I just recently tried out the g**gle feed reader to catch up on all your blogs and I am just not sure about it. I mean...it doesn't really save time as you have to go to this secondary link and...well...you might as well go to people's blogs right?
I have heard about another change coming to blogger where...you can see which blogs on your links have updated. You can try it out before they make it mainstream by logging into blogger in draft. I was wondering if anyone has tried this and what it is like and how to do it.
So what is your method of reading and commenting on posts?
post script: this is really strange but since publishing this post and using the word g00gle in this post...i am getting these g**gle 403 error messages like crazy when i try to visit some of your blogs. lisa...yours is one. are they mad at me or what?
I am also using AOL as my browser...wonder if that has anything to do with it?
Come sit a spell and shoot the breeze. Sweeten the day with a little synchronicity...
13 comments:
I use Google reader a bit and I have it on my igoogle page which I made my home page so it's actually quite convenient.
I no longer use Google Reader, instead I use Bloglines. You can organize your feeds into categories (Google Reader has this option too) and choose to list only newly posted feeds.
There is an option to save an individual posting "as new" and that feed will be listed along with the new stuff, although no longer highlighted. I like this as I can mark stuff to come back and read later.
If the blog has chosen "full syndication", then the full post will be included on the Bloglines site, often eliminating the need to venture over to the blog in question. If the blog has chosen "partial syndication", then you gotta go to the blog itself to read the whole thing anyways.
Reading full posts in Bloglines will not show up in the blog's stats. I am aware that there are a few PR companies who have subscribed to my blog in Bloglines, cause when they do make an appearance on the blog I can tell how they've arrived. I get perverse pleasure in knowing that PR reps of various pharma-related entities are keeping tabs on my verbal dribblings.
A drawback to using a feed reader is that you might often miss out on commentary interactions unless you go on over to the blog and leave a comment. Blogger does have that feature to receive emails with any comments which follow your own. I've come to appreciate that feature but it requires that I've made it over to the site and left my say (and often I have nothing to say....shocking, I know.)
In contrast, I do not receive follow-up comments to those I've left on any Wordpress blogs. Sometimes I've left a comment on a friend's blog and didn't even remember (or think) to check back to get a response from the blog owner. But Wordpress blogs do have a pretty cool feature in that you can subscribe to a feed for all the comments left on the site. I've done this for another MS bloggers' blog and enjoy seeing the conversation from afar without having to participate.
So basically, I like using Bloglines to keep tabs on blogs of interest. That's how I know when to come read new stuff here.
hiyah james...hey lisa!
wow...this is all new stuff to me. maybe i will play around with it. what is igoogle?
and thanks lisa...for your detailed response. there are always new things to investigate in the blog world...i wonder what changes will come next.
i'm old and dumb, i use the links on my page ;) lol
I have 'em listed in my favorites and just go down the list.
You are not the only person to have problems with g**gle recently. A friend had some today as well.
I'm dumb too, Lisa, you lost me at "I no longer" Blogging is taking too much time already, I keep it simple and read what I can when I can. I'm just having fun. My comments sometimes don't get posted cause my connetion dies and I give up. Oftem I forget who said what, but it's all just fun for me. I hate computers and never get it all right. I just hope fellow MSers understand.
hi! I use igoogle too- it's basically just a customized google start page you can make for yourself. it's cute.
I heard about google reader and i went to check it out, like you, and i fell in love. it's my new best friend. i've subscribed to dozens of blogs and i can always stay up to date and figure out which ones i really want to follow before adding their link to my own blog etc.
You just type in the blog address you want to subscribe to, and then whenever they type a new blog, it shows up on your new reader similarly to a new email- in bold. You can read their post from the reader, or you can click on the link and read it on their blog site. You can't comment from the reader though, you have to link to their blog and comment there.
I find it extremely straight forward to use. I like it because i can look at the blogs at work without it looking obvious. It looks like email- people don't really notice i'm reading the blogs. I don't want people knowing i'm interested in blogs!
Good luck!
Using Google Reader is time consuming and I agree visiting their blogs would probably be faster.
I just use the links on my blog and a few more I haven't had time to add to my page. I comment when I can, but it's usually a 'lack of time' issue that keeps me from commenting more often.
I don't use any services because they all have their quirks.
I do it the old fashioned way - I bookmark who I want to visit regularly and I just go.
If the last posting shows I read it already or it has been weeks (sometimes months), I put "zzz" in front of their name and "rename" them on my favs list so I just check in on them once a month.
I have my regular stops. I've tried the g00gle reader (use number 0 to throw off the scanners) and it doesn't always work right. I've tried Bloglines and it takes too much time sorting through so I just use my own bookmarks and visit who I want when I have the time.
No rhyme or reason, just preference I guess.
I am a dummy in this department so I am not a good expert to share my thoughts on these issues.
i use firefox, aol sux at everything, in my book :(
I use Bloglines
That uses RSS feed. Generally it's good as you go there it highlights unread posts you click and they come up in the right hand pane. You can read.
However I now find I read perhaps more but comment less. I'm commenting now as I've come here physically to your blog for the first time in ages. So good for reading but can make it a one way conversation
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