Jennifer Mackenzie Jones - Likes

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So let me get this straight. RSS is dead because one guy stopped reading Google Reader? I am reading more feeds than ever.

August 26 - Comment - Like - Share

Jon Gosier, sull, beersage and 94 other people liked this

That's up and to the right. I am now reading almost 30 percent more feeds than I was reading a month ago. Bring it on. And RSS powers everything - not just feed readers. - Louis Gray

44 more comments

I just started... - Johnny Worthington from iPhone

Pubsubhubbub is making RSS even faster. RSS is behind FriendFeed, LazyFeed, and every relevant aggregator. This argument is so silly. - Louis Gray

Twitter's a great basic RSS reader for headlines and more realtime/'now' stuff. Not ditching NetNewsWire/Google Reader for actual post material anytime soon though. - BeauGiles

I agree, but RSS could do with a few upgrades here and there though (I just want to comment on blogs straight from the feed itself). - Hugh Isaacs II

Couldn't agree more. Sure, it might turn into more 'plumbing' for many users, but RSS is far from dead. - Brad Kellett

900 articles a day? Now that's a lot! - 321

Louis: I am writing an article about this. It will be in your reader a few minutes after it hits Twitter. :-) - Robert Scoble

RSS: 1. Really Simple Syndication ; 2. Rich Site Summary => I like the interpretation #2 better. - Ethan Gahng

That's fine, Robert. We're already discussing it here, though. :) - Louis Gray

Louis: http://scobleizer.com/2009... - Robert Scoble

My headline? RSS: interesting or boring? (Hint @marshallk and @louisgray, we’re not normal) - Robert Scoble

I never said I was normal. Just that I am kicking ass at my job. :) And that anyone else who wants to ought really read feeds. imho - Marshall Kirkpatrick

Agree with Marshall (and Scoble). I believe the best information producers are those who consume lots of information. Know your craft and use the best tools. - Louis Gray

Marshall: you can read the feeds. The real news lately is being broken in Twitter. But I'm glad someone reads all those feeds so I don't have to! - Robert Scoble

The signal to noise ratio in feeds is 10x to 100x better than Twitter, though. Even if you do prune your list of Twitter folks (as you have), much of what is there is not news-related. - Louis Gray

Twitter is the news ticker. If you rely on the ticker to inform your opinion of the world... Good luck - Johnny Worthington from iPhone

I had no clue why anyone would use Dave Winer's Twitter OPML tool to get all tweets from friends via RSS. But I tried it anyway and discovered that it's easier to find the really relevant stuff when you get tweets via RSS. I can skim through 1,000 tweets in a few minutes and separate the signal from the noise much more efficiently. And, of course, it's all searchable in GReader. - Dominic Jones

I'm with Louis on this. RSS is far from over. Like Louis, the number of feeds I'm subscribed to is on the increase, too. Services like Lazyfeed and Toluu are making it far easier for me to discover great new content. - Andrew Terry

RSS is critical to the growth of the social web, and is growing quickly. It will eventually be replaced by friendlier, less protocol centric technologies that shield the user from the mess that is ATOM/RSS etc. - William

Me too. Feedly has rebooted my RSS reading. - Roberto Bonini from iPhone

completely agree. google reader is a great feed reader and is getting better GUI wise by the week. great avenue for syndication via friendfeed - James Butler from BuddyFeed

Taking into account that Im far from been an expert, I want to leave a thought. What if the way of use is simply different I mean, ok twitter is real time while RSS has some minutes delay, but in any case if I receive 900 hits/day I will not be able to read them all as they come so I dont see the problem on getting some delay.To me is just a question of leaving the noise on Twitter as is much more quick to read and pass through the news & info and get the selected ones on RSS for better storage and record. - Luis Guijarro

RSS needs a proper comment API, so you can fetch all recent comments on all posts in one call from a blog - with threading if the site supports that. - Richard Cunningham

That particular person was serving up link bait - Dave Hodson

Dave: links are dead. Or so says the same person (Steve Gillmor). - Robert Scoble

I stopped using Google reader a couple of years ago and I now just read it in the stream with my Twitter, Facebook, Flickr mixed in (in FriendBinder [disclosure: I wrote FriendBinder]) I'm not sure why other people don't do something similar. - Richard Cunningham

Stuart: life streaming is a headline with a link. For the most part. - Robert Scoble

