In summer 2009, Google launched Wave - a communications platform that seemingly everyone in the world clamoured for an invite to, then abandoned when they actually got an invite due to the platform's slow, slightly buggy and confusing nature.

But the search giant has just added new functionality which might give you cause to log in again - it has enabled extensions. These are little bits of code that let you do a few extra things - like the yes/no/maybe gadget that comes installed by default. You can install various new choices, or even uninstall the bundled ones if you so desire.

There's a wide variety of extensions available - you can pull in phone or video conferences, collaboratively pick a date for an event, get a napkin to doodle on, plan a trip or even play Sudoku or a game called Colcrop with your colleagues. Our favourite, though, is an extension that lets you organise who wants what when the office orders a takeaway.

To access the new extensions, head over to Wave, log in, and you should see an option in the menu on the left with a green puzzle piece icon. Click it, and you'll be presented with a list to choose from, then you can click into each one to install it. If it's already installed, then it's the same procedure to uninstall.

Are the new extensions useful enough to make you give Wave another try, or too generic to have much value? Let us know in the comments.