Take My Google Reader Shared Items PLEASE
Google, I love shared items. I love, love, love that you’ve equipped me with tools to share things I like, to pimp my own blog, to go out and find other people shared feeds and get a human-aggregated view of the web. I love it to death, and I’m glad you’re sharing the tools with me to involve other people in the game.
Okay, I get that this was like the old days when hotels put the porn movies on the bill so your boss would get angry at you. I get that. I can understand that businesses might occasionally get caught with their digital pants down, and that maybe a few strategic next moves might be sussed out by something in a shared items field. I get it. I really get Scoble’s point that the PR team could’ve done a much better job.
But I Still Love You
And I’m still using you, and I’m still going to share the hell out of things I find interesting, even if half of it is resharing what Robert and Geoff Livingston and other friends have already shared once. Because the data is still big and interesting and important, and it’s getting sucked into the fanblades of great projects like Steve Gillmor’s The Gang. I want MORE sharing.
I would throw away direct RSS subscriptions to MOST blogs if I had enough of the right aggregators in my Reader. Telling you now, I’m following more people’s shared items links and Twitter links than I am reading a blog straightforward these days, and there’s a reason. Google makes it even FASTER and easier to use this information for something.
So there. I’ve said it. I’m GLAD Reader shares my Items. Want some? Subscribe to my shared items feed.
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Comments
Huh. I’m wondering if Google reader itself is a bit munged. I tried adding someone last night and got that. Hmm. If you’re on gmail, I think you can drop a line to chrisbrogan xatx gmail dot com and maybe get what you need, too.
I do so agree. Share items is faster, more interesting, and gives me an idea of what other people think or find interesting.
Thanks Chris!
What of the social “friends” thing they added last week? No need to subscribe if you and the other person both have friended then you can see each other’s shared items?
For people worried about privacy, DON’T SHARE!!! I’ve been enjoying reading people’s shared items for the past couple weeks and it has been a joy to see what people think other people should read.
-Jeff
Like Twitter, Facebook and Jaiku, I finally caved and started using Google Reader recently, if only to see if it was a better blog reading experience than Vienna is. I really like the idea of sharing links I find interesting. I do this now through del.iciou.us, Facebook, Digg, etc., but will start to do so through Google Reader too.
Chris, is there a way I can make you one of my friends so that I can see items you are sharing rather than “subscribing” to your shared feed and having one more RSS feed in my reader?
I haven’t been following the discussion you refer to, but reading this message, I get the feel that Scoble, et al are falling in to the same trap the big media does… trying to control what happens to a post, article or comment is just silly.
I’d like to see every public message, post, article, blog, comment feed, podcast, web page shared as much as possible.
If there is a way for someone to pick up 1/3 of my posts, it’s better than them dropping the subscription because they don’t have time to read the whole thing.
Read, aggregate, share as much as you can, in as many ways as you can.. just spell my name right and put a link to me
Taken.
Fun to see my most recent post in there on the first page.
I wonder how your inclusion reflects on my stats?
I bet the only hits that are counted are by those people who actually click on the link to visit the website.
So this means my blog has a lot more readers now.
Thanks Chris.
Chris - shared items are cool, thanks for sharing yours. Link to mine is: http://www.google.com/reader/shared/10419551627461166711
Hey Chris, Just added you as GTalk friend so that I can see your shared items up in “friends’ shared items” rather than as just one of the usual feeds I read :)
Definitely a feature of Google Reader I enjoy using, and hopefully those who read my Shared items feel the same way!
[…] People were really upset that their shared feeds in Google Reader turned out to be… wait for it… shared? […]
I love sharing things with Google Reader too, I use it (and delicious) to power a linkblog that currently is only published on my twitter account for now.
I can’t understand all these people in a tiff because they used the “share” action for something other than sharing.
My shared items: http://www.google.com/reader/shared/05468487799238615926
Chris,
I just sent over an invite for Gchat. Sorry, I thought it would let me send a note along with it as well. Would love to add you on my gchat list so your shared feed shows up in my ‘friends’ area in reader. Wish google would have a better way to add feeds up there.
Herb
Hi Chris,
just as Herb above I invited you to Gtalk, and for the same reason. Hope that is OK.
Have a really great 2008!
/Johan Myrberger
Absolutely agreed. My first foray into reading others shared items felt delightful. Like I was cheating on the homework (the homework = laborious slogging through my much-abused and overfilled feed reader) but that somehow it was OK.
Has felt like a HUGE step forward.