The reports of my death are sadly mistaken - quote Mr. RSS - Dan Morrill AKA Techwag

Google reader is a great tool...if you keep it to only important and feeds that matters to you - testbeta

louis agreed I love using google reader. great tool. - (jeff)isageek

I love RSS and losing it would change how I work (and play), but I really wish it would be more mainstream. I work in technical sales and I bet <30% of that group even uses RSS day to day. I bet for the non-techies it is closer to 10%. - Bill Grant

Love RSS and Reader both, my feed reading is rising day by day! - Ahad Bokhari

i'm with you on this louis - Andy Jenks

RSS is dead. Long live RSS! - Aaron Strout

I can't seem to stop reading. Anyone else using Feedly in conjunction with Google Reader? - ronnieledesma

RSS is an essential part of many things now. The argument is irrelevant and though I'd never say they were wrong, they are misdirected or trying to get a reaction. :) - James Stratford

I use FF, Twitter and Google Reader for different things. Twitter and FF are far more about Buzz and the conversations around the topics. In Reader I aggregate many different original sources together. There is less need for it to be on-the-spot live, but it needs to be deeper and more detailed to be of value, and it is. They serve different purposes for me. - Robert

Lately, I've been dumping select Twitter & FF feeds into Google Reader, as well as Posterous feeds, so even though I'm using all of these services, GR has now become more of a hub for me. Also: gReactions gives me a sense of how popular a feed item is. I would wish GR would incorporate these kinds of services so I could get more metadata about a feed item. - phil baumann

Ughh, no, I believe the RSS is dead mantra arose from the real time Twitter phenomenon, however, us smarties know you gotta verify your sources & our attention spans MORE than the space of 140 characters. Catch that, the dual use of metaphor...attention "spans" MORE...As per myself, I read more articles via RSS feeds than ever as well. - sofarsoShawn

So am I but not in Google reader, I read mine on my desktop in my e-mail program, they come to me, I don't go 'looking for them' I love RSS! - Sandra Large

Say, don't Twitter streams have RSS feeds? The icon's right there at the bottom of the sidebar... - Dennis Jernberg

RSS? It'll never displace Usenet. - Ian Tindale

RSS is very alive and well and dare I say, even young. With tech news, there aren't necessarily thousands of sources like with general business news, etc. Where RSS will be big is in who can create the best filters for those larger niches. But the RSS readers we have today don't support all the features we'd need to create those filters. Google Reader management taps out at maybe 1500 feeds in Chrome, the most of any reader that can export opml (not just rss like Friendfeed). - beersage

I agree that the problem with RSS is filtering. If something changed the way I use the Net was RSS, but now the volume is so great that unless you prune your feeds regularly you can end up with a lot of garbage. Most average users don't have any idea of what RSS is and that's something that can't cease to amaze me. - Angel B

RSS & EMAIL are not dead. They are getting better and faster. PUSH tech can push anything. Push Email on mobile devices is just as fast as twitter. And now we are going to PUSH RSS/ATOM. Twitter is different, yet the same. Sure, maybe a news headline will break first on twitter but will I see it before I see it in my inbox or reader? Prob not because I'm not frozen staring at a twitter... more... - sull

CannonGod

Dear FriendFeed, stop being an aggregator and start becoming a live social blogging platform. Let me write stubby Wordpress style posts with images/rich media embedded within the text, not as some dodgy attachment...

July 13 - Comment - Like - Share

Iván Abrego, Bicentennial (Franc), Cesar Sanchez and 3 other people liked this

I can totally see FriendFeed becoming like the blogging version of Google Docs. Imagine if people could see you actively writing out your post, interject with their own info., add comments, etc. etc. Truly an organic & collaborative blogging medium which I don't think I've seen as yet on the web... - CannonGod

84 more comments

I've always seen Twitter as a series of blog titles, knowing that beyond each brief sentence of text there to be a greater story to be told. And this has naturally happened, with people using Twitter as a social RSS feed to push their own blog posts - however I've never seen replies made on Twitter navigate back to the original blog. At least it's take a while and the numbers are few... - CannonGod

So often I see the blog post, then the comments sat underneath seething away unable to change the outcome of the post as it has already been set in stone. Now and again the author will read the comments (rare) and make relevant EDITs to the post. By that I mean not changing the post at all, just posting a little bit of cop-out text at the bottom agreeing they are wrong. Jokes on us though, because that original post still remains warping our search engines into thinking it's still valid and right... - CannonGod

