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Kevin Muldoon posed a great question about how much we might rely on feed readers. Do we do it? I think the average blogger does.
However, my feed reader has been getting very boring to me lately so I rely less on it than I used to. Maybe it’s the content. Maybe it’s the interface of Google Reader. Maybe it’s the limited feature set; there isn’t much that you can do with a feed reader besides … well … read. Maybe I have ADD. Either way, it’s been boring for months now regardless of how many new feeds I subscribe to. So what do you do about it?
Evaluate The Problem
First, you figure out what’s making it so boring. Are you just sick of the interface and the limited amount of things you can do with your feed reader? Is the content that you’re subscribed to a bit…boring? Find out the source of the problem and then attempt to address it.
Problem Content
Sometimes you may just need to look for information elsewhere. Lately, FriendFeed, Twitter, & StumbleUpon have been the best places for me to find new content to check out. I’ve also started looking at trackbacks for content that I thoroughly enjoyed reading. Technorati & Yacktrack are great for catching every trackback.
You have to branch out. Read the blogs that people are recommending, go where the content is, check out who your favorite bloggers are mentioning and linking to and not only will you not rely on your feed reader for news, you wouldn’t worry about becoming bored with it either.
Problem Programs
Google Reader isn’t the only RSS reader you know. In fact, if I didn’t have such a history with Google Reader, FeedDemon would be my choice of feed readers. Why? This feed reader has an absurd amount of features that makes feed reading that much more interesting. This is a program that makes me want to share content that isn’t even worth sharing because the features are just that friggin cool.
Don’t just go with the crowd. Explore the space of RSS readers and find which one really suits you and your needs.
What’s Your Problem?
Found the root of your problem? Good! Now tell me what will you do to make your feed reader more interesting?
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Comments
01.14.09
Seems to me like you're creating a problem that doesn't exist. My feed reader is MADE for me to read things in. It saves me the trouble of visiting all the sites I love for updates - the content comes to me. If I want to comment or something, I just click through and do what I'm doing right now.
I think there's a trend in all areas of technology to shove as much crap into a product as you can. Look at cell-phones. They take pictures, videos, have a calculator, voice recorder, address book, and on and on. Oh, and they make phone calls.
But they often don't do any of those things (including making phone calls) particularly well.
Maybe I'm just an old fart at heart, but I don't think everything needs to be "sexified" and made more exciting. Sometimes, I just like reading.
- Chris
01.14.09
Chris, I would say there's less of a trend of over complication and more a habit. Those company's that frequently shine the brightest are those that are taking the complications and removing them. Focusing on just one feature, or two features, and doing it in a very simple manner. Apple does this well, Basecamp was made popular because of it, and the list goes on.
As per the post, I would say I've encountered a similar issue. But frequently it's because the content I get just isn't fresh and interesting enough. I think the fundamental problem is that frequently the blogosphere is an echochamber so unless the feeds are very meticulously selected, chances are you're hearing the same thing you've already heard.
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