Does it Really Do That?

Do you read blogs through Google reader? I do. Here are two Google reader claims as well as my findings (and some additional thoughts):

Claim #1. Google Reader constantly checks your favorite news sites and blogs for new content. Whether a site updates daily or monthly, you can be sure that you won't miss a thing.

napmom's findings: True. As long as you tell the reader what you are reading then it is up-to-the-minute with updates from those blogs. Great right?

Claim #2. Google Reader shows you all of your favorite sites in one convenient place. It's like a personalized inbox for the entire web.

napmom's findings: True. A personal inbox for the entire web it is indeed! Unfortunately, as you will see from the screen shot below (or NOT because it is so small), I have 382 items waiting in my inbox. Because I have hand selected these blogs, I find that it is of the utmost importance that I read these items.

So far so good. Google reader does everything that it claims to do, a little too well, in my opinion.

This is my problem. As I read through the items in Google reader I get this view, which is basically the content of a particular blog post.

Every so often I actually go to the actual blog and I get this view (see below) for example. See the pretty colors and interesting content on the sidebar? Plus, the blog styles themselves are often so very fun and I totally lose that when I am reading the blog posts through Google reader.

Sometimes the sidebar content is some of the coolest content on a blog. For example, if you read this blog through Google reader then you don't know: what I am reading now, what I just read, what Lulu and I are reading now, or how many cookies she has sold. This is vital information here folks!

Nonetheless, if you are reading through Google reader then go back to the original blog site, every once in awhile, to see what else you might be missing. I do and I am pleasantly surprised every time.