There will need to be a way to still maintain some control over the system to avoid anonymous spammage destroying your work a la Wikipedia. - CannonGod

Agreed. I still like the idea that people should be able to see you typing. I for one would find it terribly fascinating watching a prized novelist writing in real-time. To be able to see writer's block, AS IT HAPPENS! Wow. - CannonGod

I think a suitable system would be me the account holder at the top with control over everything, follower+followes/contributors/friends able to submit their work but I still get to actively compose the post in real-time. Everyone else can comment on each submission with a live digg up/digg down of important points contributors make which will help the Director (i.e. you) make informed decisions of what to include in the final edit. - CannonGod

In all fairness THIS is exactly what I want. What you see right here! Part chat room, part blog. And I personally wouldn't mind seeing me type and would love to see how others type. I love context. Seeing how someone slows/pauses/deletes puts me in their mindset when they are writing these words, then watching as a Hot Topic rises and seeing their writing flow faster and faster as they grow more passionate about the issue. - CannonGod

I think if blogs go down this route, we'll get more honest answers online and into our search engines. Twitter is an example of this. We rely on those people with only 4 friends and 4 followers. They'll talk honestly and provide honest feedback to the world around us. - CannonGod

I think Google Wave will do it right by making it an option. I'll definitely give it a go. True you may feel like a pillock, but I think in the end it'll be quite liberating! Like playing Guitar Hero in front of friends, but then realising it's bloody good fun and everyone else thinks so! :D - CannonGod

I want to replicate a system that mimics a phone call. You don't have the chance to edit yourself, what you say is final. Why must text be so different? People hide behind words all too often. Nothing hurts more than watching smug pricks talking over MSN pretending to know something when they're really reading it off Wikipedia. - CannonGod

Yeah, as much as I'm open and very much an online chatterbox - I am very careful to construct my sentences so I can articulate "my point" - now I love friendfeed for this sort of liveblogging, expansive platform (used it when I was blogging at digital leap as an example) - Jennifer Mackenzie Jones

I WANT AN HONEST INTERNET DAMMIT! - CannonGod

We hide behind words because words are permanent, voice (unless record) dissipates and conversations are left open to individual interpretation. - Jennifer Mackenzie Jones

HOWEVER - I love this. It's like a chat room and a blog and a public searchable forum - all at the same time. - Jennifer Mackenzie Jones

Exactly. At the end of the day Google will index EVERYTHING that's said, not just the words aired in the narrow minded view of the author. - CannonGod

Will we get to a point however, when do we say enough is enough and draw our conclusions - or are conclusions are a waste of time these days? Prefer the idea of an ongoing narrative for phd work, for example. Noise can be filtered and we can pick our own endings. - Jennifer Mackenzie Jones

It should never end. We are human beings and our nature is to keep striving forward. The system never stops, it just shapes and moulds - introducing the organic blog ;) - CannonGod

I love that idea. I'd like to introduce the organic university. Constantly disseminating knowledge into the community as studies are done, not after they've had the fun sucked out of them by politics and regulation (can you tell I'm bitter?) - Jennifer Mackenzie Jones

The blog is really just a 'host' where conversation and a group collective can work together. A good host will guide the conversation, and even at the end of a session can call time with the implication the blog/conversation continues the next day. The next session will begin with a summary of where everyone left off, and the conversation engine kicks in. - CannonGod

I think the Internet is honest to an extent. Look how far removed we are from formal meeting situations - which essentially is groups of people put together for a session, be lead and follow up on previous discussions - this is so much more. - Jennifer Mackenzie Jones

@JayJay Can you tell I'M bitter?!! ;) Why else would I be doing this other than to rant? - CannonGod

Our "bitterness" drives innovation. ;-) - Jennifer Mackenzie Jones

Yeah me too. But there is always that risk of getting flung out of the pub for being too ranty about society. ;-) - Jennifer Mackenzie Jones

If I'm going to say anything of any worth, I use my online backchannel as a example audience in my head. If they approve, then it's something to work on. If they think I'm out of touch- then I probably am! (I selected the buggers in the first place!) - Jennifer Mackenzie Jones

