Thing 4: RSS and Newsreaders

RSS and newsfeeds are useful because they put updated information for frequently used websites in one place. Unfortunately, too many RSS subscriptions could very easily lead to information overload.

I used google reader since I already had an account. One of the features of google reader is to automatically subscribe to blogs followed in the linked blogger account.
I remember seeing the RSS subscription icon on different websites but I never really paid much attention to it. I guess I have used the RSS feed that comes automatically with gmail to look at 101 cookbooks so I have used RSS without knowing it.

I think it may be a little too easy to subscribe to different feeds and then have to spend all day trying to follow the feeds. On a fun note, I discovered I could subscribe to one of my favorite comics, Pearls Before Swine, through RSS. The comic from 01/15/09 is even library related.

Libraries could use RSS to promote events at the library with something like a What's Happening At My Library type feed. Books and other items could be promoted through a feed of recommendations by staff.

I only added feeds by searching in google reader. When I tried to add a feed from a website like the NY Times, it said it was going to add something to the internet explorer on the computer I was using. Since we use shared computers here, I didn't think that was a good idea so I searched google reader and subscribed through it.

Library related feeds I subscribed to was YALSA at http://yalsa.ala.org/blog/, NY Times book section, NY Times book review, NY Times bestsellers, and Powell's Books Review a Day.