I'm currently trying out the first public beta of the forthcoming version 1.6 of FeedDemon, the RSS aggregator for Windows.
This is the first development following NewsGator's acquisition of Bradsoft, the company who makes FeedDemon.
As a first beta, it's not bad. It does suffer from some obvious glitches, the most noticeable of which to me is how the program doesn't display individual news feeds in the correct sequence no matter what setting you define. That looks to me to be the same as happened with betas for version 1.5 earlier this year. Not a major issue I don't think, just a bit irritating, and hopefully will be addressed in the next beta.
There's also some issues with feed synchronization with NewsGator Online, although I'm still trying to figure out NewsGator Online. But that is a great feature, the ability to sync your FeedDemon feeds with a web-based service so you can get at your info from any PC with a net connection.
As I encounter odd things or have questions, I'm posting my thoughts, etc, in the new NewsGator FeedDemon beta forum.
One other thing I'm playing with is NewsGator's feature to display headlines in your blog from one or more of the RSS feeds you subscribe to. In TypePad, you do this by creating a typelist. So I've done one which captures the ten most recent posts from Headlines from PR Weblogs and displays excerpts. Pretty cool. You can see it in the right column on my main blog.
More thoughts later as I continue.
Why you put yourself into this unpredicatable pain.
Feeddemon already died as a stand alone news reader. Cause it's gonna be newsgator paid service's add-on. Newsgator is not a software company. They sell the service. Ridiculously the service is about that you need to pay to see your feeds even when feeds is everywhere these days.
They bought feeddemon. They ain't plan to sell the feeddemon software but to kill feeddemon market. It's like if you wanna use feeddemon after this you are gonna paid for newsgator's feeds subscibing service. If you won't paid for it, you won't see your feeds synchronized anymore.
This is exactly pain in the ass. They rent the software to you to let you see the feeds you paid for but you can read somewhere else for free?
Is this logical?
So if you don't want to rent the software for ever and never own it, it's time to leave feeddemon now. It's soon or later. Cause they don't even use serial number to activate product anymore. You need to use your paid online newsgator account to activate it. So nick's post about rethinking is a lie. You don't have a paid account, you won't able to activate feeddemon after you subscribition expires. Cause you don't have a paid newsgator account anymore. If your computer screws up one day, you need to reinstall your whole system including feeddemon but you won't be able to activate it in that period of time without a paid newsgator online account.
What you gonna do then? Or other situations similar like this.
It's time to screw up feeddemon as a stand alone newsgator for now. Cause its core is rotten now. It's not a software anymore. It's a door in the desktop environment you need to pay to pass to see the feeds free everywhere else just like newsgator outlook edition is not a software anymore but a door in the outlook environment you need to pay to pass to see the feeds free everywhere else.
This is newsgator's plan: kill you free pass in the desktop via feeddemon to news and rss and free pass in the outlook environment via outlook newsgator addon. Instead they build up two doors for you to rent to pass. At the end, news and rss is not free anymore. You need to pay to see it.
Feeddemon is dead as a software. It's a server based appendage like newsgator outlook version, it's like you need to pay to receive hotmail via outlook. But outlook still allow you to receive other email service like yahoo, feeddemon is newsgator server based only and won't allow you to use any other service other than newsgator.monopoly.
It's time for some other news aggregators to take over the empty space left by feeddemon and newgator in desktop and outlook news aggregator market.
Here they rise:Greatnews,intraVnews ,blogbot,rssowl,Awasu,Attensa!I don't believe in subscription-based software.
Posted by: deewa | 16 July 2005 at 10:20
Interesting comments, deewa - exactly the same as those in a post in the NewsGator FeedDemon beta forum this morning from someone called 'newsgutor.'
So here's what I said to newsgutor:
Quite a rant, newsguter! As a FeedDemon user, I don't quite see things the way you do.
But you've said something pretty important - "At the end, news and RSS is not free any more." I'd tend to broadly agree with you there but it's not that simple.