Let's not forget this is still at it's heart a blog, a source of information. Conversations IRL have that indexing issue, and so your voice/opinion may never be heard elsewhere in the world. - CannonGod

Ah ha - but does conversation not change everything? Reflecting off other people shape and manipulate an idea. We could get so philosophical here... - Jennifer Mackenzie Jones

No. It only really highlights our lack of knowledge on matters because we don't have internet to back us up. - CannonGod

What we're in here is just a logged chatroom, yes. What I was suggesting earlier would be editorial. - CannonGod

I use my blog to expand on ideas. Like I'd see this as a good "brainstorming" (whatever) session, then I would write it up in a blog later (crowdsourced notes and plans perhaps?) This is like a brain dump - but with other people which is good! - Jennifer Mackenzie Jones

Just look at what @chrispirillo is doing with his Geeks blog/network - CannonGod

I'm going to fire this up on my blog just now - embed the link. - Jennifer Mackenzie Jones

That's also a good point @JayJay. Most of the time I don't think a blog post is enough, I need peer review. I need feedback, and I want it now!!! - CannonGod

Tell me I suck. Please. I only live to try to prove ppl wrong :) - CannonGod

What about a blog/website as a CV type thing? - Jennifer Mackenzie Jones

FIGHT DAH POWA! :D - CannonGod

@JayJay Isn't that what most adults see a blog as these days anyway? An online portfolio/CV? Isn't that what you want from your blog with regard your PhD in the end? Something to present to peers so that further work may surface? - CannonGod

@Jake Ideally, I would like to use my website blog to disseminate information as an when I get it and learn about it. Feed it back to those involved and ask for feedback. I can't do that just yet because I'm still having to fight the issues surrounding silos vs open access. It's tough work and a whole new can of worms. Lately, I've been pushing the boundaries a lot more and decided to... more... - Jennifer Mackenzie Jones

By talking about it and experimenting, we learn. It's very different from this whole "I'm the expert" thing. Who needs experts when you have an open mind to new things. - Jennifer Mackenzie Jones

I've tried countless times to do the blogging experience fully with linked sections for each area of interest. A page for work, a page for random shit pictures of lolcats. I lost patience, mainly through self editing and how it projects ME on the web. Again, another example of peer review. - CannonGod

I just love to debate till the cows come home :] - CannonGod

hello everyone - Anne Marie Cunningham

Hi Anne :) Or should I say @amcunningham (for all you Twitter listeners) - CannonGod

people will engage with blogs if you make it clear what you want of them. if it just seems as if someone is ranting then it is hard to know how to respond - Anne Marie Cunningham

@hannah I feel similar about my blog but I think once I got over stats and starting to work out who my "audience" was, I started to relax and just do it. But saying that, sometimes I take very long breaks in writing because I don't trust myself (or other people) to apply context correctly. Even now, writing about this and thinking of the different ways it can be disseminating gives me a little bit of the creeps (but in a good, experimental way!) :-) - Jennifer Mackenzie Jones

We are currently debating a form of Organic Blogging :p - CannonGod

how could it be disseminating - could it be dangerous? :) i'm just glad to get a chance to meaningfully use friendfeed - Anne Marie Cunningham

who says that blog should be editorial? - Anne Marie Cunningham

I know what you mean Anne, FriendFeed has been a whipping boy and garbage heap for aggregating - about 1% is original content >:\ - CannonGod

I'm trying to look at a way blogging could be different and reflect the social networker's interest in engaging with the net and their content. - CannonGod

sometimes i am glad that i do not fully have to engage with blog comments- organic blogging could be very distracting - Anne Marie Cunningham

You see, I like questions :) My hobby is solving problems <-----massive saddo - CannonGod

Since you joined the conversation Anne I've already noticed a limitation with FriendFeed - but luckily I already have a solution (on paper) - CannonGod

Twitter is a very positive driven and focused community. You filter the noise and you decide who is worth following based on personal preference. If somebody "gets it" (i.e. gets you), they get what is being shared and the openness of the platform. If somebody doesn't, and they come across a blog or a feed without a context, you can essentially make your own up. It takes one person to... more... - Jennifer Mackenzie Jones

oh....what is the limitation that i have made you notice. i feel bad now:( - Anne Marie Cunningham

I counter that argument by being explicit and open about my bad experiences. ;-) It's a funny old world and it is fine if you have enough people around you to support and offer advice without negativity. - Jennifer Mackenzie Jones

