Fav.or.it from London, RSS reader to beat Google Reader?

[podtech content=http://media1.podtech.net/media/2007/12/PID_013232/Podtech_Favorit.flv&postURL=http://www.podtech.net/home/4776/a-new-favorit-rss-reader&totalTime=687000&breadcrumb=f5c1e25b0f374a2eb5726d5e72c47b6a]

Here’s the interview I did with Nick Halstead of Fav.or.it. Does he convince you to give up your RSS reader? The lockin on RSS readers is so strong for me that I can’t move. But there’s still a lot of people who will need an RSS reader. Does Fav.or.it have a chance against bigger, more entrenched RSS readers like NewsGator, Bloglines, or Google Reader (which is really gaining momentum now)?

Interview done during the geek dinner. That’s why I carry my camera with me cause sometimes I get pitched so well that I just have to get it on tape.

Comments

  1. Project says:

    Love the comments stuff.

  2. Project says:

    Love the comments stuff.

  3. so are you going to chuck google reader now?

  4. so are you going to chuck google reader now?

  5. Tech For Novices: I thought I made that clear. No. I have more than 8,000 things in my link blog’s database. That’s lockin and I’m not giving it up. I might use it in conjunction, though.

  6. Tech For Novices: I thought I made that clear. No. I have more than 8,000 things in my link blog’s database. That’s lockin and I’m not giving it up. I might use it in conjunction, though.

  7. Andy C says:

    The integrated commenting and attention tracking are interesting features.

    The Trends and Recommendation Engine less so as Google Reader already does that.

    To succeed, they would obviously need a sizeable user base. However a sizeable user base would pose the inevitable questions about performance and scalability as, to do it properly, it sounds like they could be storing and mining a *lot* of data here.

    I predict with a no-quibble, money-back guarantee that GR will incorporate some or all of this functionality by the end of 2008.

    However, I can’t actually create and share slices, import OPML, actually use it or post a detailed review of fav.or.it because it’s currently a closed beta.

    Pity a UK company couldn’t spell favourite correctly and used the obligatory embedded Web 2.0 periods. That is so last year, don’t you think ?

  8. Andy C says:

    The integrated commenting and attention tracking are interesting features.

    The Trends and Recommendation Engine less so as Google Reader already does that.

    To succeed, they would obviously need a sizeable user base. However a sizeable user base would pose the inevitable questions about performance and scalability as, to do it properly, it sounds like they could be storing and mining a *lot* of data here.

    I predict with a no-quibble, money-back guarantee that GR will incorporate some or all of this functionality by the end of 2008.

    However, I can’t actually create and share slices, import OPML, actually use it or post a detailed review of fav.or.it because it’s currently a closed beta.

    Pity a UK company couldn’t spell favourite correctly and used the obligatory embedded Web 2.0 periods. That is so last year, don’t you think ?

  9. Scoble, I always like a challenge so I bet you a bottle of your favourite tipple that within 6 months I have managed to completely switch you over.

    Andy C, GR/Bloglines/etc will not be able to change their whole infrastructure that is designed to serve individual feeds to a system that is serving slices, we have built our database and infrastructure from the ground up to be able to do this, of course someone (Google included) is capable of copying but we don’t expect to see it for 12 month’s and that gives us time to get traction with the non-tech users who are incapable of using GR. And if you want a beta account just sign up and be one of the first to get an invite in January.

    I have also put up a video all about ‘human powered blogosphere search’ using fav.or.it - http://tinyurl.com/25s6d7

  10. Scoble, I always like a challenge so I bet you a bottle of your favourite tipple that within 6 months I have managed to completely switch you over.

    Andy C, GR/Bloglines/etc will not be able to change their whole infrastructure that is designed to serve individual feeds to a system that is serving slices, we have built our database and infrastructure from the ground up to be able to do this, of course someone (Google included) is capable of copying but we don’t expect to see it for 12 month’s and that gives us time to get traction with the non-tech users who are incapable of using GR. And if you want a beta account just sign up and be one of the first to get an invite in January.

    I have also put up a video all about ‘human powered blogosphere search’ using fav.or.it - http://tinyurl.com/25s6d7

  11. [...] If you’re new here, you may want to subscribe to our RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!I got interviewed by Robert Scoble at a recent Geek Dinner, I have done a post over on my personal blog about the evening. Video embedded below or view Scoble’s post. [...]

  12. Andrew Denny says:

    Well, Nick Halstead’s got a mountain to climb if he wants to persuade British users. Nothing irritates most of us like American spelling imposed on us unwillingly!

    I’ll wait for a more ‘colourful’ version to come along :-)

  13. Andrew Denny says:

    Well, Nick Halstead’s got a mountain to climb if he wants to persuade British users. Nothing irritates most of us like American spelling imposed on us unwillingly!

    I’ll wait for a more ‘colourful’ version to come along :-)

  14. [...] short interview (phew, thanks Robert) with Nick Halstead of fav.or.it that was done at the Geek Dinner in London recently. I met Nick a [...]

  15. [...] short interview (phew, thanks Robert) with Nick Halstead of fav.or.it that was done at the Geek Dinner in London recently. I met Nick a [...]

