« Portugal Day 3 (& Google Reader) »

The major events, long overdue: episode 3.

Well, we didn't take any pictures...

So...

I have recently figured out Google Reader, and it is amazing. I am now scanning newspapers from New York, LA, London, Lisbon, and Rome. I have my favorite blogs' RSS feeds organized (this journal has one, too!), and I even catch The New Yorker cartoons. There's a small problem, though.

I HAVE BECOME ADDICTED TO THE NEWS!

It's a good thing, yes. I'm constantly trying to incorporate light reading in my regular grad school regimen, but I am now officially obsessed with the headlines. I look at the articles, and if one interests me in the smallest way, some unknown sense of "responsibility" forces me to click! Thank God the Blackberry interface is still awkward, otherwise I'd be reading while driving down the 405! I am, at this very moment, considering adding the major newspapers from all the countries whose languages I can read! But I'm overwhelmed with information as it is!

Is this compulsion really stemming from a sense of "responsibility" or is it guilt? Without delving too deeply into my inner workings, guilt and responsibility pretty much feel like the same pressure in my chest.

I think if I can manage to "mark all as read" just once without actually reading all of them, maybe I'll cure myself of this self-imposed pressure. Man, I really have an addictive personality.

P.S. Does anyone else hate the stupid bright colors, stars, and overall circus feeling of Google? I'm happy they changed the little browser icon. Well, it's still circus-y. It's a little baby g, but, compared to the old grandpa G, I appreciate that it's monochrome.

P.P.S. There are way too many exclamation points in this entry.

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Comments

[Patrick]

I know exactly what you mean. I use NetNewsWire instead of Reader, but I have 445 articles waiting for me after a day away from the computer.

[k]

What's better about NetNewWire?
I have only 189 waiting for me right now, thankfully, because I'm in the library not writing a paper. :)

[Patrick]

It's an actual program (http://www.newsgator.com/Individuals/NetNewsWire/default.aspx) with an interface similar to Apple Mail, but the online service it syncs with isn't nearly as slick as the new Google Reader (which I used a couple years ago in beta and didn't enjoy at all). Maybe I need to give it another go.

[another google design non-fan]

I find google's design to be perkily annoying as well. If you use firefox, you can download the Sylish add-on and then customize the look and feel with google via css. Or if you don't know CSS I am sure you can find a style that would work. Good luck.

p.s. here's a link to an article on stylish: http://mashable.com/2007/06/05/firefox-stylish/

[k]

Thanks for the link!