Switching My RSS Feeds From Google Reader To...

I spent half of yesterday and all this morning finishing up my testing of different feed reader replacements and officially switching over.

As I have said on this blog many times, the RSS feed is a librarian's best friend.  I need to know what is going on in so many different arenas, a large portion of which are outside my personal areas of interest and/or expertise, but having a computer compile the information for me, all in one place, at all times which I can access from any computer or smart phone makes the job more manageable, makes me better at my job, and allows me to appear smarter than I am.

For years I have used Google Reader to do this, mostly out of laziness.  Since this blog is hosted on Google, I could login once to access multiple services.  Now, I knew Google Reader wasn't the best feed reader out there, but again, ease of use was a huge benefit to me.

But now, with Google discontinuing the Reader in July, I was forced into action.  After some initial research before my vacation (this article was the most useful for me) I had narrowed the search down to 2 services: Feedly and Net Vibes.  In the end I chose Net Vibes, but what works for me may not work for you.  To that end, I will explain what I saw as the positive and negative about each and explain why I made the choice I did.

First, Feedly.  I was initially drawn to Feedly because of its touted seamless integration across platforms.  It seemed that you got the same experience on a computer vs iPhone vs iPad.  This was intriguing to me.  Also, a few other bloggers I follow mentioned how well it was working for them. And, it took only 1 click for it to import my entire Google Reader data.

However, I hit a few snags with Feedly.  First, it is a app, not a cloud program.  So you have to download the app on your phone and add it as an app to your browser.  Here is where I hit the biggest snag.  The phone was no problem. I got the app running and was reading my feeds.  But, I have to say, I did not like the flashy interface (very much like Flipboard) to access my feeds.  When it comes to scanning my feeds, I want it to be simple text that I can move through, mark the ones I need to go back to, and quickly clear out the junk.

But that was just the phone app.  I only access my feeds via the phone once or twice a week.  I mostly am looking through my feeds as I am working on the computer at home or work.  Between the 2 locations I have 4 computers I use almost daily and 2 more I access regularly.  That is 6 computers to load the app onto.  To make matters more difficult, I work at the public library.  Four of those computers are at that library.  I need the IT guy to not only give me permission to install Feedly to my browser, but I need him to do it for me.  We cannot add anything to the computers without him.  I thought of asking him to do it on one, but then I realized I would also need the browser to be regularly updated for it to keep working, and this too is tricky.  Ahhh, too much extra work and hassle

I did try Feedly out at home though.  Again I found it too flashy for my needs so I decided not to pursue the matter until I test drove Net Vibes to have a comparison.

Net Vibes made my final trials because the research I did said that it most closely resembled Google Reader in look (if you took off the default Widget mode (the flashy one) and put it in Reader mode; that took only one click). It is a cloud reader, meaning I can access it from any Internet connection anywhere.  The mobile version is web based, not an app which is fine with me.

I have begun to set up the Net Vibes, but am having some trouble exporting my Google Reader data.  Their directions are not jiving with what information I am getting on Google's screen.  But for now, I was simply playing with its look and setting up my categories: General, RA, Horror, and Teen.  I am also toying with the idea of NOT exporting my Google Reader data.  I figure since I have a few months, I can slowly move things over to Net Vibes and do some spring cleaning of resources while I am at it.

So far I really like the clean, data first look for the reader.  It also have plenty of ways I can catalog and organizes my feeds; a dream come true to a librarian. I have to admit, I went away on vacation very worried about what I would do about Google Reader ending and dreaded having to deal with it on my return, but I think it is all going to be okay.

I hope this post helps some of you who still have to make the switch.  Or, even better, if you aren't already using a feed reader to help you to manage the most information possible, give one of these options a try for yourself.  Back to regular reading based posts tomorrow.

Author Interviews Archive and Upcoming Blog Schedule

As I was going through my RSS feeds this morning, I noticed this post on BookBrowse where they compiled their favorite author interviews from 2012.  [By the way the permalink is not working for some reason, so if you click this after today, you might have to scroll to find it. I will update the link if it gets fixed.]

