Starting Over with RSS Readers
A while ago I wrote a post explaining RSS feeds and how using RSS is like creating a newspaper with only the writers that you’ve chosen to read.
As part of my New Year’s resolution to get more organized, I decided to pare down the RSS feeds that I subscribe to and create a “newspaper” that fits my daily needs. To do that, I’m going to delete almost all the feeds that I currently subscribe to, and then look over several of the feed readers, to see which one(s) I like the best.
So how does an RSS reader fit with StumbleUpon or even within the broad scope of social media? It makes life simpler. Seriously. Let’s say there are 250 people on SU whose pages you like. You can add 200 of them as friends and then just keep checking the others, or you can subscribe to their “reviews and blog” which sends everything they add to their page to your RSS reader.
How about with Twitter? Did you know that you can get your twitter chat in an RSS reader? Even better, you can use Twitter tracking to follow certain terms that you’re interested in. Perhaps, like my sons, you’re a Pokemon fanatic and want to see what people are saying. Sending “track Pokemon” will send you all updates that mention “Pokemon.” Then, when you decide Pokemon is passe and Sonic is where it’s at now, you can “untrack Pokemon” and “track Sonic” instead.
Want to keep track of what’s hot on del.icio.us? Afraid your next door neighbor is going to bookmark more sites than you? Want to stay abreast of the sites people send you? RSS reader to the rescue.
And of course, there’s the traditional use, of using RSS to keep track
of your favorite blogs…for instance, this one. 
Want to keep up with my posts? Click on the RSS icon here, the RSS message at the top of this post, or the RSS icon at the side.
So do I have your attention now? Good. Then I’m off to delete the RSS feeds I currently receive and start looking at new ones. Do you have a site you think I should consider adding to my list? Add the link in a comment, along with a short description. If I like the site, I’ll add it, and when I’m finished, I’ll post a list of the sites I’m following, in case you’re interested in seeing who I choose.
Great blog! I’m just learning the wonder of feed readers & Twitter tracking, so this definitely helps. *Hitting subscribe*
mousewords’s last blog post..A Sign for the Times
Hello! Found your blog on yahoo – thanks for the article but i still don\’t get it.
@mousewords I fell in love with feed readers when I discovered that Bloglines had the extra benefit of letting you create unlimited “throw away” e-mail addresses. Great for when you’re worrying about spam but still want to subscribe to something. Then, when I learned that with some readers you could actually share the sites you subscribed to, I was hooked. I’m really excited about clearing out my reader and starting over. I think the sites I choose will be more applicable to me, now. Plus it will get rid of the dead favorite sites that I never had the heart to remove before.
Max, what don’t you get? Let me know and I’ll try to explain it better.
Great post Teeg!
I find that RSS readers are very handy, despite a lot of people saying that they belong with the dinosaurs!
Allan’s last blog post..Superwall Chain Letter Spammers Reach New Low
Thanks, Allan! I’ve found that my reader remains useful as long as I don’t let it get bloated. When I do, I’ve found I put off reading, which leads to more bloating. My goal is a reader or two (depending on features I want) that I can read in about the time it would take me to go through a real newspaper, packed with information that is applicable to me. It will be interesting to see what the end result is.
RSS has been a great media for me to keep track of what my favourite blogs are doing. I use google as my reader.
Nice post. See my blog here http://brotee.blogspot.com/2008/01/goal-visit-1000-entrecard-member-sites.html
Thanks BroTee! Glad you enjoyed it. I liked the list of all the blogs you’ve visited. You should post your blog and a quick description here: http://www.sucomments.com/2008/01/21/i-need-your-blogs/.