RSS Feed experience

This post will describe my experience using an RSS reader for the first time. I decided to use Google's Reader because everything is linked in through my Gmail account.

Here are images of my Reader screen throughout the couple of weeks:

I added a comment to the NXT Step blog (the topic is LEGO NXT Robotics) about a particular project that was demoed with a YouTube video. The project is a robotic beer bottle opener, and my comment expressed my appreciation for the project, but lamented that it may have only limited use for me teaching my Robotics class.

Tracking these blogs and RSS feeds through Google Reader over the last several days has been a mixed experience. I am used to having a comprehensive set of bookmark links for blogs that I care to read. I use the bookmarks when I get a free moment between tasks at work, or when I'm waiting for something (often while installing software, or reimaging someone's computer). As for the UI, I'm acclimated to Google's design aesthetic via Gmail and Google Search. I'm not sure I care for the bright-white/sanitized design that Reader presents. I think I care for the heterogeneous designs of each individual site. The differences in design between sights also provide subtle visual cues as to the shifts in sites or topics, which is something you don't get from using an RSS reader.

On the other hand, it is nice to have a central repository of all the sites you want to read, from any computer. I have to update my bookmark set between computers, which can be a bit of a hassle (and frankly, doesn't get done a lot of the time).

I think RSS readers may be useful to students who are beginning research projects. Having them locate and connect to dynamic online resources (including blogs, podcasts, and other types of updated media) would be beneficial to them over a long period of researching and writing about a particular topic. It would also give them a sense of the diverse topography of source material: primary sources like BBC and NPR, and more grass-roots sources like blogs and podcasts.

In terms of content, through the use of these feeds, I learned about several interesting Lego NXT robot designs, using online gaming structures in learning (especially earning badges), and listened to a couple weeks worth of This American Life radio podcast episodes.