some inconsistencies can make it confusing.
Description
- Drag-and-drop customization provides ease of use.
- Multiple tabs for keeping different interests organized.
- Thousands of "Flakes" that can be added to the page.
Guide Review - A Review of Pageflakes
Pageflakes is an excellent choice for those new to the world of personalized start pages. The drag and drop interface is easy to use, the default template is nice to look at, and adding new widgets (called "Flakes") is relatively simple.
Instead of taking a new user directly to a default start page, Pageflakes guides the new user through customizing their default page by asking them to check off their interests. It also asks the user to input their city and state (or simply their zip code) to customize widgets like local news and weather. This is nice because, depending on your choices, it may add several Flakes that require your location, and entering this information during the start up guide means you don't have to add it to each Flake individually.
Another downside of the interface is the "Browse All Flakes" button the user is presented with after clicking the snowflake to add new content. Instead of filling out the same page with some options for more flakes, this button will take the user to a new page where they can access all available flakes. This new page can be a little intimidating considering that Pageflakes offers over two hundred thousand flakes. Adding to this confusion, there is an option to browse all flakes on the left hand menu, but this option lets you browse the flakes from within your personalized start page.
This inconsistency can be a little confusing, but it is relatively minor. Overall, the interface is easy to use whether the user is just moving flakes around on the page or adding new flakes.
One nice feature is that the default page generated by my choices during the setup process included a local events flake that uses Google maps to point out areas of interest around my location. It also added a local news flake.