The Bottom Line

Although you can customize the “classic” Google home page somewhat, if you want a true personalized portal, you can turn to iGoogle. You retain the standard Google search box at the top of the page, but what goes below that is entirely up to you. Between Google’s in-house developers and a small army of independent programmers, you can choose from hundreds of gadgets to add to your iGoogle page. The potential exists to create a home page that contains all the content you’re interested in—a true gateway to the parts of the Web that most interest you, if that’s your thing. If not, the traditional Google home page is still there, ready for your next search—and nothing but the search.

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