New Google Themes

I've been meaning to mention this for the past few weeks, but kept getting distracted. Many probably already knew that iGoogle, the personalized Google homepage, has had themes for a while now. They recently added a whole new bunch of selections to the list.

They've got a few more with cute little characters going about their daily lives, similar to the Japanese tea house theme from the original batch. There are a family of raccoons in one, a tiger cub in another, and a giant monster in yet a third. One of my favorites shows images of different planets.

What makes these themes especially cool is that they change in various ways. The beach scene goes from dawn to dusk and eventually to full night. The planets change from day to day (the sun on Sunday, the moon on Monday, etc). Of course the cartoon characters do different things throughout the day. One of the more subtle ones, the bus stop, actually changes depending on the weather in your area.

Does any of this make me more productive? Nope, probably not. It does, however, amuse me and brighten my day, so I guess it does server a productive purpose.

So, which of the new themes catches your fancy?