Well damn, there I was talking about how wonderful Sprout gadgets were and the service vanishes.

Sprout used to offer free and paid for services ("go pro!") but the free service has been cancelled, and existing gadgets deleted. You can still use Sprout's services if you are an organisation with a hefty budget to pay them.

I've created a Widgetbox gadget instead, but it uses advertising which can be pretty ugly as it sometimes covers the text you want to display.

Can't blame Sprout, as like everyone else they need to get some cash in return for their bandwidth and to feed their families.

But there is a lesson here I think about taking "free" services for granted. Organisations may try out business plans that don't involve directly charging people for their services, but if they don't work then the "free" product won't be around for long.