Google officially closing Reader

Alas, Google; you wound me. I’m a big fan of keeping up with important news and favorite sources via RSS, and Google Reader has been the focal point of my RSS diet for a long time now. It offered the perfect cloud solution for my habit- the web page is a bit spartan but works well, and the service integrates perfectly with so many RSS clients (including my current iOS choice Mr Reader). The search function was the clincher: no matter what topic you might want to add to your feeds, the ever present Google search bar on the Reader page could quickly find the perfect feed.

While Google hasn’t been shy about discontinuing products that never caught on (such as the much maligned Buzz), the pending elimination of Reader was surprising and unwelcome news. I’m not the only one that feels this way; Reader has always been a fairly popular RSS solution for those in the know. The majority of RSS clients listed in the iTunes App Store boast of their ability to work seamlessly with Reader. Some sources have stated that Reader isn’t being completely discarded, it’s just being absorbed by the less popular (to me at least) Google +, but even if it doesn’t lose much of its current functionality I loathe the idea of forcibly merging what is usually quality me time (enjoying RSS feeds) with a social networking platform.

So now what? I’m at a slight loss, to be honest. There are plenty of RSS readers for both OSX and iOS, but I’m looking for a cloud-based solution that offers the same sort of device agnostic support that I’ve grown accustomed to. My needs aren’t that great; I don’t want to merge my social network reading (especially Facebook, but I’d like to keep Twitter and G+ separate as well), I just want my feeds to sync across all the devices I use to access them and the ability to easily share the articles that I find interesting/entertaining with those I think will enjoy them too.

I’ve already checked out some suggested alternatives. NewsBlur looks like it would fit the bill, but their free service is intentionally limited and currently I feel too spoiled by my free Reader experience to quickly opt for their $1/month subscription service. Netvibes is a powerful service and offers just about everything I’d want, but the interface isn’t appealing at the moment and it may be a bit TOO powerful. Their homepage tout its usefulness for professional data mining and limitless configuration/personalization. While impressive, my needs are too simplistic to go that route right now.

My choice as of now is Feedly. It has simple cross platform support (including a Safari plugin for web use), a clean and easy to navigate interface, and some of the same sharing functionality that Reader supported. With luck I’ll be able to make a fairly painless transition.

While I can’t rule out Google as my source for RSS, integration into Google + does seem to be a deal breaker at this time. For those of you like me, we do have some time- Reader’s end as a standalone product won’t be until July.

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The benefits of perseverance

Not too long ago I had attempted (with a surprising lack of success) to test one of the latest shining stars of the iTunes App Store, Winston. The concept behind the app is a fantastic one: choose the news and social media sources you’re interested in, and Winston reads your updates to you in a refined-sounding synthetic British voice. The enticement of eyes-free information was a strong one; while my morning and evening drive isn’t as long as it once was I still have some downtime that I’d like to fill with something a bit more topical than my favorite podcasts.

Thankfully my perseverance with Winston has been rewarded. I was able to circumvent the issue I was having with the app’s installation routine by limiting the number of default categories chosen. Rather than five I limited my selection to two (headlines and technology), apparently allowing the app to complete its preliminary setup.

Now (like the Death Star) fully operational, Winston has demonstrated that it is well deserving of the praise it has garnered. The app gathers new information quickly over LTE or wifi, and offers a tiled photo image of categories for you to choose from (as well as the logos of Facebook and Twitter). By default Winston only dictates a summary of news stories with an accompanying background musical score. The voice simulation falls short of what I’ve heard via Siri and other apps; the speech can be somewhat clipped at times and mispronounces names (even considering the British accent). That admitted, it does a fluid job of reading your selections for you, and can easily be configured to cover entire articles instead of summaries. Should you prefer complete stories (as I do) but not wish to hear the entire article Winston is on, just swipe the screen to change to the next article. Additional sources of information can be added after the initial setup, so limiting your sources doesn’t impact the long term usefulness of Winston.

The app had a surprisingly broad range of sources to choose from, and adding new feeds was very easy. After my initial issues the app has been rock stable and very easy to use. Coupled with my car’s Bluetooth streaming it’s been enjoyable to have my own Winston-dictated customized news and updates radio station every morning. If you’re a news addict or a social media junkie, if you’d like to stay informed without having to commit your entire attention to  your device Winston offers the perfect way to sate your appetites. Best of all, Winston is completely free via the iTunes App Store.

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The next step for kickstarter campaigns

I’ve been fascinated by Kickstarter for some time now. The service has been a paradigm shift in funding for entrepreneurs and small organizations that were forced to rely on angel investors or unreliable traditional funding methods for their products or ideas to come to market. I’ve invested in several, and most of the campaigns I’ve been involved in have reached their funding goals and have gone into production.

So what happens after a successful Kickstarter campaign? While reaching your funding goals is an exciting achievement, it is merely the starting point for what creators hope to be a successful and profitable venture. Where you take your product or service after that isn’t as simple as running your Kickstarter campaign, unfortunately.

But where there’s a problem there will always be innovation. Enter Outgrow.me, the logical prologue to your new product or service. The site acts as a marketplace for Kickstarter products that have (or soon will) come to fruition. Products can be sorted by availability, product-focused (such as iPhone-related products), or general terms like ‘fashion’. Outgrow.me also includes products funded by Kickstarter competitor Indiegogo.

If you’re looking for something unique, clever, or like supporting small businesses and entrepreneurs give Outgrow.me a look. I’ve spent just a handful of minutes perusing their listings and have already found several fascinating offerings.

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Mercy killing- Apple set to end Ping

Testament to the truism that no one gets everything right, Apple is finally acknowledging what almost everyone has felt about their social networking effort in iTunes by abandoning Ping. The feature will be missing from the next major update to iTunes. The effort was Apple’s attempt to join in on the social networking craze of 2010, and from its release was an instant failure. The concept was to allow iTunes users to follow their friends and favorite artists, keeping you up to date with announcements and exposing you to new music via previews of tracks your friends were listening to and Top Music selections in the iTunes Music Store. The platform felt more like disguised advertising than a social network, and the few users that did join in didn’t have many peers to share with.

My first though after it popped up post-iTunes update was “how do I uninstall this?” The vast majority of iTunes users apparently felt as I did: there are already plenty of social network providers that are larger and arguably better, so why not leave this to the people who do it for a living? Apple has apparently seen the wisdom of this strategy, and according to AllThingsD will be relying on partnerships with social networking titans Facebook and Twitter to do what Ping couldn’t.

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