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Replacements for Google Reader

google-takeoutFor those of you devastated by the news that Google Reader will be gone on July 1, there are alternatives and actions you should look into soon.

First, use Google Takeout to download your RSS feeds. This is very useful, as it will give you a complete archive of not only the RSS feeds you are following, but also which articles you liked, notated, starred, or shared. If you do not do anything else by July 1, you MUST do this! Many people who use RSS readers use them extensively. If you are like me, you are subscribed to hundreds of feeds. Losing those subscriptions would be a tough blow.

Next, look for some alternatives. There are countless RSS readers out there. So far, Feedly has proven to be a very fine alternative over the past few months. It has many of the same features as Google Reader, including the ability to mark, notate, and share articles. It is also unobtrusive with a plain interface. The iPad app is superb as well. The beauty is that you can synchronize your current subscriptions and categories from Google Reader to Feedly.

Many people have jumped to Feedly already and it appears the extra traffic will help ensure it has a long lifespan.

Another alternative comes from an independent developer who wanted to replicate the Google Reader experience with a tool called CommaFeed. His goal has been to create a “bloat free” reader that is open source. That will help ensure a long lifespan. It is very young in its development, but it looks promising.

Regardless of what you settle with, make sure you download your subscriptions before it is too late.

By Scott Manning
Online Learning Tips, Student Contributor

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