A Quick Guide to Reading Blogs

What blogs do you read? You ARE reading blogs in your industry or market, right? If so, great. If not, you need keep up with your niche. Either way, this quick guide will get you acquainted with the leading tools for organizing, reading and sharing your favorite blog subscriptions.

There are basically 3 ways to read blogs via an RSS feed which you subscribe to:

1. Newsreader software installed on your desktop - The first option is software that you download and install on your computer. When you want to read your blogs, just fire up the program and you're set.These software packages typically accentuate speed and usability. They do one thing and they do it well. Desktop readers are a good option if you always read blogs from the same machine. If you read blog feeds on multiple machines then a desktop-only solution is not a good fit This group represents the first generation of feed readers. Currently, desktop newsreaders are losing market-share to web-based readers.
Desktop Newsreaders: FeedDemon, RSS Bandit, Newzcrawler

2. Web-based newsreader - You register at a site, log-in and read your blogs. These sites are are centered almost exclusively on blog-reading and blog-searching. The best of these services are well organized, easy-and-enjoyable-to-use and extremely reliable. Because these sites are meant only as blog-reading tools, it is easy to manage and organize a large-number of changing feeds. If you're reading just a few blogs (say, less than 12) than a personal portal may be a better option for you.
Web-based Newsreaders: Bloglines, Newsgator, FeedLounge


3. Web-based personal portal page - Growing in popularity, the "personal portal" pages are customizable pages that can display blog feeds in addition to email, photos, file storage and other modules. Functions and features can be quickly added, modified or deleted. The benefit of this new crop of personalized pages is the additional content that can loaded into the portal. Ebay auctions, to-do lists, bookmarks and email are just a few examples of the type of content, in addition to blogs, that can be added to personalized portal pages. Because the feed reader is not front-and-center (reading RSS feeds is simply integrated with the other features), it may be short on advanced newsreader functions. Also, it can be difficult to manage a large number of feeds in personal portal. However, for keeping a few feeds and lots of other useful content nearby, the new generation of personal portals are a good choice.
Web-based Personal Portal Pages: Netvibes, Pageflakes, Google Personalized Page

I recommend Web-based readers (category #2 above) for reading blogs. Because the web-based readers do just one thing, they tend to do it well. These newsreaders are the best choice for small business owners. Read your feeds anywhere; your subscriptions can be neatly and easily organized and maintaining a large, active reading list is simple, not headache-inducing or overly technical.

Comments

[Ole Brandenburg]

Nicely written article. Good luck with your blog and keep up the good work.

Cheers
Ole

[Cortland Coleman]

Ole,

Thanks for stopping by and commenting. Pageflakes is a great service. I especially like the user interface, tabbed pages and loads of content that can be easily added to your personal page.

Best,

Cortland

[tammylleanne]

http://news1.equities.com/2013/05/17/1417280.html Administration proposes new rule for hydraulic fracturing on federal land Oklahoman, Oklahoma City]By Chris Casteel, The Oklahoman, Oklahoma CityMcClatchy-Tribune Information ServicesMay 17--WASHINGTON -- The Obama administration proposed a new rule Thursday to govern hydraulic fracturing on federal and tribal land and gave the public 30 days to comment.
The proposed rule, a revision of its initial draft from last year, Tigers 24 Miguel Cabrera Home Cool Base White 2010 All Star Jerseys would require disclosure of the chemicals used in hydraulic fracturing and establish safeguards for the integrity of wells and the disposal of "flowback" water used in the process.
"As the president has made clear, this Brewers 1 Hart blue 2010 All Star Jerseys administration's priority is to continue to expand safe and responsible domestic energy production," Interior Secretary Sally Jewell said Thursday.
"In line with that goal, we are proposing some commonsense updates that increase safety while also providing flexibility and facilitating coordination with states and tribes."
The rule -- which was modified after the department received more than 177,000 public comments on its initial proposal -- could be finalized after the 30-day comment period.
Hydraulic fracturing, the process of using fluids to free oil and gas from shale rock, and directional drilling have been credited with creating a renaissance in U.S. energy production with huge economic and geopolitical effects.
Industry groups and the chairman of the House committee that oversees public lands ripped the proposed rule as burdensome and duplicative of state regulations. Environmental groups said it didn't go far enough to protect public land and health.
Rep. Doc Hastings, R-Wash., chairman of the House Natural Resources Committee, said, "States are able to carefully craft regulations to meet the Cardinals 5 Albert Pujols Road Cool Base Grey 2010 All Star Jerseys specific needs of their states. ... At a time when the Interior Department is currently canceling lease sales because they say they do not have the necessary funds, they should not be wasting federal dollars and resources implementing duplicative and unnecessary regulations."
Chip Minty, spokesman for Devon Energy Corp., said the company is still reviewing the proposal, which would affect its operations in New Mexico and Wyoming.
"States do an excellent job of regulating our industry," Minty said.
According to the department, operators with federal leases must 2009 All Star New York Mets 5 David Wright Red Jerseys comply with federal and state regulations. But the new proposal would defer to some states, according to the department, if they have standards in place that meet or exceed those in the proposed rule. The department specifically mentioned Colorado, Wyoming, North Dakota and Texas.
Michael Brune, executive Red Sox 15 Dustin Pedroia Home Cool Base White 2010 All Star Jerseys director of the Sierra Club, said the proposed rule is inadequate and would put the public's health and well-being at risk.
"This proposal does not require drillers to disclose all chemicals being used for fracking and continues to allow trade-secret exemptions for the oil and gas industry," Brune said. "There is no requirement for baseline water testing and no setback requirements to govern how close to homes and schools drilling can happen.
"The new rules also continue to allow the use of toxic diesel fuel for fracking, as well as open pits for storing wastewater -- two practices that we know to be environmentally hazardous."
The new proposal would allow producers to disclose the chemicals used in the process after the fracturing operation is completed, and the information could be submitted through the website FracFocus.org.
Some states already require reporting through that website, and its use on federal leases would eliminate duplicative efforts for operators and cut down on Interior's administrative costs, the department said Thursday.
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(c)2013 The Oklahoman
Visit The Oklahoman at www.newsok.com
Distributed by MCT Information Services

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