I was not thrilled yesterday when I opened Google Reader and got a warning that as of July 1st, Google will be killing the Google Reader App. ?? ??So not nice of them. ?? I love having an RSS Reader! ??Here is why:

1. ??As a photographer, I love my daily dose of eye candy. ??Facebook is good for this too but I miss a lot of stuff on facebook (partially due to the fact that I have a lot of Likes and partially because of Facebook politics as they now don’t allow Like audiences to view EVERY post). ??Blogs that are kept up tend to give more shots and different shots (often times).

2. ??I have a short list of blogs of family and friends that I like to see regularly but I don’t have the time to look them up individually so I like to know when new stuff is posted.

3. ??I like to get a quick look at cooking blogs, technical blogs, news blogs, reference blogs…all at a glance without having to go through a long list of favorites individually.

In short, I NEED a feed reader. ??I would NEVER ever have time to look up all the stuff individually that I like to keep an eye on.

Yesterday (with the help of facebook friends), I started researching my options. ?? My friend Brenda posted this article: ??http://reviews.cnet.com/8301-19512_7-57574201-233/google-reader-is-dying-but-we-have-five-worthy-alternatives/

From that post, I selected Pulse.Me to try out. ?? I am really liking it so far. ??In fact, I think I will like it better than Google Reader because it is much more current and visual. ??It was originally designed for IPhone/Droids and Pads but now they have a Web App as well (which is what I am using).

Here is a screenprint:

The above shows you what the last 25 posts are on my blog (as you can see, Mama’s Diaries is highlighted)

What I like about Pulse:

1. ??It is VISUAL!

2. ??It is SIMPLE!

3. ??You can see the last 25 posts of every blog you are watching.

4. ??If you see something you like but don’t have time to look at it now, you can “star” it and it puts it in your Saved folder for later reference.

5. ??I love the way the screen works and I also love the format of the individual posts.

6. ??Easy navigation.

What I am not sure about:

1. ??It appears that you can only have 12 blogs in each category (thus the reason I have a Photography, Photography B, C, D, etc. ?? Cheated the system)

2. ??It is so simple that it lacks a few tools that I would have liked (for example, I wish I could easily move blogs between categories for organization sake like putting my favorites in Photography B. ??I should have planned that out first I guess).

3. ??I couldn’t figure out how to import my google reader feeds so yes I had to add them all over. ??This was a pain because I had a ton. ??On a good note though, I have long needed to sort so it was a spring cleaning effort that had been long neglected.

4. ??It does not alert you to new posts. ?? I have mixed feelings about this. ??On the one had, it frustrates me because I like the satisfaction of ticking things “read” (that is the task manager in me) and I am afraid to miss stuff. ??On the other hand, I get overwhelmed when I have 400 new items that I don’t have time to look at! ??(I usually mark read in groups because I can’t possibly look at everything anyhow but just staying on top of that is a pain). ??With Pulse, I no longer have to worry about it because there is nothing to click. ??:) ?? Instead, I can just??peruse??through my categories, look at the first post and if I recognize it, quickly move on. ??OR I can glance at the whole page and see if anything strikes my fancy. ??In the long run, I think I am going to appreciate this approach much more because it will no longer be something I am managing and I can instead just look at what catches my eye. ??When I have time, I can look more in depth and when I don’t, I have an easy way to see the gist. ?? Because you can click on categories and see the tiles of the last 25 posts x the 12 blogs in that category, you really don’t have to look at individual blogs. ??You can just scroll through the tiles to see what jumps out at you (for example, I skip weddings unless Susan Stripling, Erin McFarland, or Janelle Zeller posted 🙂 ). ?? ??Now that I have talked this through, I think this is going to work out wonderfully for me because I can make visual decisions quickly on where I invest my time.

5. ??Supposedly, you can add a facebook stream as well but I couldn’t figure that out. ??I think it’s better to keep facebook out of this entirely anyhow to tell you the truth. ??(Though I am using my facebook account to log in to Pulse.Me).

At the end of the day, thank you Google. ??You forced me out of my comfort zone and I like Pulse MUCH better! ?? So there.

 

If you have never tried a Feed Reader, maybe now is the time. ?? Add my blog! ??:) ?? If you have been watching my blog via Google Reader, time to switch apps and add me to your new choice.

Note to my mother: ??Yes I will set this up for you. ??You will like it! ??I promise!