I think this is a neat feature that Google has just added. Now along
with Yahoo! and MSN, Google is now allowing you to customize its bare-bone
search page with content from weather to movie times to your Gmail account.
If you want to check out this new feature for
yourself, then head over to the new page.

Michael Liedtke of AP (via Yahoo!) writes:

Google Inc. on Thursday introduced a new option that will enable
visitors to display more information on the online search engine
leader’s bare-bones home page, a departure that pushes the company a
step closer to operating an Internet portal in the mold of rivals Yahoo
and MSN.com.

The feature, available at http://labs.google.com, allows the millions of
Google users worldwide to select components tools located underneath the
search engine’s hood and display them on the main page.

For instance, a user could choose to have the weather, an e-mailbox,
movie listings, top news stories, stock market quotes, and driving
directions displayed whenever they visit Google’s home page and sign in
using a personalized account. The company unveiled the feature during a
media day hosted at its Mountain View headquarters.

Displaying a potpourri of information on the home page marks a
significant change for Google, which has always greeted its visitors
with little more than a box to process a search request, along with a
few tabs to navigate to other features, such as news and shopping.

[Continue reading Google Allows Users to Add Home Page Tools]