 |
How do you read your favorite blogs? By typing each blog’s name into your search bar? Bookmarks? Folders? E-mail subscription? RSS feed Reader?
I use Google Reader and the Google “NEXT” button to read and view all of my favorite blogs quickly while still letting me go directly to the actual blog itself -all with one click.
I know there are many of you that do not know about this cool tool or how to add it to your browser toolbar and I wanted to share it with you in this post.
But first I wanted to reach out to all my subscribers who subscribe to my blog using Google Friends Connect. I am sure you know that Google Friends Connect is going away on all non-blogpsot.com blogs as of March 1st. That is only 2 days away! All of the blogs you read through GFC that are on WordPress or other platforms besides Blogger will not show up anymore.
If this affects you and you would still like to get my posts delivered directly to you, there are two ways to subscribe to In My Own Style. Subscribing is as easy as clicking the RSS or Email icons on the top of my blog’s sidebar. It looks like this:
RSS feed through a reader will take you to this page where you pick your reader.
Or an E-mail subscription will take you to this page where you will fill out your email address. You can also fill in your email in the sidebar box below the icons.
For anyone who gets their favorite blog posts delivered to their inbox, you may want to consider a “Reader”. Subscribing to your favorite blogs via a “reader” will keep your inbox from getting out of control and will save you time as there is less clicking to get to the content you want.
Google Reader collates all of your blogs in one stream that constantly checks those blogs for updates. At any given moment I can pull Google Reader up and see, at a glance, which of my blogs I subscribe to has new content. I can focus on that and no longer waste time checking blogs that have not been updated recently. I can tag posts I want to save, using keywords that make it easier to refer back to them later.
The only problem with using a reader is that I miss seeing the character of the blog’s design which is truly is a big part of the blog experience. A good blog design and layout gives a glimpse of the author’s personality and the tone of the blog, and all of that is lost in the convenience in a central reader stream. The Google NEXT button solves this.
The Next Button is a button that you install in your bookmarks toolbar. When you click this “Next” button you are taken directly to the site that has an updated new post in your Google Reader. Click on the “Next” button again and voila you are taken to the next new post of another blog with updated content that you subscribe to. The Next button makes the blog reading experience more rewarding, plus since you are going right to the blog page, it makes it easy to leave a comment. Quick, efficient and easy to connect to the blogger all in a click.
How To Install the Google Next Button
To install the “Next” button in your toolbar, make sure you have a Google Reader account established in your Google account. Subscribe to all of your favorite blogs in your Google Reader account and then go to your settings page in your Google Reader account page.
Up on the right side of the page will be where you access your Google products. It looks like this. When you click on the wheel symbol there will be a drop down.
Click on: Reader Settings near the bottom. It will take you to a page that looks like the one below.
-Click on the Goodies tab and scroll down until you see the Next button, which you then simply drag up to your bookmarks toolbar.
That is it. Now it is easy to leave comments and enjoy the blog’s design you’ve missed out on by only reading blogs by scrolling through your stream in Google Reader.
If you haven’t subscribed yet to In My Own Style and would like to – click below on the orange icon (RSS) or the envelope to subscribe by e-mail.
I have just learned about Blog Lovin. Thanks everyone who mentioned it.
Now I know of another way to easily follow my favorite blogs.
{ 23 comments… read them below or add one }
mmmm I’m with ya – love google reader & how easy it is to pop over & see the actual blog and post! and make a comment (like i am right here on your blog!) xo
Gladly following!
http://www.NorthernCottage.net
Thank you for being so helpful. You did a better job than I ever could, so I pasted a link to this post on my Facebook page for the benefit of my readers.
Hi Barbara- Thanks so much. XO
I never knew this existed!! I’m so doing this! Thanks for sharing.
This was so helpful! I am so new at this and there is a lot to figure out. Thanks for making it easier!
Hi Gloria-
So happy that the post helped you. I have a friend who didn’t know how to use a reader and she has been reading blogs by bookmarks and her e-mail for years. I have her to thank for giving me the idea to post about how I read blogs.
“The only problem with using a reader is that I miss seeing the character of the blog’s design…”
I read many blogs in a RSS reader for this very reason. It eliminates advertising, ugly backgrounds, boring headers, clashing colors and a host of other things I’d just soon not see. Rarely, I click on through to the actual blog because there’s more content that I really want to see. The really attractive blogs I mostly read from lists on my sidebars on my own blogs.
Hi Nell – When I am really busy – I use the stream as you can quickly edit what interests you. When I have more time – since I am so visual I enjoy seeing the designs of all the sites.
I follow hundreds of blogs and cannot imagine what I would do without bloglovin. When it was down a few months ago because of an upgrade I felt totally lost. I can “like” posts to read later or keep in a kind of archive, sort by type of blog, go to the sidebar and click on a blog and see multiple posts, see a thumbnail of the post etc… So I actually follow you on bloglovin.
Hi True Blue Me and You- I have heard of Blog Lovin, but have never looked into it. I will have to check it out to find out more. Thanks for following my blog using it. XO
Thanks for replying! It’s really the only way I will follow a blog now. You should go to bloglovin, verify your site, see how many people are following it there (you may be surprised to see where you rank), and then get the bloglovin widget to get more followers. This is how I faithfully scan and read all the blogs I want to follow now :)
I love tips like this, Diane. I have a question about this – if I install the “next” button will it also count the posts out of my Reader as well. I read blogs through my Google Reader, but I like to go into the blog usually. The only problem is that then I have to revert back to my REader to read the next post to get my reader number down (does that make sense?) I wish that once I went into the blog itself that the Reader knew that I read each of the posts pending. (HA – this is probably really confusing – we can chat on Saturday!)
Hi Holly-
You can go back and forth between Reader’s Stream and the Next button. It knows what you read. When using just the stream you have to mark the posts as read, but not when you use the Next button. I hope that makes sense. I will be able to explain it to you on Sat.
So cool! Thank you for sharing about the next button! I usually just rely on emails to keep current with which blogs I follow, but now I’ve snagged the “next button” to my browser bar, for a quick way to see who’s been up to what! TFS!
Hi Shelley-
One of my friends calls it the magic button. Click it and pouf – a new blog post! :)
Thank you for this, Diane! I have to admit, I’ve shied away from Reader because it was too full of blogs from Follow Me & I’ll Follow You Back. I’ve got it cleaned up now and will definitely add the Next button.
I just started using Bloglovin’ last week. All of the Crafter Minds are in there so I can quickly check all my friends (how I clicked here btw). You also see a thumbnail, which is kinda nice.
In another vein, do you remember the link to your Google+ gadget in your sidebar? I just noticed it and I’d love to use it too, if you can remember.
Have a great day!
Hi Coleen – I am going to have to check out Blog Lovin. I don’t know anything about it. So much to learn as a blogger. I found the widget for the Google+ button here – http://widgetsplus.com/
Holy cow, I never knew that existed but I love it!! I just installed it and am absolutely loving going through the blogs that way. Thanks for the tip!
Excellent information! Thank you for sharing!
Sharon
dexterdays-sdk.blogspot.com
Just set this up, thanks for the step by step!
This is the best thing since sliced bread! Wow, easy to see and just one click to get to new content. Thank you!
Great info on the Next option. Just discovered this option through google reader and I’m including a link to this great post on my blog post tomorrow. Thank you bunches!
I’m so happy I stumbled across this. It has changed my life. :-) I read in google reader and the unread ones tend to pile up. I am so so very happy now that I don’t have to scroll to the top now to click on the next one or put much thought into it really. This is a God-send. You rock!
{ 2 trackbacks }