Imagine this (whips out whiteboard) - your "who says that blog should be editorial?" should be appended to that conversation string above, thus allowing us to go back to that mini-thread and potentially resolve/restart that conversation. - CannonGod

HAS BRAIN WAVE!!!! - CannonGod

yes, i wanted to respond some comments further up but couldn't - Anne Marie Cunningham

hat's why I maintain the argument that there is no difference between online and offline behaviour, we're just dazzled by the pretty tech at the minute. Society will work it's own rules out and people will still break and change them! - Jennifer Mackenzie Jones

PS: Don't feel bad Anne - you made me have a great idea! :D - CannonGod

Another downside - I want to go to bed now but want to round up the conversation in a stylish and elegant way... - Jennifer Mackenzie Jones

@jayjay- that's a real life problem too - Anne Marie Cunningham

@JayJay http://www.instantrimshot.com/ ;D - CannonGod

Well tomorrow I might be tempted to go on about my idea for the organic blog. Imagine a tree diagram on steroids ;) - CannonGod

But you'll need to tune in to find out! :D - CannonGod

@Anne Without a doubt. The upside is that current social platforms have put me in the position to be increasingly more proactive and networked with incredibly positive and forward thinking people. Compared to real life, I don't think as human beings, we've had the chance to do things like this at this level before. So what if you get the occasional offline troll (could be a colleague, a flatmate, an ex etc) - I don't mind putting up with that for a few days in return for rich vibrate and open discussion. - Jennifer Mackenzie Jones

Glad to hear that @JayJay :) - CannonGod

Welcome to the gestalt of the future! Web 3,000! - CannonGod

@jayjay yay! i agree and I am older than you:) i have been at home in NI today looking after my mum after a knee replacement. but i have been completely connected - Anne Marie Cunningham

i am not aware of the offline trolls... but i am giving a presentation on how social media could support scholarship later in the week so I might have a few stranger followers! - Anne Marie Cunningham

We're getting into hive mind territory and I don't really want to go into that yet as @JayJay wants to go to bed at some point ;) I'll be here for hours! - CannonGod

back to tree diagram on steroids- isn';t that a collaborative mind map? - Anne Marie Cunningham

@Anne Best part of Twitter? You hardly even know if you ARE being followed by the trolls. - CannonGod

well, if they talk about you then you know... can you be a 'silent' troll? - Anne Marie Cunningham

Pretty much. You plant the 'seed' of the blog based on your interests, then watch as comment string turn into branches, which themselves serve as posts, which then sprout forth a new discussion - all the time keeping the long tail of the blog. An organic blog! :D - CannonGod

@Anne Just remove the '@' ? - CannonGod

@cannongod i'm going to check how you are currently using your blog:) - Anne Marie Cunningham

ok- i am off to check for amcunningham! - Anne Marie Cunningham

It's new and I'm still not entirely sure if I'm EVER happy with any new blog I start :-S - CannonGod

is this your blog? http://userscripts.org/article... - Anne Marie Cunningham

No, my current blog is http://cannongod.posterous.com - or should I say, 'latest' blog ;p - CannonGod

I think I said in another post earlier on FriendFeed that I wanted to strip back my FF from how it was previously, just a dumping ground for online spam I generate - CannonGod

I think I'm going to call it here. Great conversation everyone! This was exactly what I wanted to get out of tonight, some real thought provoking discussion :) Look forward to going back over the thread tomorrow to see how that information has matured/degraded. All important personal research ;) Laterz... - CannonGod

CannonGod - that's all fair enough but what about someone like me who comes too late to the conversation? How do I go back to comment on something 34 lines above this last comment? - tipexxed

@tipexxed Ironically I addressed that very issue earlier in the thread! ;D Yes, FriendFeed needs a branching comment system to make that easier to visualise. Otherwise this is an unnecessary advantage to Twitter where you can directly reply to a comment and have it thread through. ARE YOU LISTENING FRIENDFEED? </jumps up and down> - CannonGod

Yeah could do with a branched comment system - but then it stops being a blog and starts just being loads and loads of ongoing comments. Who knows - I think it slots in with collaborative platforms - so instead of branching out into a tinychat when twitter needs more explanation, you can branch into the friendfeed comments instead - if that makes sense! - Jennifer Mackenzie Jones

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