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Chief Architect of Google+ requests clarification on Google Reader

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Re: Chief Architect of Google+ requests clarification on Google Reader

#41

Post by EGreg »

Hey guys. We at Qbix are thinking about building something like Google Reader, that's universal, works on your phone, etc. We've been building a next-gen framework that can handle all that stuff, including subscriptions, notifications, etc. and this seems like the perfect project to apply it to.

Let's take all this enthusiasm about Google Reader and not just save it, but make it into a community project that we can host online.

If you are developer who is proficient with PHP and Node.js, reach out to me if you might be interested in joining the project -- you can find my email at http://qbix.com/about

Re: Chief Architect of Google+ requests clarification on Google Reader

#42

Post by scott_s »

zoowar wrote: post #26
jcomis wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

He's asking for specific elements of the reader that people found useful, enjoyable, easy to use. I'd say that's valuable. How is it not?

Why doesn't he just ask the google reader staff?

Developers and designers don't necessarily know what their users like.

Re: Chief Architect of Google+ requests clarification on Google Reader

#43

Post by saraid216 »

jcampbell1 wrote: post #34

Google can be damn stupid sometimes. They shutdown Google Reader which is used daily by every journalist on the planet. This resulted in a ton of bad press which was completely foreseeable. Now they have some chieftain try to change the conversation into "Tell me what you loved about Reader", under the guise that they will use your comment to help make better products. As if Google has no data on how people use Googl…

You're totally right. Google should absolutely never, ever ask for input from users.

Re: Chief Architect of Google+ requests clarification on Google Reader

#46

Post by webwanderings »

reader5000 wrote: post #12

G+ can't be google reader for two reasons: 1. Information density. Magazine style / tiles / graphics etc aren't the same as single line expandable headline with maybe 40 headlines visible per screen height. 2. Just the content. Reader didn't try to guess what you wanted to read or notify you what your friends were up to.

Gmail could easily be a Reader. Email is a mechanism which drops content into your inbox. It obviously requires someone's pushing it.

RSS on the other hand is a protocol which facilitates the dropping of the content into a reader. So an email client by its very nature a RSS reader (several email clients provide this feature, or at least they used to).

The question is not whether G+ could be an alternate. The question is whether we are looking at the world where the RSS would become the backbone of services like Lexus Nexus which is used by media specialist and/or people with resource ($$) ... or would RSS remain a pipe which is available for average Joe to easily "get" the information however and whenever they wish.

Re: Chief Architect of Google+ requests clarification on Google Reader

#47

Post by mixedbit »

nicksergeant wrote: post #6

Yeah, I really don't understand what he's looking for here. He wants constructive criticism about what parts of Google Reader were useful, but if you complain at all, your comment will be deleted. Google Reader itself was the useful piece. It aggregates RSS feeds. I don't really know how else you can explain that "yes, it aggregated RSS feeds, and I like to read all of my RSS feeds in one place".

Maybe the intent was just to draw attention to his product? You liked the Reader? Now, that it is going to be killed, tell us what you liked about it so we can add these features to G+. And by the way, look how awesome we are, we care about your needs, you can already start using G+, don't wait until we add features from the Reader, because this will never happen.

Re: Chief Architect of Google+ requests clarification on Google Reader

#48

Post by joonix »

It worked. It was minimal. I could click RSS on a site and subscribe. It was part of Google which I'm always working in. I stopped using the site, but I'd scroll through the widget on my Android phone every day.

I don't need "features," I just need to consume my feed without thought.

Re: Chief Architect of Google+ requests clarification on Google Reader

#50

Post by Semaphor »

nicksergeant wrote: post #9
jcomis wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

He's asking for specific elements of the reader that people found useful, enjoyable, easy to use. I'd say that's valuable. How is it not?

So like, the "Subscribe" button, and the list view? That's what was useful. I really don't get what he's aiming for here... obscure features that may have existed that only some people thought were useful?

Weirdly enough, none of the readers I tested can replicate that. Qbix (list-view takes too much space, not available in "show all") and The Old Reader (no equal indent blog name -> post title in all view, shows no text snippets in list view) come closest.

Especially TOR looks like a great replacement but it's still pretty overloaded.

> There are 25746 users in the import queue ahead of you.

And it has no "Export" as of right now.

edit: Formatting

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