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Brighton Bus Times Widget 1.13

Updated! Minor bug fix where the widget would not display the sample time. download the updated version.

New! Now available for Windows Vista as a sidebar gadget! Lawrence James has very helpfully ported the Brighton Bus Times widget to a Windows Vista side bar gadget and so now you can download the new Brighton Bus Times gadget from here or from Windows Live!

Also, if anyone knows how to do iPhone widgets, can they get in touch? I have had a number of requests to port this to iPhone but I lack one or any knowledge about it.

The bus widget is a plug in for Apple Mac OS/X 10.4 (Tiger) dashboard which displays the bus arrivals at bus stops all over Brighton & Hove, and other areas serviced by Brighton and Hove buses, in real time, or if real time information is not available then the scheduled time is shown. Download it here!

How it works

The bus times widget makes use of the Brighton & Hove city transport web site at www.citytransport.org.uk which provides the real time information on all buses operated by Brighton & Hove Buses. This is the same information that is used to update the realtime bus signs that can be found around the town, however it will also provide information for any bus stop on any route regardless of whether that bus stop has a sign in situ. This means that you can get a real time display for your nearest stop even if there is no sign and also for bus stops outside of Brihgton & Hove city providing a Brighton and Hove bus service operates there. In addition there is a link to the main Brighton & Hove bus map to help you locate the right stop for you.

As this relies heavily on the city transport website, there are some quirks and limitations. Firstly, not all bus times on the display boards are real times as not all buses are fitted with the equipment or the equipment can fail. On the display boards this is fudged and you dont notice it, here however the scheduled time will be displayed as a 24 hour clock instead of minutes until arrival. This will also be the case if the bus has not started the journey yet. Also, on this widget you will see times of "0 mins"; this is the same as "due" on the display boards, it is just not handled so well. Underneath the due times you will find the time that the display was updated. This provides assurance that you have the latest information on your display as the site or your internet connection may go down at the display wont update.

If this sounds likes something that might be useful for you, download the Mac widget or download the Windows gadget! Feedback? Get in touch.

Trains Widget The bus times widget draws heavily on the Trains widget developed and made available by www.themacplace.co.uk. Alot of the code is theirs originally and was just modified by me to suit the buses. They deserve a big round of applause and I can recommend the trains widget if you are a commuter.

Citytransport The other people who make this possible is Brighton & Hove Buses, Brighton & Hove City Council, and Siemens ADO. These folks are the technology and money behind the buses, location services and infrastructure that makes it all happen.

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