UPDATE: you can now see two examples of ROMlet on the right sidebar of this site, with active stats and favicon links to refering sources. Users can, as we have, customize the widget to display different kinds of information and to fit the space and style of their site. ROMlet is still accepting beta users - sign up on their page to get ROMlet.

� ROMlet is the much-anticipated blog and website� widget designed to both boast a site’s current popularity and boost its traffic. It combines elements of a� brag badge and dynamic statistics counter with aspects of a social bookmarking� and networking tool. ROMlet is now accepting beta testers - bloggers interested in boasting (and boosting) their own site’s popularity. The continued involvement of users in the� development process is� intended to prevent ‘insider only’ domination by a few individuals and groups, a big problem in many ‘Web 2.0′ type communities.

Unlike Digg badges, which are only impressive if a lot of people Digg each blog post, ROMlet displays daily, weekly or monthly statistics - much higher and more informative numbers for a typical blogger.� � ROMlet takes certain cues from FeedBurner and MyBlogLog� as well, showing reader stats. However, it also encourages others to become. top referring sources. In other words: it rewards people for linking and driving traffic to the user’s site, giving recognition to visitors who link more to the site and, in turn, bringing more readers to the site (win-win!).

ROMlet’s creators include one WebUrbanist contributor and author of AllSux� as well as programmers who have played a major role in such successful starts as NeoGlyphics and Orbitz.� ROMlet has also benefited from the advice and assistance of Halil and Ilker, respectively of Peopleized and TheThinkingBlog.� With� this team and a clear vision, we think� ROMlet has a great deal of� potential to help usher in the next� phase in online communities!

ROMlet� promises to fill a much-needed void in currently available widgets, in part by combining the� best functions of various widgets into a single one. We’ve all seen sites where too many widgets leads to an impossibly cluttered site that is hard to navigate. For more information and to become a part of the limited ROMlet Beta Test Team, we strongly reommend you sign up as a beta tester. The creators are playing it close to the chest, in part because the widget is still evolving and because they want to remain open to user input both now and in the future!