Technology

I think it would be hard to re-invent RSS for money, it's part of why it's so simple.

RSS as a service makes sense for backend, not front end where most of the money would be made.

And killing RSS is... Kinda here? It's difficult to get a RSS feed on most websites, unless you can scrape it or find someone who's done it for you.

Man I should use RSS more...

You can try mine as a starting point if you like. It covers most subject areas, has categories so that you can easily delete the categories you don't care about. Just import the OPML file to any client you like. I like feedly personally.

You start with vlogs you like.

Then see who they have in their blog roll.

More seriousl, I have literally used RSS regular since like 2006 or so. And I will NEVER forgive Google for killing Reader.

Anyway, what I mean to say is, its just a growing process. Someone links an article and you say, "Well, this sote seems interesting" and you stick it in your RSS reader.

Next thing you know you are pulling 1000-2000 articles a day, even with limiting filters.

One last bit of advice. Most systems let you export your subs.

DO THIS FROM TIME TO TIME BECAUSE YOU WILL HATE YOUR PAST SELF WHEN SOMETHING GOES WRONG AND YOU LOSE ALL YOUR SUBS.

Feedly does a great job of that.

• Look around in your online communities and see what publications get shared.
• Once you find some sites you like, search the web/communities for alternatives with the same topic/vibe.
• If you find journalists you like, see where else they publish their works, or what publications they used to work at. For bloggers / content creators, see who they collaborate with.

This is where I've struggled. I've gone and tried once or twice and just kinda got confused and lost and came back to reddit, at that time.

The problem isn’t the algorithm just because it’s an algorithm, even chronological sort is technically an algoritim.

The problem is closed source algorithms with no user choice that implement dark patterns and other addictive and psychologically abusive tactics to make users engage with their app as much as possible

I don’t personally have any issue with algorithms - they work quite well for me, though it does require some active management. For example, if I watch one or two 30-second videos on YouTube, it quickly starts recommending more, which quickly floods my feed. However, when I start ignoring those recommendations, despite the temptation to click, the algorithm eventually stops pushing them and shifts back to suggesting accurately tailored, long-form content that genuinely interests me. The same goes for using the “not interested” button. This aligns with my experience on platforms like Twitter and Instagram as well, though the latter I no longer use.

Algorithms obviously don’t care whether the content they show you makes you glad that you saw it. They simply serve what captures your attention. If it's outrage, then that’s exactly what you’ll get. The algorithm knows plenty of other users engage with that kind of content, so it rationally assumes the same will apply to you.

The companies deploying the algorithms aren't taking any of what you said into consideration though. They only want to feed you what has the most interaction as that can garner the most money from ad revenue.

I started using FreshRSS around the same time Reddit killed their API, it has rapidly become one of my favorite self-hosted apps.

Also,

open source software releases I follow

You have just taught me that I can add github release pages to my feed, I love FreshRSS even more now.

The content creators should be shouting about RSS from the rooftops. The only people that lose out are social networks, and startups. It would be more difficult for a new person to get a foothold, but at least we decide what we want to read on our own.

Thanks! I like it a lot.

Newsblur in desktop web browser, 36 USD / year

It has a FLOSS version and a more limited free version hosted by them, but the 2.5 GBP / month was worth the QoL increase for me.

https://search.f-droid.org/?q=rss&lang=en

Personally, Feeder.

I’ve been using Feedly on iOS for a few years since google dropped their rss client.

I'm using feeder on android and it's working well for me. On desktop I use Firefox extension but can't remember the name

No. They're two different tools. the article misses the point

I mean you have to subscribe to a feed to be able to see it and I don’t see how RSS could sync a feed you don’t even know about. I suppose if someone started a platform that everyone used to sync their feeds then people could uncover content from the RSS feeds of other users but that seems to take the really simple out of really simple sync (RSS)

Newsblur is the one I migrated to and haven’t looked back.

There are good RSS reader web browser extensions. Firefox has a few. Check out Feedbro.

Very cool! Thanks for making this and sharing.

I use feeder installed via Fdroid. It sends me notifications that send me straight to the content. I rarely have to actually open the app. No complaints!

I use Newsblur, it’s a web site and will fetch feeds even if my computer is offline.

I use quiterss on my linux desktop. Its already in the repos on debian and works great for me. I have extremely minimalistic requirements tho, so might not be for you if you want a shiny UI. It has tagging, custom keyword filtering, folders, notifications. All i need.