Feed Readers Reviewed

First there were few. Then there were millions. “They” are known as blogs, the now ubiquitous pages where people tell all, tell nothing, and comment on news as often as they make it. We can be fairly certain that they’re here to stay, don’t you think? I do, but how, oh how we track them all? Well, luckily for you, you can probably skip over a great deal of them, if only to keep your sanity. But you can occupy yourself with a number that are truly superb destinations. Here’s where I shamelessly plug us friendly folk here at Profy.

Even if you’re only watching what goes on in few dozen top-notch internet locales, you’d probably enjoy them more if you could take them out of your already-crowded bookmark list and put them in one spot – on the web – where you can read your faves whether you’re on your computer or another’s. Chances are your choicest feeds are fitted inside an aggregator, but in case you’re late to the game or just weren’t aware of their existence (Time to move out of that cave, pal!), here’s some picks that’ll do the job, and, if I feel like stuffing a little bah-humbug in at the end to give you a nice early send-off to an extended holiday vacation, I’ll do so. But I’m not promising anything! What? Someone’s gotta play Scrooge.

Bloglines

Like the music industry, where genres divide the underground, the independent, and the just plain poppy, the services keeping tabs on the blogosphere are layer-caked. One in the “poppy” category is Bloglines, a service that does everything, whether it’s publishing a feed, searching for sites, subscribing to XML, or sharing items with friends and the greater community. The interface is pleasantly understated, with iTunes-like hues separating stories. Everything is very neatly organized and things are easily customized. You can email stories directly from within Bloglines, regardless of whether the original page has such an option. Of course, you can “clip” or “blog” stories as well.

Bloglines is basic in aesthetics, so for those that keep track of international news along with a select number of sites like Engadget or TUAW or rumor mills like AppleInsider, you’ll be able to do what you want: read without getting distracted by beautiful wrapping, most of which would serve no other purpose but to please your eyes during that initial buzz when using something for the first time.

Google Reader

Google, Google, Google, right? We can’t seem to get away from that six-letter wonder. But hey, when they’ve got quality items to back up their US$480 ticker price, it’s hard to hate them much. Anywho, in addition to the wealth of software in their realm of office utilities, Google Reader now plays the role of the aggregator for the company. I don’t think I need to describe the visual to you, simply because your chance of never coming across at least one of Google’s delights throughout your time online is very small. So let’s get right to the chase. It’s good. In fact, it’s better than most. But whether it’s the best is all a matter of taste.

It’s healthy to be critical of what’s coming out of Cali that’s blue, yellow, green, and red, but I gotta hand it to Giant G for putting out a feature-rich item. Inside Google Reader, you can pretty much do anything: listen to podcasts, watch video (I believe anything Flash-related embeds properly), and, of course, read stuff. I know. I’m waiting for the seemingly flawless Google to slip up big, too. Today’s not the day, I’m afraid.

NewsAlloy

Here’s where we visit the underground. At nearly 8,000 registered users, NewsAlloy seems small, but it may just be the most powerful item spoken about here. Target your searches on NewsAlloy through Technorati, widen your scope to envelope the entire breadth of Google’s database, or close it down a bit by searching either Google News or Google Blog Search. (Weren’t we just on Google in the last segment? Its presence everywhere continues to astound me.)

NewsAlloy has the look of a rogue solution coupled with a bareboned industrial-strength application and manager. If that’s not enough for ya, its GUI is “Ajax-driven”, and you can even team it up with a mobile device for some ultimate on-the-go feed reading. If you ask me, NewsAlloy beats the rest of them.

What it comes down to…

While it’s nice to have the garnish, the glitter, the gold, there’s one thing you need more than anything to make a great app fit into the world of Web 2.0: something that works right. All of the above-mentioned work well in their own way, and you’d do fine with any of them. I root for the underdog, so my vote would have to be with NewsAlloy, but you’d do great with any of the aggregators reviewed here.

I’ll give you a pointer that I’ve frequently been given: Cover up the name of the application, try it out, and see what you think. Nothing’s going to fit everyone. Those who tend to avoid the popular will be interested to see if NewsAlloy’s up to the task. Others might not care so much. And the list of services doesn’t end there.

In “The State of Online Feed Aggregators”, Frank Guber at TechCrunch mentioned at least half a dozen options for one to choose from, with elements like Gritwire, Pluck, and Rojo fighting with the likes of Google Reader for users. Eventually the “bottom feeders” will go the way of the dodo, with only a few strong contenders remaining. How they adapt to changes in the blogging world will decide their fate for them. Thankfully, we don’t have to think about such events taking place just yet, so feel free to experiment. As for the three catalogued here, all are wise choices. If every other app you’re using has the Google stamp, chances are you’ll be getting friendly with Google Reader. If not, you can still go with “Big G”. Or you can sidestep it. It’s up to you. You really can’t go wrong, wherever your leaf falls.

Note: I guess the grinch is out to pasture right now. Maybe next time. Season’s greetings!