Whilst scanning an old blog post today I realized that I’ve been using Google Reader for over 5 years. That same post talks about the 50-60 RSS feeds I followed then. It turns out I still follow 50-60 feeds today. The list, I suspect, is somewhat different. Comparing what I followed then compared to what I follow now could be interesting if only I’d kept a note back in 2006. Be that as it may, the raw numbers do tell a story.

At any one time I like to have 50-60 sources of news and information available.  I have experimented with more from time to time, but the experiment always seems to fail. I like to pick and choose my sources, relying on serendipity to identify new content and my own instinct to make deletions.

Recently a couple of tools have popped up and surprised me. The first of these is Summify. It imports your google reader feeds as well as activity on Twitter and Facebook to deliver a short list of the top stories every few hours. The number of stories and frequency is up to you..

To my surprise and to challenge my cynicism, Summify does actually deliver stories I find interesting and want to read. Not all the time of course, but often enough. It does this without asking me to do anything. If I’m honest I would say the Summify helps me get more out of some of the more active feeds I follow and share this easily on the same three tools. Google Reader, Twitter and Facebook.

Although this doesn’t capture everything I want to read, it’s a good start. I still go off to my Reader account and look at other sources. Generally these sources don’t post as often, but give tremendous value when they do. From time to time I look at my twitter feed still, especially when it comes to my @ourbirdfeeder account but I’ve never really used Facebook for this purpose. This despite cool apps like Flipboard which present every thing is a more pleasing way.

A couple of days ago @brucesharpe mentioning Zite. This, like Summify, is another service being built in Vancouver, BC. Initially I was confused by Zite: I did not see any of the feeds I thought I followed. Then I realized that’s the point. Zite uses what I’ve specified elsewhere to find new stuff for me to read and most importantly, from new sources.

There is a thumbs up and thumbs down option which is supposed to help me help Zite improve the relevance of what it delivers. The thumbs up is always easier than down however, so not sure how this will work. I seem more willing to show my support than my disapproval. Inaction is my but dominant form of this.

It’s great that entrepreneurs are creating interesting and valuable tools around a part of my online life which has been pretty consistent for the last five years!

Tagged as: @brucesharpe, google reader, habits, reading, rss, summify, zite

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