  16. Jamie says:

    There are obviously some misses identified here by fav.or.it. I hope Google Reader is paying attention. I could care less about the comments personally (though it is convenient). I think the recommendations are much better integrated though. Of course, that’s just based on what I’ve seen. And the Pipes-like filtering capability rocks. (Though I’m pretty sure the Google Reader team is working on that.)

    I would use it for re-publishing to Reader when I get a beta account in January. I just really like the interface and “starring” is now part of how I work and used across all of Google’s sites.

  17. Jamie says:

    There are obviously some misses identified here by fav.or.it. I hope Google Reader is paying attention. I could care less about the comments personally (though it is convenient). I think the recommendations are much better integrated though. Of course, that’s just based on what I’ve seen. And the Pipes-like filtering capability rocks. (Though I’m pretty sure the Google Reader team is working on that.)

    I would use it for re-publishing to Reader when I get a beta account in January. I just really like the interface and “starring” is now part of how I work and used across all of Google’s sites.

  18. Zee says:

    TechHorses…haha…

  19. Zee says:

    TechHorses…haha…

  20. weaverluke says:

    At Blog Friends, we already do a lot of what favorit and Google Reader do and/or promise to do, and quite a few things they don’t. We also have 22k users, including 12 of the Technorati Top 100, who seem to think we’re doing something right. I must say, though, the built-in comment management functionality of favorit does sound really nice. And with 100 million bloggers and more potential blog readers, it’s a huge potential mass market that has barely begun to be tapped, so plenty of room for all. May a million flowers bloom! : )

    http://apps.facebook.com/blogfriends

  21. weaverluke says:

    At Blog Friends, we already do a lot of what favorit and Google Reader do and/or promise to do, and quite a few things they don’t. We also have 22k users, including 12 of the Technorati Top 100, who seem to think we’re doing something right. I must say, though, the built-in comment management functionality of favorit does sound really nice. And with 100 million bloggers and more potential blog readers, it’s a huge potential mass market that has barely begun to be tapped, so plenty of room for all. May a million flowers bloom! : )

    http://apps.facebook.com/blogfriends

  22. weaverluke says:

    P.S. I should emphasiSe that all spelling in the Blog Friends app is very definitely British. Sorry, Robert. ; )

  23. weaverluke says:

    P.S. I should emphasiSe that all spelling in the Blog Friends app is very definitely British. Sorry, Robert. ; )

  24. Rajiv says:

    All your videos are great. However, I don’t understand why your audio sounds really like coming from the other end of the tunnel. The interviewees have great audio. Keep rocking

  25. Rajiv says:

    All your videos are great. However, I don’t understand why your audio sounds really like coming from the other end of the tunnel. The interviewees have great audio. Keep rocking

  26. [...] Fav.or.it from London, RSS reader to beat Google Reader? « Scobleizer — Tech geek blogger (No Ratings Yet)  Loading … [...]

  27. Konstantin says:

    Yes, Google Reader has got big share but personally I hate it.

    I use Mindity (http://www.mindity.com) all days — thanks for great interface and ton of useful features to discover.

  28. Konstantin says:

    Yes, Google Reader has got big share but personally I hate it.

    I use Mindity (http://www.mindity.com) all days — thanks for great interface and ton of useful features to discover.

  29. [...] Fav.or.it from London,RSS Reader to beat Google Reader? [...]

  30. [...] posts and comment on other people’s posts within the fav.or.it platform. For more, check out Robert Scoble’s interview with fav.or.it’s Nick Halstead. (Note: fav.or.it is still in beta so I haven’t been [...]

  31. [...] reader, switching is a bit more complicated. The so-called “lock-in” is strong for some users (like Scoble) – especially if you’re a big user of things like Google Reader’s Shared Items. On the other [...]

  32. [...] reader, switching is a bit more complicated. The so-called “lock-in” is strong for some users (like Scoble) – especially if you’re a big user of things like Google Reader’s Shared Items. On the other [...]

  33. [...] which is, by the way, a way to bring the blogosphere and feed-reading to the masses. I mean, hey, Scoble liked it, [...]

  34. [...] and commenting as mass market friendly as humanly possible. Despite praise from the likes of Robert Scoble, the site was early on misinterpreted as a traditional feed-reader, notably by Silicon Valley [...]

  35. [...] you are interested, check out this videos (techcrunch and robert scoble) as well as their blog and his [...]

  36. [...] ニュース系のサイトやブログとのインタラクションを簡素化する機能を多数搭載。 ファウンダーNick Halsteadは今後、フィード読み取りとコメントを可能な限りマス市場にすんなり馴染むものにするという中核目標にフォーカスしていく。 Robert Scobleみたいな人たちから絶賛を受けてるにも関わらず、サイトは当初、特にシリコンバレーのブロガーLouis Grayなどからは“昔ながらのフィードリーダー”として誤解を受けた。RSSリーダー愛好家にとってFav.or.itは物足りないだろう。Fav.or.itのサイトは2000ものフィードが用意されており、さらに3000フィードもうじき追加となるが、こうしたフィードを追加するのはFav.or.itであって利用者ではないからだ(少なくとも今のところは)。  [...]