As Gary noted, Google Desktop 2 has left beta. In addition to several product enhancements, Desktop 2 also has new third-party panels and expanded plug-in development options.
Some of the new features include:
- Personalized Maps Panel ? This new Sidebar panel rotates through maps you’ve pulled up using Google Maps and local.
- Enhanced API ? New support for script based plug-ins makes developing panels for Sidebar much easier. Additional details on the updated Google Desktop API are available at desktop.google.com/developer.html.
- New Third-Party Plug-ins ? Dozens of new Sidebar panels have been developed using the Google Desktop API, including panels for iTunes and Winamp and a dictionary.
- Enterprise Features ? Google Desktop for Enterprise features new administration, integration and security features for business environments.
Google also launched a Google Desktop Blog. A new post today goes into more detail about the personalized maps and API features.