Do you have a Google Reader alternative picked out yet? I don't.
I moved half of my blog subscriptions to Feedly, but I'm not in love with it. Feedly wants to show me a bunch of visual stuff while I just want to scan blog titles to see if I want to read further. I also haven't warmed up to reading Feedly from my phone.
I'm also trying out The Old Reader at the same time. I moved some blog subscriptions over there, too. The site is similar to Google Reader. However, issues and wrinkles are still being ironed out and the site sometimes goes down. It lets me scan quickly over a lot of info, which I like. Plus, I can use hot keys (shortcuts) which is nice when I have 800 posts waiting. (Edit: short cuts work on Feedly, too. I just discovered this today.)
If there are other Google Reader alternatives popping up in the next few days, I won't be around to try them. The best I can do is back up all my Google Reader data--which I did--and wait and see what the magic Internets bring while I'm gone.
Do you use Google Reader? What's your migration plan?
Other articles of interest:
You can totally tell Feedly to show you your blog posts in picture-y form. Mine is very Reader-esque, so I like it. The ONLY thing I don't like about it is that I can't search my feeds for keywords like "census" or "Ireland" ... hopefully that's a change that's a-comin'.
ReplyDeleteThe need for search is a common complaint, so hopefully we'll see it in the near future.
DeleteI think I just need to spend some time with Feedly to make it what I want, but I'm too busy just yet. Plus, I'll wait a bit and see what else gets rolled out while I'm gone.
I am currently using and comparing three readers: Old Reader, Feedly, and AOL Reader (Beta). I'm not yet sure which I will finally use exclusively.
ReplyDeleteThanks for letting me know, Deason. Curious how AOL Reader is working for people.
DeleteUgh, I can't type today. Curious to know how AOL Reader is working for people.
DeleteI jumped on the Feedly wagon. I'm the worst when it comes to technology and admit I was slow to realize the impact of the end of Google Reader. However, I am surprised at your objection to Feedly because unless I misunderstand your point, I'm seeing that Feedly offers me the choice of seeing just a list of titles (no images), a magazine view, card view, or full article view. I opted for magazine view because I like to see a little photo now and then. I am having trouble creating the Follow button that I can install as a widget on Blogger.
ReplyDeleteWendy, I don't object to Feedly. I like it, I just don't love it. I need to spend more time with several options before I decide where to hang my full hat full of subscriptions.
DeleteI've also migrated over to Feedly. I also installed The Old Reader, but I'm mainly using Feedly now. Because I follow so many blogs for my Fab Finds posts, I view my genealogy blogs in list form. Feedly lists the most recent ones at the top of the list, which I like.
ReplyDeleteI also like the that Feedly allows me to create categories for the blogs I follow such as Android, Food, Genealogy, Photoshop, Tech, etc.
So ya, I'm liking the features Feedly has to offer so far.
I might end up doing it the way you do, for the same reason. I need to keep tabs on genealogy society blogs for my FGS Forum column.
ReplyDeleteYeah, Amy, me too...waited til the last minute, mainly because I never saw what I really liked. No more waiting now!
ReplyDeleteI went with Feedly for my main computer. As Wendy mentioned, Feedly offers choices so you can customize your reader somewhat, including options for tagging, if I remember correctly.
The downside I see to this is that Feedly customization options come with a steep learning curve which Feedly doesn't seem to accommodate. I'm finding hints of what can be done on Feedly by reading other blogs and following their suggestions about accessing options on Feedly itself. Feedly certainly hasn't been helpful in leading users to those items, themselves, which is frustrating--considering the information is on their own website!
If you tend to do reading on mobile devices, maybe try FlipBoard. I installed it on my iPad. It has an option for migrating your Google Reader subscriptions over to its format. So far, so good...still need to learn more about all the bells and whistles there, too, though.
Love reading all these comments - keep them coming, folks! Like Amy, I have procrastinated on what to do when Google Reader is gone. I don't follow that many blogs (I just don't have time), and the ones I do follow are pretty much in the Reading List on my Blogger dashboard. It has not been clear to me if that is going away or not; part of the reason for my procrastination.
ReplyDeleteI don't think Blogger dashboard is going away, though I have not read anything to the contrary. I do know of a few folks who read blogs through iGoogle, and that's going away sometime in the fall.
DeleteAs I wasn't enthused about the Old Reader social functionality, particularly relating to privacy, I moved on to try a couple others. NetVibes was okay, but I didn't like the organization of the page and I don't need the dashboard functionality. I then switched to InoReader, which is my favourite so far -- it has some options for sharing, imports tags from Google Reader, and is pretty user-friendly and stream-lined in terms of interface. Next to try is Hive Reader, which is currently only in beta; only received my login a day or two ago, so I haven't formulated an impression of this tool yet.
ReplyDeleteI use NetVibes & switched over after the announcement about shutting down iGoogle. Little did I know is that there is an alternate "Feed view" that's kind of like a reader. I don't use that view (I like the dashboard), but that may be a good alternative for some.
ReplyDeleteI switched to OldReader the first week after Google made their announcement and haven't had any problems with it. (It did take a few days to upload my list of subscriptions since the servers were backlogged, but I suspect that is no longer the case. Though it is possible there will be an equal surge in use in the final days of GR.)
ReplyDeleteI looked at NetVibes originally, but thought their interface was too complicated. I looked at NewsBlur, but didn't like that their free version could only handle a really small number of feeds.
I can't use Feedly as there is no IE version. I hate IE, but I am limited to IE while I am at work, and I do enjoy catching up on my blogs during my lunch hour. There is no mobile version for OldReader, but I prefer a larger screen anyway.
I use FeedDemon Lite 4.1 and I also like RSS Bandit
ReplyDeleteI just read your post on The Old Reader -it works for me - I have all blogs categorised in folders (library training) and latest posts appear at the top. It's easy to scan a long list of posts without the distraction of images.
ReplyDeleteWorks for me
I'm living with Feedly. Mostly it works OK for me, but I do agree with Jacqi about the "steep learning curve." I don't use all the options, I just get the list. I treat the whole site rather gingerly and hope it doesn't lose my blog feeds.
ReplyDeleteHowever, I see that Randy Seaver has a new post about how to get more mileage out of Feedly. It might be worth reading his suggestions.
I'm glad to see this conversation. Thanks, Amy!