While the list itself is fun and useful for both library workers and patrons, clicking through to it reminded me of something even more important.  I had forgotten that BookBrowse even had a cache of author interviews.  Well they do, and you can access all of them here.  It is quite an impressive archive actually, both in number of interviews and in the range of authors represented.

This is yet another argument for subscribing to RSS feeds to help you to help patrons better. BookBrowse is a site I use, but infrequently.  I mostly go there for book group and/or display planning.

So its on my radar, but with all of the other resources and information bouncing around out there, it is easy to forget about the specifics of each resource.  Their blog post of the best 2012 author interviews was delivered to my feed reader; I did not have to seek it out.  Literally in just a matter of minutes, while I was doing my regular mid-morning routine of quickly scanning all the feeds, I came upon this great archive.

So thanks BookBrowse for reminding all of us about your great cache of interviews.  But to the rest of you out there, let my experience serve as a reminder.  Don't get stuck in a rut only using the same go to resources.  Get RSS feeds to as wide a range of resources as possible.  Don't let them overwhelm you though. If you are busy, just mark all as read, or star something that looks interesting to go back to it when you do have time.  It takes only minutes a day, but it will serve you and your patrons well.

Upcoming RA for All Schedule:   (Because a few people have asked)

I will have reviews on Thursday and Friday, one more Monday Discussion for the year on 12/17, and a final book discussion report for 2012 sometime next week [we meet on 12/17].  I have 2-3 more books (plus the book discussion book) that I will finish this month.  I will try to get those reviews posted before the end of the year also.  We'll see how that goes.

Tonight is also the night of my student's final presentations.  I already know there will be at least a few reading maps to share. Grades are due on the 18th, so look for posts of student work sometime in the middle of next week.

Finally you can look for my post on the best books I read this year during the week between Christmas and New Year's.

RA for All will be on a limited holiday schedule after 12/21 as I will be taking time off to celebrate with my family.

Enjoy the symmetry of 12-12-12.

The Blogs I Follow via RSS Feed

Yesterday when I was giving my talk to RASSL and I hit Rule 6: Read about books (RSS feeds), I do as I always do and mention the key blogs I think anyone who is helping leisure readers should be getting an RSS feed on:

• Early Word
• NPR Books
• RA Online (for the RA Rundown posed each Monday)
• and of course RA for All

They also wanted to know about a few more.  In fact, this is a question I get often, "What RSS feeds do you subscribe to?" I normally do not like forcing my personal preferences on others, but I have received this question often enough that I feel I should share it.

So here is a list of many (not all) of the other blogs and web pages for which I get the RSS feed.

• Audiobooker (audio books)
• Blogging for a Good Book (Williamsburg (VA) Public Library)
• The Book Case (blog of Book Page Magazine)
• Book Group Buzz (book discussion blog from BookList)
• Book Riot (book blogger network)
• Book Feed from the Guardian UK
• Books on the Nightstand (a book lovers podcast; rss feed reminds me to listen)
• The Browsers Corner (Berwyn Library staff recommendations)
• Criminal Element (crime fiction)
• Graphic Novel Reporter
• io9 (sf, fantasy, horror in all media)
• January Magazine (Canadian literary magazine)
• Media Bistro's Galley Cat (from the publishers to writers and book buyers)
• The Millions (general interest for readers)
• No Shelf Required (library focused info on eBooks)
• RA 763's Blog (my students' annotations)
• Reading the Past (historical fiction)
• Shelfari (which is actually a re-posting of the Amazon Omnivoracious blog)
• Smart Bitches, Trashy Books (romance)

I check these feeds, among a bunch of others, daily.  Some days I only read the headlines and "mark all as read," while other days, I read much of the content in detail.  The point is, I log into one place (my Google Reader), and the information comes to me.  I don't have to hunt and peck for anything.  I have no excuse NOT to be informed.

Why not make it your New Year's Resolution to do a better job on staying up on the latest news in the book world?  Subscribing to the feeds for these resources is the easiest way to do that.