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Google Reader Review

Web site: www.google.com/reader

Date of first review/ name of reviewer: 5/30/09 [Tami Wolf]

Additional reviewer(s):

Produced by:  Google

Cost: Free

Description: Google Reader is an online tool used to aggregate (or gather) RSS (really simple syndication) feeds, such as blogs or news websites, into one place

Platform: Web-based

License: open-source

Maturity: out of beta since 2007

Features:

* Efficiently assembles as many blog and news feeds as you want in one place

* Organize feeds through folders and tags

* Use clips to embed headlines in another site

* Share items via a public page with a single click via the “share” feature, or a whole series of items under one tag or folder, while keeping most of what you read private

* Star items save them quickly

* See your friends’ shared items and comment on them

* Use notes to leave your own comments on items

* Search feeds individually, all together, or by folder

* Currently a widget to get the Reader on your desktop is in beta

Advantages:

* Easy to use

* Syncs with other Google services

* Can be accessed wherever you can log into your Google account, including mobile devices

* Import from and export to other reader services.

* Can be used offline

Disadvantages:

* Can only share with people who have a Google account and you are connected to with gmail or Google Talk.

* Doesn’t let you know if you subscribe to a feed and you already watch it

Tips:

*  If you use iGoogle, integrate the reader into it so you’ll see it automatically

* Use the “subscribe” shortcut to add websites to your feed as you navigate

Tutorials:

* Google Reader Help: http://www.google.com/support/reader/

* Good Reader Help Videos: http://www.youtube.com/GoogleReaderHelp

More information:

* Google Reader Help Group: http://groups.google.com/group/google-reader-help

* Review of newest feature- widget for the desktop: http://news.cnet.com/8301-17939_109-10250890-2.html

* Keep up with improvements at the official blog: http://googlereader.blogspot.com/