Second disappointment

Google Reader is retiring.

I am let down by yet another RSS feeds reader.

I remember I started being an avid "blog reader" many years ago with Bloglines.

With Bloglines, I was able to catch up with friends' blogs, acquaintances', bloggers'.... Then my feeds subscriptions gradually grew to more than a hundred. Besides blogs, I subscribed to interesting websites or web pages. There were no restrictions to what I would follow. As long as it piqued my interest with one or two post(s), I would subscribe to it right away. Doesn't matter if subsequent posts are not my cup of tea, I can always unsubscribe at any time.

Through that crazy amount of "no holds barred" RSS feeds following, I got exposed to a whole new reality I never knew about. The wonders of the Internet.

There are things I would have never known from the news. Things I would have never seen in my life. Things that are not necessarily helpful information, but always an eye-opener to what's possible in this world.

There were many ugly things too. But those exposures also meant I am not living in a fantasy world.

Then Bloglines announced their supposed closure. It stunned me. I quickly looked for a replacement to export my subscriptions. And I found Google Reader. It sucked so bad at first I hated it when I started using it. Lousy layout. Ugly format.

I forced myself to get used to it. So even though Bloglines later said, "Hey we're not going after all!" I did not look back. Also, once trust is broken, it's not easy to build it up again.

Slowly, I got used to the Reader. I cleaned up my subscriptions, and then over the years, added more without any control or discernment (once again).

It was my trusty "newspaper", "television" and "books". For years, I cleared my feeds almost every, single, day.

I've only gradually stopped reading my feeds on a daily basis from last year onward. Due to wedding and a brand new life with the hubby... Plus, a new job. Then, it was peak period in that job from last year till now. So nope, no energy or time to do that. Furthermore, I was trying to wean myself off social media and the internet, so I can have more time for other things in the "real life".

Anyway, enough of digressing. Now, I feel so betrayed once again. The sad thing is, there is no comparable replacement this time round.

The hubby suggested NuffnangX. I knew about NuffnangX the moment it was announced. Actually sort of before it was announced? There were a lot of "teasers" about it.

Anyway, after it was launched, I never got it as I never needed it; I also didn't like how it's mainly for following blogs. With the range of feeds I have.... I refused to be restricted.

Right now, I kinda have no choice. So I exported some of my feeds to NuffnangX and is trying to see if I can work things out with it soon.

It is not able to "find" some feeds I've been following for a long time. And I am kinda lazy to have to send a ticket to them regarding this... So we'll see then. Also, personally I feel that feeds subscriptions should be something personal, but NuffnangX is like some other social media (e.g. Tumblr and Twitter) in terms of the lack of a choice for privacy in whoever you are following. That loses point with me. (Not sure if I'm too new and doesn't know of such settings, we'll see) I have feeds that are NSFW... So not everyone would be agreeable to the contents. I would like to keep such subscriptions private. No, it's not perverted contents (just stuff that can be controversial, offensive or graphic), nor am I trying to pretend to be a prude or pretend I don't see such things. It's just that... in this current era, it'll be better to not expose everything about yourself on the internet. For possible snooping by your employers, or future employers. Or you may never know if it would affect you in the future in any way.

Anyway, so far, I'm not too happy with the NuffnangX app. Some posts just wouldn't load. I am also not used to the layout yet.

Maybe I'll grow to like it eventually, who knows. But right now, I hate you Google!

We had such a great relationship, Google Reader and I. :(

p.s.: Not sure why, since the Google Reader announcement, and after exploring NuffnangX, I've kinda gone back onto Tumblr. Not as active as I was before, but I realised I still like Tumblr very much. Pretty much at a crossroads right now in terms of giving up some feeds that NuffnangX is unable to find, or manually visiting them occasionally.

p.p.s.: Formspring is also shutting down! Not that it concerns me 'cause I don't use it. But I'm surprised by the fact that it lasted for so long. Haha...