You can get news for free by visiting many, many places on the net. You can subscribe to that news for free using a variety of RSS methods - free aggregators, for instance, and in your browser (such as Firefox right now and IE 'soon').
FeedDemon is not free. I know you know that, but bear with me here. I started using FD last year, tried it on the trial, liked it and so coughed up the $ to buy it. I switched from a free RSS reader because FD offered features that I wanted that weren't in the free product. So I'm willing to pay for those features.
So, NewsGator bought Bradsoft and got hold of Nick Bradbury and his flagship RSS product. Now the business model has changed. As you point out, FeedDemon is now part of a subscription-based service. But you're wrong in thinking that FD will stop working if you decide not to renew your subscription (details in Nick's post last week on his blog: http://nick.typepad.com/blog/2005/07/rethinking_feed.html).
Or maybe you're objecting to the principle of a subscription-based service. Ok, I can understand that - either you're ok with it or you're not. Personally, I'm ok with it in how I understand how FD/NGOS will work. As I said, it's a different business model now. Here's what the May 17 press release which announced the acquisition says:
"Starting this summer, all paying NewsGator subscribers will get FeedDemon as part of their subscription packages at no additional charge. In addition, all FeedDemon and TopStyle customers will get a free 2-year NewsGator business subscription, which will include free updates of both NewsGator Outlook edition and FeedDemon."
(Full text here: http://www.newsgator.com/news/archive.aspx?post=58)
From where I sit, as a happy FD user, I am broadly ok with this. It looks a good deal to me - as a registered FD user, I can continue to get FD upgrades (at least, minor-version ones - as with nearly all desktop software), and I also get a free 2-year sub to a service that lets me synchronize my RSS info and access it all from any computer with a net connection. Looks a good deal for NewsGator subscribers as well. What's not to like?
I think another reason I'm ok with this deal is that an awful lot will happen in the next two years. During this time, we'll undoubtedly see many developments in how news and information is created, shared and consumed. RSS is evolving. The tools to use and manipulate your news and information are evolving.
So during this time, I'd expect NewsGator to keep on top of the changes. Or try to, at least, in a competitive market. As their products and services evolve, I'd also expect them to try to persuade me to buy more from them. All part of the business mix. I'd also expect to look at what else is out there.
Boy, is this a great time to be a customer! So much choice. And that's the great thing - you do have a choice.
* See the forum thread here: http://www.newsgator.com/forum/shwmessage.aspx?ForumID=7&MessageID=6229
Posted by: Nevon | 16 July 2005 at 11:28
feeddemon won't work after your subscribtion runs out.
To prove this point, I already did a experiment. I used my credit card to updgrade my account to business standard. Then I installd feeddemon 1.6beta fine when I activated it with my business standard account.
Then I canceled my subscribition in the trail period, tried to reinstall my whole system including windows and feeddemon 1.6beta. Again feeddemon needed me to put my account to active it. But this time it wasn't activated. Cause my account wasn't a paid account anymore.
So nick is lieing about once you own feeddemon, you own it forever.
If you don't reinstall your windows, off course feeddemon will be fine even after your subscription runs out. But who can guarantee you won't need to reinstall your windows. For exemple, you system is scrwed up by virus and then you need to reinstall your whole system, then again you won't be able to activate without a paid newsgator account. Since newsgator server can't tell the diffrence between ex-paid customer and never-paid customer.
So I can protect my investment on the feeddemon againast all oods!
Answering me, my dear listening frind.
Posted by: deewa | 16 July 2005 at 11:59
Well, as I said in my earlier comment, you do have a choice.
Trying your experiment with a beta release isn't too smart. Especially with the very first beta which definitely has quite a few kinks as you'll know from the feedback in the beta forum.
If I were you, I'd look for a different RSS reader that better meets your needs.
Posted by: Nevon | 17 July 2005 at 22:35