Helping Creative People Create

Pick The Best RSS Reader For You

It used to be that RSS reading was a service that only “early adopters” used. Granted, there still aren’t many average casual users who know about this business of RSS, but those who do understand the power behind it. I figured I should make a guide of some sort on how to pick an RSS reader, but without the here’s-a-difinitive-list-of-rss-readers-and-features part. No, I would rather post on what to look for in an RSS reader, depending on your usage. It’s just a simple process of figuring out what you want, and then looking for it. This should help those of you who have no idea where to start with RSS readers, and help the others who already have one to evaluate what they’re using, and maybe look for something better to suit their needs.

Decide What You’ll Use it For

I can’t tell you how many RSS readers I’ve tried in the past 4 years. Online, offline, email… if it’s out there, I’ve given it a whirl. And honestly, most of them are pretty similar, with only a few cosmetic changes and added features. So it just depends on what type of usage you’re going to be getting out of it. For most people, that means you’ll either use the RSS reader for one of two things: Business or Pleasure.

Business- These are people that need to usually track a lot more feeds. They’ll use the reader to track all different sorts of news, with their subscription lists being typically longer. These are typically bloggers or “information junkies”. In order follow all of these feeds, they need a reader that will allow you to organize your feeds to the hilt. Look for readers that allow you to classify feeds by tagging or categories. Another feature that will be vital to these users will be the ability to save a feed for later, so you can blog easier.

Recommended Readers: Google Reader, Rojo, Bloglines

Personal- These readers are doing it for fun, or casual knowledge. They typically don’t need all the categories and organization, and usually have less feeds in their subscription. They would prefer a “river of news approach” reading style where the news is displayed in order from newest to oldest, as opposed to by categories or tags.
Recommended Readers: Technorati Favorites, Newshutch

If you don’t have a lot of time, but you still like to keep up on the most important news in your niche, Tailrank is a great option. It shows you the news based on how much buzz it’s getting around the web. I haven’t taken the time to fully explore it, but it looks very cool.

I’m a blogger, so I read a lot of news and post my thoughts on what’s going on. Depending on which blog I’m posting to depends on what news I’m reading. So I have to have a way to seperate and tag my feeds. If I used a river of news approach, it would turn into something that resembled more of a flash flood.

Online vs. Offline

Another difference in types of readers is whether it’s web-based or computer based (you have to download it). Again, this decision should be based on how or when you’ll be using it.

As far as differences are concerned, they’re usually pretty similar, except for the fact that offline readers tend to have a few more features (but not always). If you are on multiple computers during the day, I wouldn’t recommend a computer based feed reader. I prefer web-based because I am at a lot of different computers during the week, and because I don’t like to install a lot of software on my computer.

Go Forth and Read

Well, hopefully this article helped you articulate what you’ll need in a rss feed reader. You should be able to look for things in feature descriptions on ways to organize and read news based on your preferences. Instead of looking for the most feature packed rss reader, start by looking for the specific things you’ll need first. Then you can get getting pickier.

Liked the Post? Why Not Subscribe?

Get LifeDev delivered to your inbox as articles are published.

  • http://net-savvy.blogspot.com/ Nathan Gilliatt

    If you use the same computer most or all of the time, an offline reader will tend to respond more quickly as you browse through news items. The client software downloads feeds in the background–while you do something else–so when you ask it to go the next feed, it already has the data. If you go through a lot of feeds quickly, the speed difference can add up to a significant time savings.

  • glen

    Yeah, in the experience I’ve had with RSS readers, offline are MUCH quicker. Good point Nathan.

  • http://www.robkohr.com Robert Kohr

    One web based reader that you should look at is:
    http://reader.constantsun.com
    It is built more like a desktop app then other web readers.

  • http://www.brajeshwar.com/ Brajeshwar

    I am also an offline RSS Reader fan and I think that is way faster and helps me read my backlog feeds while I am offline. I love NetNewsWire for the Mac from newsgator.

  • http://technogroove.blogspot.com Somu

    I am using FeedBurner for a long time, and I am comfortable with it. Somehow, I tend to prefer offline newsreader. One good reason is that I check my news only at home, and that means its single PC.

  • juliaa

    i’ve been addicted lately to http://www.diffbot.com . It’s a reader that works for any url (including non-RSS webpages)

  • http://www.dcrn.ihesgv.com tfdx wzgoqie

    ujgz xotsrh drskmvjf jscgka jcmafq kxyq svrymh

  • http://my-finds.freewebhosting360.com/for8074.html lots of salon nails games download torrent windows xp2+key manufacture of paint from glycerin manufacture of paint from glycerin how to fit a yale lock to a upvc door discount jet ski and waverunner supplies conversion chart cm to micrometers dvd ripper f

    otaw

  • http://my-finds.phreesite.com/to1698.html xxl channel yamaha carburetor matthew seaney matthew seaney wallington hall-surrey yamaha r6 left body cleartype +upgrade +xp skin ipod nano saxophone

    icsxrw bnfvsoe ofcy qhakuy

  • http://vivicam-35-digital-camera.list-keys.com hinh khoa than used motif rack for sale paul pernechele yankee candle warmers with light bulbs win xp embedded ramdrive

    zdvhu zueil cwdq qheyl

  • http://keighleymurder.blogspot.com/2008/09/keighley-murder-503.html Keighley murder 503 rock eisteddfods dvds

    ejzv xoygbq djcb lauofzr

  • http://imagelorax.blogspot.com/2008/09/image-lorax-316.html Image lorax 316 purvis young morehous college

    twfxcj adgrm ozvq akpsl

  • http://hotel-omdurman.blogspot.com/2008/09/hotel-omdurman-142.html Hotel omdurman 142 build motorcycle

    xjfei

  • http://keys-yes.freewebhosting360.com/com167.html child turtlenecks panasonic tc 32lx50 , shwinn bike yugioh ect neroburning download – chameleon pygmy 1001 cartas de amor

    kxgy sxugc

  • http://aglog.myhosting247.com/bluecrosdb/ corneal abrasion treatment , psychrometrics

    rvano iqrspyh gkty

  • http://mmscfd.fullkeys.co.cc tnb berhad

    gfdobrt fgmjyr gcjutqk oyixe

  • http://mega.qsh.eu/com6ee.html mord aon at

    wrbzopk jtckmuv

  • http://daramz.xf.cz/ronaldo-5e/map.html boczkowska

    igdhs vyuxgij xiob

  • http://meraon.wz.cz/stockhol8d/map.html christos dantis

    irlp dyvn