A new RSS reader – clipRSS
Yes, RSS has been around since the dawn of time, and yes, there are less and less web-based RSS readers on the web these days. Bloglines will close on 1st October 1st November 2010, and Newsgator has gone the way of the dodo. There are still a handful of players, although the Elephant in the Room is definitely Google.
I used to use Bloglines until it suffered some problems, and have tried numerous other platforms since – including mobile readers on the iPhone – but none of them really allow me to tap into the news I want to read when I want to read it and how I want to read it. So, about 2 years ago I conceived clipRSS based on earlier discussions (almost 10 years ago now!) with an old pal of mine about “digital print”.
The project sat on the back burner and, although I built the RSS reader and templated display system, it never got much further – everything had to be added by direct database access. I hate lack of ease-of-use, so I finally added a UI layer this year to make adding and discovering feeds easier, and also wrapped a user management system around it so that it can support multiple accounts (which means other people can use it too).
It’s still in tech preview (as I write this) but will soon – hopefully – be open to live accounts.
Here’s a quick run down of the features so far:
- Login via Twitter oAuth
- Supports multiple user accounts
- Ability to manage and discover feeds
- Ability to format and organise feeds
- First generation “recommendation” engine highlights most relevant posts
- OPML import in beta to allow feeds to be imported from other RSS readers
- Allows posting of articles to major social media sites
Coming soon:
- Generic login with Facebook Connect and Standard Accounts (no social media accounts required)
- Allow multiple social accounts to be connected to a single user account
- More tools to help read & manage feeds (keeping this under wraps for now …)
You can find out more about the tool on the main website or keep up to date with progress on the dedicated Twitter stream @cliprss. As soon as I announce open season on accounts, there will be a post here and on @cliprss. I will also post some more info about the philosophy behind the tool at that stage too.
If you are interested in signing up for the beta, follow me on @cliprss and send me a DM about your interest.
Also, feel free to post comments below about your thoughts on this endeavour.