{"id":646760,"date":"2013-03-14T09:13:44","date_gmt":"2013-03-14T13:13:44","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/paidcontent.org\/?p=225908"},"modified":"2013-03-14T09:13:44","modified_gmt":"2013-03-14T13:13:44","slug":"google-reader-please-dont-go-i-need-you-to-do-my-job","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/646760","title":{"rendered":"Google Reader, please don\u2019t go \u2014 I need you to do my job"},"content":{"rendered":"

When I learned Wednesday night that Google Reader is shutting down<\/a>, I literally broke into a sweat. Like many journalists, I’ve come to rely on the 242 RSS subscriptions I manage through Google Reader. It’s the first thing I check every morning — second only to making a cup of coffee — and, along with Twitter and email, one of the top three resources I use to do my job. And honestly, if I had to get rid of one of those, it would be the email.<\/p>\n

Instead, Google’s making the choice for me: As of July 1, Google Reader will be no more. “While the product has a loyal following, over the years usage has declined,” the company wrote on its blog<\/a>. I’d bet that journalists are among the most loyal followers of all, and this morning we are a very unhappy bunch. “Google Reader” is the number-one trending topic on Twitter right now<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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Haven't heard that many people swear in our office in a long time.—
Janko Roettgers (@jank0) March 14, 2013<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

The loss of Google Reader could change the way a lot of web journalists, like me, do our jobs. Here are some of the reasons we love the service — and why there’s an opportunity for other companies to step up and serve us (assuming we’re not somehow able to convince Google<\/a> to keep Reader alive<\/a>…we’ll even pay for it!<\/a>).<\/p>\n

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I use Google Reader more than any single web site or app save Gmail. I’ll really, really miss it—
Ezra Klein (@ezraklein) March 14, 2013<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Twitter isn’t a substitute for RSS…<\/h2>\n

The best thing about Google Reader, from my point of view, is that it allows me to scan a lot of information quickly, with the assurance that I’m not missing anything. That’s why, for me, it fills a completely different role than the (equally useful) Twitter does. Twitter provides a snapshot of a moment in time, and you’re likely to miss tweets as they whiz by; Google Reader stores everything. The search on Google Reader is also vastly better than the search on Twitter, and it goes back indefinitely.<\/p>\n