# Part I. Panel Applet Library Overview

Applets are small applications that are embedded in the GNOME panel. They can be used to give quick access to some features, or to display the state of something specific.

The Panel Applet library is what should be used to write applets as it handles all the communication with the GNOME panel. It hides all of the embedding process of the applet behind a PanelApplet widget. It also provides PanelApplet API to properly integrate the applet in the panel.

Keep in mind that starting with GNOME 3, the panel and applets are only available in the fallback mode. An applet will therefore not be usable in the default GNOME that users may use.