I’m guilty of cheating on Google Reader with Feedly. I can’t help it. Feedly is practically everything I could want in a feed reader (waiting on Google Chrome support and/or a Feedly Adobe Air app). From the team behind it to the application itself, Feedly is an amazing web-based RSS Reader! What separates it from other RSS readers on the desktop and the web is the peace of mind that Feedly provides when it comes to consuming content from the blogs I subscribe to.
Wait, did she just say peace of mind? Get real, right? I am! First, let me state that I love sharing stuff in Google Reader. Since I can’t blog a response to every article that I enjoyed or leave a comment on all of them, I can press Shift + S and share it. My Google Reader Shared Items is my way of saying thanks.
Lately, Google Reader has become more like a torture device. I’m not alone in this thinking either. It’s a never ending cycle of (1000+) unread items, after only 30 minutes of clicking “mark all as read”. Here’s the real problem: it’s not all about the numbers. While seeing 1000+ unread is a sure way for me to hit “mark all as read”, Google Reader is just plain boring for me to look at period. I don’t blame those who don’t care about RSS if they have to sit in Google Reader all day. Google’s simplicity just doesn’t cut it for me when it comes to constantly sifting through the diverse content that I subscribe to.

This view was great when first getting started, but became very boring to see everyday once my subscriptions started to pile up.
As my feed reading habits have evolved, Google Reader has taken away from my feed reading experience more than it serves to enhanced it. When it comes to features, Google Reader is lagging behind the competition tremendously. There’s no way for me to selectively share some of the content I’m reading to Twitter unless I use a greasemonkey script. Even with that script comes another problem: it doesn’t use Bit.ly as a link shortener and I want stats. See where I’m going with this?
Unlike traditional desktop and web-based clients, Feedly is packed with features for the most casual RSS readers to power users such as myself. I can twitter anything I’m reading or watching, share it to my Google Reader shared items, participate in any Friendfeed discussions that might be taking place, and get stats on the links I share. There are tons more features than the aforementioned that has made Feedly a one-stop feed-reader for me.
Now this is more like it! (Feedly Digest View)
Feedly has made me more enthusiastic about going through my feeds, or at least I don’t dread 1000+ unread items. In fact, I never seen anywhere near that number in Feedly. With Google Reader I felt forced to focus on the amount of content I was about to consume. Feedly takes a different approach by fitting the content I’m consuming, instead of forcing that content to fit the application. I’ve learned to use the various layout options that Feedly offers to digest my feeds more quickly and efficiently, while adding to my feed reading experience. In doing so, I don’t focus on unread counts or even the amount of subscriptions I have. Feedly keeps my focus on what I’m consuming.
It doesn’t hurt to have an awesome team behind you too. The team behind Feedly has represented a team that understands what a user should be able to do in a feed reader. Understand that it’s not just about the features people. It’s about the overall experience that these features create independently and when combined. Quite frankly, Feedly is just a lot better than what I’m seeing in Google Reader everyday. How has your feed reading experience been lately?
Note: If you’re wondering why I still use Google Reader from time to time, it’s because I’m able to process large unread items quicker with Google Reader since I’m used to its interface. Also, Feedly requires Firefox and I no longer use FF as my default browser.
Popularity: 9% [?]
If you are not focused on the iPhone hype, you probably noticed that some good content was written this week. Louis Gray posted about how he thinks
The "at one time" part really refers to a time when he did not have that many subscribers, like most of us. If I had 25 subscribers and I got a link from him or even
This is a better question for a smaller blogger looking to grow.
If your blog post does not get near the front page (and most likely it will not for a while), you really do not get much traffic from Digg. This makes Digg a not so good target for a small blog. As a blogger, you will not really find your groove for several months. Getting Dugg early will cause a lot of traffic that is not happy to see you, because Digg users see "new" blogs every day churning out garbage for articles. I am not saying Diggers are miserable people, but they are leery of a new blogs appearing on the front page. Now, I know I have said that getting Dugg is "not a good target", but participating in social media sites is another good way to start growing the blog. If Digg feels intimidating, try the friendlier confines of
The idea I am trying to get across is that each step in the blogging journey requires different ideas to help the blog grow.
Cons: It’s hard to get your article dugg. I think the reason why is because the process is much more extensive than sharing an item in Google Reader and because the point of getting dugg is to hopefully make the front page of Digg. The chances of making the front page of digg are pretty slim unless you’re Kevin Rose, which can effectively dissuade people from digging your article.
Cons: Having your items shared is another way to gain popularity. However, this popularity varies from Digg, especially if that item makes it onto 
