Widgets allow Wordpress users to easily add in new features to the sidebars of their templates without having to hack template code.

e.g. you can add a translator widget that will translate your page into multiple languages, or you could add a Feedburner subscription box.  Adding both of these (and the hundreds of other widgets available) would require editing of the sidebar templates if it were not for widgets.

To add widgets to your sidebar, first step is to download and install the widget.  Widgets are installed as plugins.

Let’s take the global translator as an example.

You can download the global translator here.

Upload and activate the plugin by following the instructions on how to install Wordpress plugins.

Once the plugin is installed, go to the Design –> Widgets menu (note: I am using the Lighter Menus plugin so that my Wordpress menus drop down):

You will now see the Translator widget listed in the widget list:

On the right hand side of the screen, you need to select the sidebar that you want to insert the widget into.

Note: Your template may not have more than one sidebar.  Mine has three, and I want to insert it into Sidebar 2.  Select the sidebar from the drop-down menu, and click the “Show” button.

Now, click the “Add” link next to the Global Translator Widget on the left.  You will see it appear on the right under your sidebar:

You can click on the “Edit” link next to the Global Translator widget (on the right) to edit the properties of the widget.

In this case, the widget has no options, so simply click the “Save Changes” button to add the widget to your site.  On refreshing your site, the Translator widget now appears in Sidebar 2:

I have just shown you one widget.  There are a lot of widgets available, but the method of installing them is the same in each case.  Once you install a widget, do check that it works.  Widgets need to be upgraded as you upgrade your Wordpress installation, but fortunately most will alert you on the plugin page when a new update is ready.